High levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol can be found in unfiltered coffee, but a simple filter can reduce them.
Researchers at Uppsala University studied 17 common coffee machines and brewing techniques to measure the levels of diterpenes, compounds that have been linked to increased LDL cholesterol. They found that boiling a big pot of coffee is the worst offender, but filtering it can offset those levels.
The team calculated the benefits of swapping machine-cooked coffee for paper-filtered java. For a person drinking three cups of coffee a day, five days a week, switching to filtered coffee could reduce LDL cholesterol by 13% over 5 years and 36% over 40 years.
Manual brewing methods generally resulted in lower diterpene levels than machine-brewed coffee. Espresso was the worst way to make coffee, with high levels of cafestol, but even liquid and brewing machine models had relatively low levels when filtered.
A fabric filter can significantly reduce diterpene levels in boiled coffee, making it a safer option for those who brew their coffee this way. The study’s findings join a growing body of research on the health effects of coffee, highlighting the importance of how it is brewed and consumed.
Source: https://www.sciencealert.com/how-you-make-your-coffee-could-affect-your-cholesterol-levels