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By: Ellen Wan
Beverages are integral to the daily routines of many people. However, two new studies have found that regularly drinking fruit juices, carbonated drinks, and coffee may increase the risk of stroke, while opting for water and tea appears to have the opposite effect.
A stroke occurs when there is an insufficient blood supply to any part of the brain, leading to damage of brain cells due to a lack of oxygen. Strokes can be divided into ischemic strokes (caused by blood clots or narrowing of blood vessels) and hemorrhagic strokes (caused by rupture of blood vessels that cause bleeding within the brain).
Juice, Soda, and Stroke Risks
A 2024 study published in the Journal of Stroke, examined the association between beverage intake and stroke risk among subjects from 32 countries, whose average age was 61.7 years. The researchers used a questionnaire survey involving 13,462 first-time stroke patients and 13,488 age- and gender-matched controls without a history of stroke to analyze their daily consumption of various beverages.
The findings indicated that compared with people who do not consume carbonated drinks (including sugary drinks and drinks with artificial sweeteners), those who drink more carbonated beverages are at a higher risk of stroke, with a 2.29-fold increase in the risk of all types of strokes and a 2.39-fold increase in ischemic stroke risk. Moreover, drinking a carbonated drink up to once a day was associated with a 1.58-fold increase in the risk of hemorrhagic stroke.
Regarding fruit juices, drinking up to once a day was linked to a 1.37-fold increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke, while consuming it twice a day raised the risk to 3.18-fold.
However, there was no significant association between juice or juice drink consumption and all strokes or ischemic strokes.
Conversely, higher water intake was associated with a significant reduction in the risk of all types of strokes and ischemic stroke.
For example, drinking 7-8 glasses of water per day was associated with a 16 percent and 18 percent lower risk, respectively, while drinking more than eight glasses of water per day was associated with a 23 percent and 28 percent lower risk. Water intake was not significantly associated with the risk of hemorrhagic stroke.
“Not all fruit drinks are created equal,” Andrew Smyth, professor of clinical epidemiology at the University of Galway and consultant physician at Galway University Hospital, who led the study, said in a press release. Freshly squeezed juices are most likely to bring health benefits, but fruit drinks made from concentrates and containing large amounts of added sugar and preservatives may be harmful to health, he added.
Studies show that the more frequently you drink carbonated drinks, the greater your chance of having a stroke, Smyth added. “As a doctor and as someone who has researched the risk of stroke, we would encourage people to avoid or minimize their consumption of fizzy and fruit drinks, and to consider switching to water instead.”
Coffee, Tea Consumption and Stroke Risk
Smyth’s team studied the relationship between tea and coffee consumption and stroke risk, resulting in another publication in the International Journal of Stroke.
This research showed that drinking more than four cups of coffee daily was associated with a 37 percent increased risk of all strokes, but lower coffee intake — fewer than four cups a day — was not associated with stroke risk.
Tea consumption, particularly black and green tea, appeared to lower stroke risk. Drinking 3-4 cups of black tea daily was linked to a 29 percent reduction in stroke risk, while consuming five or more cups of green tea per day correlated with a 30 percent lower risk. However, the beneficial effects of tea on stroke risk diminished if milk was added, possibly due to milk interfering with the antioxidants in tea.
The association between coffee consumption and stroke risk has yielded variable results in prior investigations. However, a prospective cohort study published in 2021 found that consistent intake of coffee and tea, particularly two to three cups of each per day, correlated with a 32 percent reduction in stroke risk relative to non-consumers.
The Importance of Caffeine Regulation
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) states that for most adults, it is generally safe to consume 400 milligrams of caffeine per day, which is about two to three 12-fluid ounce cups of coffee. But be aware that people vary greatly in how sensitive they are to caffeine and how quickly it is excreted from the body.
In addition, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends consuming less than 200 milligrams of caffeine per day during pregnancy, which is the amount in a single 12-fluid-ounce cup of coffee.
Who Should Limit Coffee Intake
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) classifies coffee as “warm” in nature, Cai Renyu, deputy director of Taiwan’s Qizi Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic, said in an interview with The Epoch Times.
In TCM, most foods have either “cold” or “hot” properties. Eating cold foods will increase the cooling effect on the body, while eating hot foods will achieve the opposite result. Therefore, the body can be balanced through proper intake of cold and hot foods.
She highlighted that those with specific bodily constitutions should avoid excessive coffee consumption:
Yin Deficiency: This refers to the lack of blood, body fluid and other moisturizing substances in the body, which makes it impossible to balance energy. Such people often feel hot and dry, and the palms of their hands and soles of their feet often feel hot.
Hot and Dry: A physical state characterized by heat and dryness. People with this kind of constitution usually have high internal heat and are prone to dry mouth and constipation.
Damp-Heat: There is accumulation of heat or damp heat in the body. Oils and waste that cannot be metabolized or excreted normally will accumulate in the body, forming moisture inside. People with a damp-heat constitution often have sticky stools, reduced urination frequency, darker urine, and acne on their face.
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: The body experiences persistent fatigue symptoms and cannot recover.
Cai added that people who are not suitable for drinking too much coffee can still drink in moderation as long as they pay attention to the quality of the coffee. She recommends choosing the lightly roasted version, with reduced extraction time, and be careful not to drink it every day.
A habit of drinking one cup every two or three days and controlling caffeine intake between 50 to 100 milligrams would be ideal, she noted. Also try to eat as little heat-inducing foods, such as grilled food, fried food, spicy food, cookies, as possible.
Managing Caffeine Withdrawal
For some people, cutting back on caffeine can be a challenge.
Sudden reduction in caffeine intake may trigger withdrawal symptoms, such as headache, fatigue, irritability, and difficulty concentrating but these symptoms are usually mild and typically subside within a few days.
For people who are used to drinking a lot of coffee, Cai suggests that they first slowly reduce their caffeine intake and choose drinks with a similar taste, such as barley tea, as an alternative.
