Scientists at the University of Liverpool have found how coffee can reduce the risk of alcohol-induced pancreatitis. Pancreatitis is a condition in which the pancreas becomes inflamed, causing severe abdominal pain. It is often triggered by alcohol consumption which causes digestive enzymes to digest part of the pancreas. Scientists have known for some time that coffee can reduce the risk of alcoholic pancreatitis, but have been unable to determine how.
Researchers at the University have now discovered that caffeine can partially close special channels within cells, reducing to some extent the damaging effects of alcohol products on the pancreas. Professors from the University's Physiological Laboratory and Division of Surgery, have found that cells in the pancreas can be damaged by products of alcohol and fat formed in the pancreas when oxygen levels in the organ are low. Under these…
