"Is the world shaking, or is it just me?"
Coffee drinking is associated with lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to the current issue of Archives of Internal Medicine. Tea and decaffeinated coffee seem to have the same effect. Each additional daily cup of coffee reduced the risk by seven percent.
These beverages may have one or more phytochemicals that that alter blood sugar physiology. ["Phyto" is Greek for "plant."] If the experts can figure out which chemicals are involved, it may lead to new drugs to prevent and treat diabetes 10 or 20 years down the road.
In the meantime, don’t feel too guilty about drinking two or three cups of coffee a day, especially if you have risk factors for developing type 2 diabetes. Common risk factors are family history of diabetes, overweight, high-glycemic-index eating, and sedentary lifestyle.
Reference: Huxley, Rachel, et al. Coffee, decaffeinated coffee, and tea consumption in relation to incident type 2 diabetes mellitus: A systematic review with meta-analysis. Archives of Internal Medicine, 22 (2009): 2,053-2,063.
