Coffee Consumption and Coronary Artery Calcium Score

Coffee is one of the dietary factors associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) but its role in the cardiovascular system is not yet clear. Moreover, available evidence for the relation between coffee intake with subclinical atherosclerosis is limited and inconsistent. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between habitual coffee consumption and the presence of subclinical atherosclerosis measured as coronary artery calcium (CAC) in the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil). This is a cross-sectional study based on baseline data from participants of the cohort ELSA-Brasil. In this analysis, only participants living in São Paulo with no prior history of CVD aged 35 to 74 years who underwent a CAC measurement (n=4,426) were included. Dietary data were collected using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Coronary calcification was detected with computed tomographic and it was expressed as Agatston units. CAC was further categorized as 0 or >0, and <100 or ?100.