The British Coffee Association has downplayed the
findings of a study showing a link between coffee consumption and
drug addiction.
People who regularly use the coffee machine at
work have been handed assurances in the wake of a new report.
A recent study by the University of Vermont,
published in the Drug and Alcohol Dependence journal, found that
coffee drinkers are more likely to become addicted to substances
such as cocaine.
However, the British Coffee Association (BCA)
stressed that the research involved only 22 people, which means
wider conclusions cannot be drawn from such a small representative
sample.
Dr Euan Paul, the BCA's chief executive, commented: "Further
research would be required, but in general, people can be reassured
that four to five cups of coffee per day is safe."
Professor Stacey Sigmon, one of the scientists involved in the
study, also noted that additional tests will need to be carried
out.
Indeed, she insisted that the findings do not
mean everyone who regularly drinks coffee is at risk of "proceeding
to cocaine abuse".