Caffeine, coffee, and tea intake and urinary estrogens and estrogen metabolites in premenopausal women.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Prior studies have found weak inverse associations between breast cancer and caffeine and coffee intake, possibly mediated through their effects on sex hormones.

METHODS:

High-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry was used to quantify levels of 15 individual estrogens and estrogen metabolites (EM) among 587 premenopausal women in the Nurses' Health Study II with mid-luteal phase urine samples and caffeine, coffee, and/or tea intakes from self-reported food frequency questionnaires. Multivariate linear mixed models were used to estimate geometric means of individual EM, pathways, and ratios by intake categories, and P values for tests of linear trend.

RESULTS:

Compared with women in the lowest quartile of caffeine consumption, those in the top quartile had higher urinary concentrations of 16α-hydroxyestrone (28% difference; Ptrend = 0.01) and 16-epiestriol (13% difference; Ptrend = 0.04), and a decreased parent estrogens/2-, 4-, 16-pathway ratio (Ptrend = 0.03). Coffee intake was associated with higher 2-catechols, including 2-hydroxyestradiol (57% difference, ≥4 cups/day vs. ≤6 cups/week; Ptrend = 0.001) and 2-hydroxyestrone (52% difference; Ptrend = 0.001), and several ratio measures. Decaffeinated coffee was not associated with 2-pathway metabolism, but women in the highest (vs. lowest) category of intake (≥2 cups/day vs. ≤1-3 cups/month) had significantly lower levels of two 16-pathway metabolites, estriol (25% difference; Ptrend = 0.01) and 17-epiestriol (48% difference; Ptrend = 0.0004). Tea intake was positively associated with 17-epiestriol (52% difference; Ptrend = 0.01).

CONCLUSION:

Caffeine and coffee intake were both associated with profiles of estrogen metabolism in premenopausal women.

IMPACT:

Consumption of caffeine and coffee may alter patterns of premenopausal estrogen metabolism.

• Authors: Julia S Sisti, Susan E Hankinson, Neil E Caporaso, Fangyi Gu, Rulla M Tamimi, Bernard Rosner, Xia Xu, Regina Ziegler, A Heather Eliassen
• Journal: Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev) Vol. 24 Issue 8 Pg. 1174-83 (Aug 2015) ISSN: 1538-7755 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 26063478 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural, Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural)
• Copyright: ©2015 American Association for Cancer Research.

Chemical References

• Coffee
• Estrogens
• Tea
• Caffeine

Topics

• Adult
• Caffeine (chemistry)
• Chromatography, Liquid (methods)
• Coffee (chemistry)
• Cohort Studies
• Estrogens (urine)
• Female
• Humans
• Middle Aged
• Premenopause (urine)
• Prospective Studies
• Tandem Mass Spectrometry (methods)
• Tea (chemistry)