Coffee, Caffeine, and Heart Rhythm Disturbances

One of the greatest arguments for the harmful side effects of caffeine is the fact that it can cause heart rhythm disturbances in some people.

However, it has never been determined whether or not this rhythm disturbance equates to an increased risk of hospitalization because of it. In fact, a recent study shows that drinking caffeine in coffee form actually decreases the risk that someone might be hospitalized because of heart rhythm problems.

Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Oakland, CA recently conducted a study in which the coffee drinking habits of 130,054 men and women were assessed along with their medical history. The research showed that those who had 4 or more cups of coffee a day (400mg of caffeine or more) had an 18% lower risk off being hospitalized because of heart rhythm disturbances while those that consumed at least 1-3 cups had a 7% lower risk.

The head researcher, Arthur Klatsky MD, says that while other factors could have been involved here and that this study doesn’t prove that coffee has a protective effect, it does however, show that coffee drinkers are not harming themselves from drinking the caffeine or increasing their risk of hospitalization due to heart rhythm problems.

In any event, this is good news for the caffeine consuming public, especially those that have 400mg or more of caffeine everyday. However, don’t go crazy people. This isn’t a license to throw common sense out the window.