Drinking coffee has been associated with having a faster heart rate, but a new study led by researchers from the University of California, San Francisco found that caffeine consumption is not linked with extra heartbeats.
The researchers said a faster heart rate is not an effect of caffeine consumption, but it could be related to an underlying heart problem that could lead to stroke or death later on.
Present guidelines from the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association recommend that patients with premature ventricular contractions or premature heartbeats who have a history of premature extra heartbeats should avoid factors that can worsen their condition, such as caffeine, nicotine and alcohol. However, more recent research has been showing that caffeine rich foods like chocolate, coffee and tea offer benefits for heart health.
The discrepancy between the two opinions leave many people unsure of which one to follow, although a lot of them end up following the clinical recommendations and cutting back on their caffeine consumption.
"Clinical recommendations advising against the regular consumption of caffeinated products to prevent disturbances of the heart's cardiac rhythm should be reconsidered, as we may unnecessarily be discouraging consumption of items like chocolate, coffee and tea that might actually have cardiovascular benefits," senior study author Dr. Gregory Marcus said in a statement. "Given our recent work demonstrating that extra heartbeats can be dangerous, this finding is especially relevant."
The researchers followed the chronic caffeine consumption of 1,388 volunteers who participated in the Cardiovascular Health Study of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. The participants, who were on a 24-hour electrocardiography monitoring, recorded their caffeine intake daily. Data were collected for a year.
The researchers found that 61 percent of the study volunteers had more than one serving of caffeinated food in a day, but their premature atrial contractions and premature ventricular contractions remained the same. Consuming more caffeine-rich food did not result in extra heartbeats.
However, the study only investigated the effect of chronic caffeine consumption.
"Whether acute consumption of these caffeinated products affects extra heartbeats requires further study," lead study author Shalini Dixit said.
"As certain caffeinated products may have cardiovascular benefits, recommendations against them may be detrimental," the authors concluded.
The study was published online Jan. 26 in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
