Coffee’s apparent liver benefits may extend beyond caffeine.
Liver disease often develops quietly, with fat buildup, inflammation, and scarring progressing for years before symptoms appear. A new Cedars-Sinai Health Sciences University study suggests that one of the world’s most common beverages may be linked to a lower risk of that damage: people who drank more coffee had fewer cases of cirrhosis, liver cancer, and liver-related death.
Published in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the research went beyond tracking coffee intake and diagnoses. Investigators combined more than a decade of health records with liver MRI scans and blood protein analyses, uncovering biological clues that may help explain how coffee is associated with healthier liver tissue and reduced disease risk.
“Previous studies suggested that coffee might benefit the liver, but most were smaller or looked at only one piece of the puzzle,” said hepatologist Hyunseok Kim, MD, MPH, PhD, assistant professor of Medicine at Cedars-Sinai and corresponding author of the study. “We followed hundreds of thousands of people for more than a decade and looked at their health outcomes along with liver MRI scans and blood protein analyses. Together, those findings help explain the biological mechanisms behind coffee’s association with better liver health.”
Large cohort strengthens the link
The researchers analyzed 354,957 adults in the UK Biobank who did not have cirrhosis or liver cancer when the study began. They then followed participants for a median of 13 years, using linked health records to track new cases of cirrhosis, liver cancer and liver-related death.
That long follow-up mattered because serious liver disease often develops gradually. Cirrhosis is advanced scarring that makes it harder for the liver to work, while liver cancer and liver-related death represent later and more severe outcomes. By following hundreds of thousands of people over more than a decade, the investigators could compare coffee habits with those major endpoints.
Compared with non-coffee drinkers, participants who reported drinking five or more cups a day had a 32% lower risk of cirrhosis, a 47% lower risk of liver cancer, and a 42% lower risk of liver-related death. The imaging results added another layer to the pattern. People who drank more coffee tended to have lower levels of liver fat, liver iron, fibrosis, and liver inflammation on MRI scans.
Blood protein data pointed in the same direction. Coffee drinkers had higher levels of proteins associated with healthy liver function and lower levels of proteins connected to scarring and inflammation. Those molecular clues helped move the findings from a population pattern toward a possible biological explanation.
Moderate intake remains the message
Although the lowest liver health risks appeared among people who drank more coffee, Cedars-Sinai investigators did not frame the results as a reason to push intake to five or more cups per day. Benefits were seen even at one to two cups daily and appeared strongest around three to four cups.
The results were similar for caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee. That detail is important because it suggests caffeine is probably not acting alone. Coffee contains many naturally occurring compounds, and some of them may influence pathways tied to inflammation, scarring, and liver metabolism.
The study was observational, meaning it can show an association but cannot prove that coffee directly prevents liver disease. Coffee also cannot replace the habits and medical care already known to reduce liver risk.
“Our findings support moderate coffee consumption for people who already enjoy and tolerate it well,” said study senior author Ju Dong Yang, MD, medical director of the Liver Cancer Program at Cedars-Sinai.
“However, we would not recommend that someone begin drinking coffee solely for liver protection based on this study alone. Prevention should continue to focus on maintaining a healthy weight, limiting alcohol, exercising regularly, and managing blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol.”
Caffeine can also be risky or uncomfortable for some people. Those with uncontrolled high blood pressure, certain heart rhythm disorders, severe anxiety, insomnia, or medical conditions that require limiting caffeine should talk with a healthcare provider before increasing their coffee intake.
Molecular clues guide next steps
The next challenge is to identify which parts of coffee may be linked to the liver benefits seen in the study. That requires moving from broad dietary patterns to specific compounds and pathways.
“The next step in our research is to identify the specific compounds in coffee that are responsible for these liver-protective associations,” said study author Shelly Lu, MD, the Women’s Guild Chair in Gastroenterology and director of the Karsh Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Cedars-Sinai. “Our findings point to biological pathways involving inflammation and scarring and highlight molecular targets that future research can explore to better understand how coffee may influence liver health and who stands to benefit the most.”
Reference: “Coffee Consumption and Improved Liver Outcomes: Clinical, Imaging, and Proteomic Evidence From the UK Biobank” by Hyun-Seok Kim, Mohammad Saeid Rezaee-Zavareh, Yufeng Wang, Shelly C. Lu, Stephen Pandol and Ju Dong Yang, 1 July 2026, Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
DOI: 10.1016/j.cgh.2026.04.035
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