Could Coffee Consumption Cut Hepatitis Risk in Heavy Drinkers?

Findings from a study presented at the American College of Gastroenterology meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada, suggest that those who drink coffee on a regular basis are much less likely to develop alcoholic hepatitis than those who don't drink coffee.

Naga P. Chalasani, MD, FACG, FAASLD, professor and director of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Indiana University School of Medicine, led the case-control study of 340 heavy drinkers, which also found that those with the PNPLA3 C/C genotype demonstrated a significantly lower risk of alcohol hepatitis compared with those with the PNPLA3 G/G genotype.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

RELATED CONTENT
Drinking 3 Cups of Coffee A Day Reduces Mortality Risk
Could Drinking Coffee Be Linked to Atrial Fibrillation? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The study examined various factors in 189 heavy drinkers, defined as men consuming an average of at least 60 g of ethanol daily and women consuming at least 40 g for the past 5 years and acknowledging current active drinking, all of whom were diagnosed with alcoholic hepatitis. In addition, 150 equally heavy drinkers without the condition were studied.

Overall, slightly more than 25% of coffee-drinking participants with the C/C genotype had alcoholic hepatitis, compared with 86% of those with the G/G genotype who didn't consume coffee. Just 20% of individuals in the hepatitis group reported drinking coffee regularly, compared with 43% in the control group. The median self-reported daily consumption of coffee in the hepatitis group was 1 cup, compared with 3 cups daily among the nonhepatitis control group.

The odds ratio for hepatitis in those with the C/C genotype was 1.89 after controlling for coffee drinking and other factors, Dr Chalasani reported, adding that there also seemed to be an interaction between PNPLA3 genotype and coffee habits. Those with the C/C genotype who also drank coffee regularly demonstrated the lowest likelihood of developing hepatitis, while those with the G/G genotype who didn't consume coffee displayed the highest risk.

"These observations are preliminary and need validation," said Dr Chalasani, who urged primary care physicians to encourage their patients with significant alcohol consumption to cut back in the meantime.

"My worry is that there is not sufficient attention to heavy drinking in primary care practices, ie, asking carefully about problem drinking," Dr Chalasani added. "Microbreweries and wineries are sprouting [up everywhere], and there is an escalation of alcohol consumption."

—Mark McGraw

Reference:

Chalasani N, Crabb DW, Sanyal AJ. Acute alcoholic hepatitis in the United States: clinical characteristics, outcomes and relationship with PNPLA3 genotype and coffee drinking. Presented at: American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting and Postgraduate Course; October 17, 2016; Las Vegas, Nevada.