Coffee and Heart Attacks

This article from Yahoo News notes that people who are "slow caffeine metabolizers" are more likely to have a nonfatal heart attack if they drink two cups of coffee or more a day. In this study the researchers believed the ability to metabolize coffee is a genetic trait. The authors stated that there is no commercially available test to see if your body metabolizes caffeine well.

This is interesting because there are alternative health tests to see how well phase one of you liver detoxification process is working that involve a caffeine challenge test. In alternative health, caffeine processing is generally thought not to rely mostly on genetics but on how well your liver is working. In holistic medicine, how well your liver is working is thought to depend upon factors such as exposure to chemicals and toxins, proper diet, etc.

The truth about people who are slow caffeine metabolizers probably lies somewhere in between environmental, genetic and dietary factors. I can tolerate more caffeine when I'm eating healthier, but never more than a cup or so at most. Yet I know some people who can drink coffee all day long and not seem to have any side effects from it.