Coffee can protect from intestinal cancer

Coffee consumption can reduce the risk of intestinal cancer by 15-25 percent of – quotes The Daily Telegraph newspaper, referring to the datas of U.S. researchers.

A study of almost half-a-million people concluded that the drinks can cut the risk of developing a tumour by between 15 per cent and 25 per cent.
Some previous studies have hinted that coffee could have a protective effect, but their findings have been inconclusive.

Researchers at the U.S. National Cancer Research Institute in Rockville, Maryland, have found evidence of a possible protective effect. They looked at 490,000 people who agreed to have their health monitored for a decade, after answering questions about their way of life and diet in the mid-1990s.

Among the sixth who said they drank four or more cups a day, the risk of being diagnosed with bowel or rectal cancer over the decade was 15 per cent lower than non-drinkers of coffee. Among those who drank at least six cups a day, their risk was 24 per cent lower.
The researchers noted that drinking decaffeinated coffee appeared to have some beneficial effect, although it was not as strong, while drinking tea had no observable effect.

They concluded: “Additional investigations of coffee intake and its components in the prevention of colorectal cancer are warranted.”  (MTI)