Coffee intake can shrink breast size, study finds

Sweden, October 19: Do you often gulp down espressos and cappuccinos? Beware! Taking down more than three cups of coffee a day may cut down your bra size, a recent Swedish research suggests. Coffee, a caffeine-fueled beverage, actually causes the breasts to shrink, the researchers warn.

Though the exact basis of the idea is still not known, Helena Jernstrom, an oncologistdefine at Lund University in southern Sweden believes the effect is the result of a gene (genetic material) that about half of all women possess.

The study enrolled nearly 300 women, all coffee lovers. Apart from their daily coffee intake, their bust size was also recorded.

Researchers noticed a clear link between drinking coffee and smaller breasts. While on the positive, women who had a moderately high intake of coffee were less likely to develop breast cancerdefine.

Alleviating the fears of avid coffee drinkers, Jernstrom explained, "Coffee-drinking women do not have to worry their breasts will shrink to nothing overnight."

"They will get smaller, but the breasts aren't just going to disappear," she added. The results of the study feature in the latest issue of the journal ‘British Journal of Cancer’.

While coffee appears to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, cancer risk, type 2 diabetesdefine and cirrhosis of the liver and gout, the two chemicals, cafestol and kahweol, present naturally in coffee beans are believed to raise blood cholesterol levels thus increasing the risk of heart disease.

"When you drink a cup of coffee your heart rate increases and your blood pressure rises slightly, putting you at added risk of suffering a stroke," experts explain.

As coffee's negative health effects are mostly due to its caffeine content, shifting to decaffeinated versions could be a healthier option, researchers suggest.