New report reveals coffee makers have substances that can elevate LDL cholesterol
Coffee machines found in workplaces can be bad for your employees' health, as a new study revealed that they have substances linked to higher cholesterol levels.
The study, conducted by a team of scientists from Uppsala University and Chalmers University of Technology, recently looked at how coffee machines in workplaces can filter cafestol and kahweol.
Cafestol and Kahweol are coffee-specific diterpenes that have long been linked to increased LDL cholesterol levels, raising the risk for cardiovascular disease.
The study found that the most common type of coffee machine, called a brewing machine, produced the highest concentrations of diterpenes.
"We studied 14 coffee machines and could see that the levels of these substances are much higher in coffee from these machines than from regular drip-filter coffee makers," said David Iggman, researcher at Uppsala University, in a statement.
"Most of the coffee samples contained levels that could feasibly affect the levels of LDL cholesterol of people who drank the coffee, as well as their future risk of cardiovascular disease."
According to the report, one explanation for the elevated diterpene levels in brewing machine coffee is the lack of a fine filter, which allows more of these substances to pass through.
"From this we infer that the filtering process is crucial for the presence of these cholesterol-elevating substances in coffee," Iggman said.
"Obviously, not all coffee machines manage to filter them out. But the problem varies between different types of coffee machines, and the concentrations also showed large variations over time."
The findings come as many workplaces across the world introduce free coffee as a perk amid their office-return policies amid strong demand from employees.
In fact, data from Flavia in 2023 revealed that offering free beverages was the most requested perk to encourage employees to work from an office, with over eight in 10 employees saying having free beverages at work would make them feel valued.
The report found that 66% of on-site employees consider a hot coffee as their go-to first drink, with 77% of the respondents saying they need two or three cups to feel productive throughout their workday, Tea & Coffee Trade Journal reported.
But with the recent study, employers might need to ensure that their coffee machines can filter out cholesterol-elevating substances.
It noted that a regular drip-filter coffee maker, which uses a paper filter, can almost completely filter out these substances.
"Based on the concentrations of cafestol and kahweol in investigated machine coffees, thoroughly filtered coffee seems like the preferable choice for cardiovascular health," the report read.
It further noted that filtered coffee should be preferred, even in workplace settings.
"For people who drink a lot of coffee every day, it's clear that drip-filter coffee, or other well-filtered coffee, is preferable," said Iggman, who led the study.
