Your choice of a hot beverage could increase your arthritis risk, according to new research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The study suggests that drinking decaffeinated coffee increases your risk of getting rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

So if drinking decaffeinated coffee can increase your risk for arthritis, would drinking caffeinated coffee reduce your risk? Apparently not. Researchers speculate that rather than the presence or absence of caffeine being the culprit, there may be something in the way decaffeinated coffee is processed that triggers an arthritic response, perhaps industrial solvents.

The study conducted at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) involved 31,336 women, 55 to 69 years old, who didn’t have rheumatoid arthritis when the study began. “We found that women who drink four or more cups of decaffeinated coffee a day are more than twice as likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis as women who do not drink decaffeinated coffee,” said Ted Miklus, MD, lead investigator of the study. The study was presented at the American College of Rheumatology’s annual meeting in San Francisco in November 2001.

Tea Drinkers Are Less Likely to Get Arthritis, According to the Study

Interestingly, the study linking decaffeinated coffee and rheumatoid arthritis suggests that, “Women who drink more than three cups of tea a day are much less likely to develop the disease than those who don’t drink tea,” Dr. Miklus said. The study did not distinguish which types of tea were consumed, so it is impossible to point to which teas might be of benefit and why.

Talk with Your Doctor

So should you drop the decaffeinated coffee and switch to tea? More studies are needed, but the current research definitely is worth discussing. You can find more information about this study at www.rheumatology.org in the abstracts area.

Talk with your physician. Decaffeinated coffee may offer other health benefits that should be weighed against the potential arthritis risk. Only your doctor can assess this information based on your medical condition.