Coffee keeps turning up in health research, and a new Cedars-Sinai analysis says the liver may be one of its biggest beneficiaries.

The study used UK Biobank data from about 500,000 people aged 40 to 69, tracked for decades with a wide range of health information. By 2023, 30,000 researchers had registered to use the UK Biobank data, and more than 9,000 peer-reviewed articles based on it had been published.

Researchers at Cedars-Sinai, including assistant professor of Medicine Hyunseok Kim and colleagues Shelly Lu and Ju Dong Yang, examined cases of cirrhosis, liver cancer and liver-related death.

Compared to non-coffee drinkers, the analysis found coffee drinkers had a 32 percent lower risk of cirrhosis, a 47 percent lower risk of developing liver cancer and a 42 percent lower risk of liver-disease-related death.

The findings build on earlier research from the same dataset. In a previous study of half a million people with known coffee consumption levels, coffee drinkers had a 21 percent reduced risk of chronic liver disease, a 20 percent reduced risk of fatty liver disease and a 49 percent reduced risk of death from chronic liver disease, compared to non-coffee drinkers.

The new analysis also looked at blood protein data. It found coffee drinkers had higher levels of proteins associated with healthy liver function.

The report said the effect seen at five cups a day also appeared in people who drank decaf.

“Our findings support moderate coffee consumption for people who already enjoy and tolerate it well,” said study senior author Ju Dong Yang, medical director of the Liver Cancer Program at Cedars-Sinai.

“However, we would not recommend that someone begin drinking coffee solely for liver protection based on this study alone. Prevention should continue to focus on maintaining a healthy weight, limiting alcohol, exercising regularly, and managing blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol.”

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