Overview
- A University of Copenhagen study used an ingestible electronic capsule to record pH, temperature, transit time and contractions as it passed through the gut.
- Researchers found frequent coffee drinkers had higher gut microbial diversity in stool samples compared with less frequent drinkers.
- Frequent coffee consumers showed a lower pH in the small intestine and more contractions in the colon, measurements that could help explain coffee’s laxative effect.
- The study is observational and cannot prove that coffee caused the differences, so authors call for controlled intervention trials that set and monitor participants’ coffee intake.
- If trials confirm causation, the findings could lead to simple, diet-based approaches to ease constipation, but results may not generalize beyond the Danish study group.