Australian study: Women over 65 years old who drink more than 5 cups of coffee a day have lower hip bone density, but 2 to 3 cups have no significant effect

[Health Channel/Comprehensive Report] Australian research found that women over the age of 65 who drank more than 5 cups of coffee a day had lower hip bone density than those who drank less; however, no obvious adverse effects were found with a moderate intake of 2 to 3 cups a day. Food and agriculture expert Wayne pointed out that studies have also observed that people with the habit of drinking tea have slightly higher total hip bone density, but the study is an observational study and cannot directly prove that drinking coffee or tea is the cause of the difference in bone density.

Wayne shared in a Facebook post that a research team from Australia's Flinders University analyzed nearly 9,700 elderly American women and followed them for about 10 years. The results found that women over 65 who drank more than five cups of coffee a day had lower hip bone density than those who drank less. A moderate intake of 2 to 3 cups a day showed no harm to the bones. However, the total hip bone density of people who drank tea was slightly higher than that of people who did not drink tea at all.

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Why is this happening? Wayne explained that the team's proposed explanation is compositional differences. The catechins in tea are thought to promote bone building, while the caffeine in coffee has been observed in laboratory studies to interfere with calcium absorption and bone metabolism. Co-author Ryan Liu said: "In comparison, coffee's caffeine has been shown to interfere with calcium absorption and bone metabolism in laboratory studies, but these effects are small and can be offset by adding milk."

The study also mentioned that it is worth noting that the impact of coffee will be amplified by other factors. The study found an interaction between coffee and alcohol intake, with the association between heavy coffee drinking and low bone density being stronger among women who drank more. On the contrary, there is an interaction between tea and BMI. The benefits of drinking tea on bone density in obese women seem to be more prominent.

Wayne cautions that this is an observational study and what is seen is a correlation. The researchers themselves were very conservative. Enwu Liu, adjunct associate professor at the School of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University, said: "Our results do not mean that you have to quit coffee or start drinking tea." "But these results do show that drinking tea in moderation may be a simple way to support bone health, while very large amounts of coffee intake may not be ideal, especially for women with drinking habits."

Wayne added that converted into the daily life of Taiwanese people, 5 cups of coffee a day is about the equivalent of drinking medium cups from the supermarket five times in a row. Most people may not reach this amount, and it is easy to add milk. This means that the latte that Taiwanese people are accustomed to drinking can offset the negative effects.