In Spain, drinking coffee is a way of life and is as much a part of local culture as tapas or wine.
Now new scientific evidence shows that four cups of coffee a day can lower the risk of cirrhosis of the liver by 65%, reducing the kind of liver damage that´s associated with overindulging in food and alcoholic drinks.
Cirrhosis of the liver is commonly caused by the excessive drinking of alcohol and can be a killer.
Dr Oliver Kennedy of Southampton University, said: ‘Cirrhosis is potentially fatal and there is no cure as such.
‘Therefore, it is significant that the risk of developing cirrhosis may be reduced by consumption of coffee, a cheap, ubiquitous and well-tolerated beverage.’
This new evidence bodes well for a nation of coffee lovers here in Spain where sometimes up to five small glasses or cups of coffee are consumed daily. Even two cups of coffee a day lowers risk of liver cirrhosis by 44%, experts say.
Evidence from 430,000 participants was examined in a study conducted by Dr Oliver Kennedy at Southampton University where increased coffee consumption was looked at to see if this influenced liver disease.
Staggeringly, in all but one study the risk of cirrhosis of the liver continued to decline as daily cups of coffee increased, although researchers are unsure why this effectoccurs.
Cirrhosis kills more than one million people every year worldwide. Experts are keen to include in their advice that people shouldn´t drink large frothy, sugary-type lattes which are more typical back in the UK.
The culture of coffee drinking goes back to the 11th century when it was first imported to Arabia from the African continent. In the 17th century, merchants brought the first sacks of coffee to Western Europe and, ever since, the phenomenon of coffee drinking has flourished. Now in places like Malaga, a specific coffee culture has arisen. Locals have a name for each type of coffee, depending on the proportion of milk/coffee. Ordering a simple ´cafe con leche´ is not the norm, coffee-drinkers might choose either a mitad, sombra or nube (half, shadow or cloud). ¿Qué quieres tomar?