A new study suggests that drinking up to four cups of per day is not associated with any harmful side effects.
Previous studies had warned that too much consumption of coffee daily could increase the risk of certain health conditions. Since 2003, several studies were published about the risk of overconsumption of caffeine.
Now, researchers from International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) have conducted a systematic review of the published studies since 2001 until 2015 to confirm whether the issues regarding the harmful effect of coffee in the body are true or not.
The researchers evaluated more than 740 studies to analyze the caffeine-related side effects in five areas: cardiovascular, acute toxicity, behavior, bone/calcium, and reproductive development. The effects of 400 milligrams/day of coffee among adults were compared to 2.5 mg/day for children and adolescents, and 300 mg/day for pregnant women.
In their findings, the average caffeine limit for daily consumptions was found to be 165 mg for all age groups. The researchers confirmed that 400 mg of caffeine consumption is safe for healthy adults, while children can take up to 2.5 mg of caffeine a day. The study was published in the journal Food and Chemical Toxicology.
According to Dr. Eric Hentges, executive director of ILSI North America, the previous studies did not include a comparative analysis to confirm if too much caffeine consumption is harmful. Hentges and with his colleagues also found that the levels of caffeine intake among healthy caffeine drinkers are not linked to any detrimental side effects.
They also explained that some people are caffeine sensitive, while others are not so the study about the effects of caffeine in the body would vary on a case-to-case basis. Factors such as age, genetic, body mass, health conditions, medications, and anxiety disorder increase the risk of caffeine sensitivity.
However, the researchers also advise that pregnant women should consume caffeine carefully. According to National Institutes of Health, pregnant women who consume more than two caffeinated beverages per day may likely to miscarry.