High coffee intake may lower bone density in older women, study shows

A longitudinal analysis conducted by Flinders University examined the relationship between beverage consumption and bone health in almost 10,000 women aged 65 and older over a ten-year period. Participants reported their daily intake of coffee and tea while researchers measured bone mineral density at the hip and femoral neck. The findings indicated that moderate coffee consumption (about two to three cups) did not affect bone density, but drinking more than five cups per day was associated with lower hip bone density.

Conversely, women who regularly drank tea exhibited a modest but statistically significant increase in total hip bone density. The negative impact of high coffee intake was more pronounced among women with higher lifetime alcohol use, while the positive association with tea was stronger in women with obesity. The authors note that the effects are small and should not prompt drastic dietary changes, but they highlight tea as a simple potential aid for bone health and caution against excessive coffee, particularly for alcohol-consuming women.