Key points from article :
Chronic liver disease is a major health problem around the world.
Liver disease is the third leading cause of premature death in the UK.
Study suggest drinking coffee could bring benefits.
Prof Paul Roderick, a co-author of the study from the University of Southampton says
"It confirms in a large UK cohort that coffee drinking is protective against severe liver disease".
Researchers analysed data from 494,585 participants in the UK Biobank.
All participants were aged 40 to 69 when they signed up to the project.
They looked at the liver health of the participants over a median period of almost 11 years.
Coffee drinkers had a 20% lower risk of developing chronic liver disease (CLD), taking into account confounding factors.
However the study has a few limitations, including that it cannot prove that coffee itself reduces the risk of CLD.
Research by University of Southampton published in BMC Public Health.
