- Drinking coffee may support protect against the development of irritable bowel syndrome or ease its symptoms in some people, according to a up-to-date meta-analysis.
- The meta-analysis included data from 432,022 participants from eight studies.
- In five of these, coffee had a protective effect against the disease, while in three it appeared to have the opposite effect.
- Irritable bowel syndrome affects women more often than men.
A recent meta-analysis examining data from several studies on the same topic to determine overall trends found that coffee consumption may support prevent and alleviate irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). The meta-analysis aims to sort out conflicting reports and indeed suggests that coffee’s protection against IBS may not apply to everyone.
According to a meta-analysis, coffee drinkers are 16% less likely to develop IBS than non-coffee drinkers. This is true for people who regularly drink any amount of coffee.
The analysis was based on eight studies that met the investigators’ research standards. These studies were selected from an initial group of 187 studies identified in the EMBASE, PubMed, and Cochrane Library databases as of March 31, 2023.
To be eligible, studies had to be randomized, controlled, or cross-sectional that focused on the correlation between coffee drinking and IBS. They also had to be in English.
The last eight studies included 432,022 people.
The meta-analysis posits that the conflicting results of previous studies may have something to do with the complexity of coffee. It contains more than a hundred compounds that can vary widely depending on source, roast, grind and preparation method. These details are not always specified in the studies.
Many studies relied on self-report questionnaires regarding both coffee and IBS, which could lead to misclassification and confounding issues.
The meta-analysis was published in the journal Nutrients.
The authors of the meta-analysis suggest that the link between the two phenomena has to do with bioactive molecules contained in coffee.
Senior Study Investigator, Dr. Qin Xiang Ngfrom the National University of Singapore explained Medical News Today:
“Coffee is a polyphenol-rich beverage. Coffee contains several bioactive compounds such as polyphenols, diterpenes, trigonelline, and melanoidins.”
Gastroenterologist Dr. Babak Firoozinot involved in this study, also emphasized that compounds found in coffee “have antioxidant, antifibrotic, and anti-inflammatory properties, and also affect gut microbiota, bile acids, gut motility, and gut permeability.”
“These properties could potentially benefit irritable bowel syndrome,” Dr. Firoozi said.
Dr. Ng said that of the eight studies included in the meta-analysis, three actually found that coffee worsened irritable bowel syndrome.
“It should be noted, however, that all three studies were cross-sectional, may contain some biases, and cannot prove a causal relationship between coffee consumption and the risk of irritable bowel syndrome,” he cautioned.
Cross-sectional studies only detect associations and cannot prove a causal relationship between them.
Dr. Firoozi explained that the results of these three studies may not be all that surprising, considering that coffee can sometimes interfere with digestion.
“Coffee can also be a powerful laxative thanks to many of these bioactive compounds. Not only can the caffeine in coffee stimulate motility, but other molecules in coffee support promote bowel movements by increasing intestinal transit,” he explained.
“This is why, “coffee may not be helpful for some people with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome and may even worsen symptoms” Dr. Firoozi said.
Therefore, he stated: “I do not recommend drinking coffee regularly just for irritable bowel syndrome.”
He added that the situation is different for patients with fatty liver disease. He recommends that they drink at least one cup of coffee a day, including decaffeinated coffee. Coffee, he said, “is known to reduce liver fibrosis. It also helps prevent gallstones.”
“This is a very engaging study that shows the potential benefits of coffee and its positive effects on IBS. These positive effects include changing the gut microbiota, improving gut motility and permeability, and reducing gut sensitivity,” Dr. Firoozi said of the meta-analysis.
“However, the results of meta-analysis may be incomplete and complex to interpret unambiguously,” he noted.
“I hope this study will lead to a more stalwart, long-term, longitudinal study that looks at the effects of coffee consumption not only in preventing IBS but also as an intervention to support people with IBS symptoms,” Dr. Firoozi added.
Reflecting on the significance of this meta-analysis and future research directions, Dr. Ng said: MNT:
“Overall, current evidence suggests a potential protective effect of coffee against IBS. We know that coffee drinking is protected at expected levels of human consumption, and coffee may have gut health benefits that need to be further explored in immense prospective cohort studies.”
IBS is a common gastrointestinal disorder. It causes hypersensitivity in the digestive tract and can cause muscle spasms in the intestines.
The result is abdominal pain, bloating, cramps, constipation, and/or diarrhea. IBS is often accompanied by excess gas.
However, IBS does not raise the risk of colon cancer.
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It affects women more often than men, and its incidence varies by geographic location. There is
