Coffee and cigarettes harmful

Drinking coffee along with cigarette smoking may lead to damage of arteries.

In a recent study of 24 healthy young adults, it was found that the combination of smoking and coffee (caffeine) consumption temporarily increased stiffness in the aorta, the main artery carrying blood from the heart to the rest of the body. In fact, the effect of the cigarette-caffeine combination was more than the sum of the effects of each.

The aorta is the largest artery in the body, and stiffness in the large arteries contributes to high blood pressure and forces the heart to work harder to meet the body's needs. Over time, this can lead to complications such as heart attack and stroke.

Researchers from the Athens Medical School in Greece conducted a second phase study involving 160 healthy adults. It was found that those who were regular smokers and coffee drinkers showed the greatest stiffness of the aorta. This suggests that the tobacco and caffeine may interact and work in a synergistic manner to harm the arteries over the long run.

The findings suggest that smokers should quit smoking. For those who are yet to quit, should avoid heavy coffee consumption. They should not have a cup of coffee along with a cigarette.

Older adults and those with high blood pressure may be especially vulnerable to the combined effects of tobacco and caffeine.

For the first phase of their study, researchers used non-invasive measures to estimate aortic stiffness in 24 healthy young adults who were regular smokers and caffeine consumers. 

The measurements were taken before and after each of four conditions: smoking one cigarette; smoking a cigarette after taking the equivalent of two coffee cups worth of caffeine; puffing on a sham cigarette; having a sham cigarette after taking phoney caffeine pills.

It was found that aortic stiffness was greatest after the cigarette-caffeine combination. The results of the larger, population study, where participants ranged in age from 18 to 60 confirmed a similar one-two punch in those who regularly smoked and drank coffee.

The immediate effects that caffeine and smoking had on the aorta may have to do with the release of certain hormones and central nervous system chemicals that affect artery function, blood pressure and heart rate. Yet more research is required to find out how regular caffeine intake affects the health and function of the arteries over time.