Study links higher coffee intake to lower body fat and greater muscle mass

HELSINKI, Finland — A study from the University of Oulu, published in the European Journal of Nutrition, found an association between higher coffee consumption and lower body fat as well as higher skeletal muscle mass, while body mass index showed no meaningful difference. Researchers analyzed data from 2,264 participants with an average age of 46 at a single point in time, without long-term follow-up. Hormonal responses varied by sex. In men, higher coffee intake was linked to more favorable glucose and insulin readings, along with increases in total and bioavailable testosterone and in sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG). In women, the association was weaker and largely limited to higher SHBG and lower free androgen levels. In both sexes, high coffee consumption was associated with reduced circulating levels of branched-chain amino acids, which the researchers noted have been linked in prior research to insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and fatty liver when chronically elevated. Nutrition specialist Luka Verost from the University of Oulu said the links between coffee, metabolism and hormones remain only partly understood. Because the study did not establish causality, the authors called for long-term and intervention-based research.