Alcohol-coffee mix 'dangerous'

Mixing alcohol and caffeine is hardly a new concept but a rash of cases involving students and others who landed in hospital after drinking beverages that combine the two has alarmed college and health officials in the United States. The drinks are dangerous, doctors say, because the caffeine masks the effects of the alcohol, keeping consumers from realising how intoxicated they are.

A brand called Four Loko - a fruit-flavoured malt beverage that has an alcohol content of 12 per cent and as much caffeine as a cup of coffee - has come under scrutiny after students who drank it in New Jersey and Washington ended up in emergency rooms, some with high levels of alcohol poisoning. The drink is only sold in the US.

"This is one of the most dangerous new alcohol concoctions I have ever seen," said Dr Michael Reihart, who said he had treated more than a dozen teenagers and adults during the past three months after they drank Four Loko. "It's a recipe for disaster because your body's natural defence is to get sleepy and not want to drink but in this case you're tricking the body with the caffeine." The Food and Drug Administration is currently reviewing whether the drinks are safe.

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Tea & Coffee: Linked to Lower Brain Cancer Risk

Researchers have discovered that coffee and tea might do more than boost your energy levels: Regular consumption of the world's two most popular beverages may also shield you against a form of brain cancer. In fact, the latest research suggests that those who drink as little as a half cup or so of coffee per day may lower brain cancer risk by as much as 34 percent.

Lead researcher Dominique S. Michaud, of Brown University's department of community health in Providence, heads an international team that reports the finding in the November issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.The notion that coffee and tea might accrue an anti-cancer health benefit to regular drinkers builds on previous research that has indicated that the beverages may also lower the risk for both Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.

The current effort explored the possibility that coffee and tea may also protect against brain cancer, specifically in the form of glioma, a cancer of the central nervous system that originates in the brain and/or spinal cord.

Data concerning the dietary habits of more than 410,000 men and women between the ages of 25 and 70 was drawn from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study, which included participants from France, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Great Britain, Greece, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Germany.

Participants were recruited between 1991 and 2000, and were tracked over the course of about 8.5 years. During that time, food surveys were completed to gauge, among other things, the amount of tea and coffee each participant consumed.

During the study, 343 new cases of glioma were diagnosed, as were 245 new cases of meningioma, another cancer that affects tissue surrounding the brain and spinal cord.

Decaffeinated coffee consumption was found to be very low overall, while regular coffee and tea drinking patterns varied greatly from country to country. For example, while the Danish (the biggest consumers of coffee) drank on average nearly 3.5 cups per day, Italians (the lowest consumers) averaged less than a half-cup daily. Tea consumption was highest in Great Britain, and lowest in Spain.

By stacking drinking patterns against brain cancer incidence, the research team found that drinking 100 mL (or 0.4 cups) per day and above lowered the risk of gliomas by 34 percent.The protective effect appears to be slightly stronger among men, the authors observed, and seems to apply solely to gliomas.

Dr. Jonathan Friedman, director of the Texas Brain and Spine Institute at Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine in Bryan, described the findings as "surprising."

"However, the mechanism by which coffee is protective is completely unknown," he cautioned. "While the caffeine itself might be important, some of the other common components of coffee or tea might also be relevant, such as natural antioxidants," he noted.

"Additional studies will be required to confirm these findings," he stressed, "and to identify the basis for the correlation." Dr. John S. Yu, director of the Brain Tumor Center of Excellence at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, said the finding was "striking."

"If we had a drug for any disease that could demonstrate a risk reduction of 34 percent, that would be considered a great drug. That degree of risk reduction is very strong," he said.

"And as for the specific protective impact of caffeine, this finding follows other recent research that demonstrated that coffee drinking is associated with a lower risk for breast cancer as well," Yu noted.

"But even taken together, it has not yet been established whether or not this is directly causative -- [in other words, whether] drinking caffeine directly reduces disease risk -- or whether this is actually about an association between other factors concerning the type of people who drink a certain amount of coffee and risk reduction. More research is needed to figure that out."

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Marylou’s chain plans R.I. expansion

A Massachusetts-based coffee shop chain famous for its pink and black logo and television commercials featuring beautiful servers has announced plans to expand into Rhode Island. Marylou’s plans to open five stores in Rhode Island by the end of 2011.

Company owner Marylou Sandry tells The Patriot Ledger of Quincy that she’s excited by the expansion that could create up to 150 new jobs. She says the Rhode Island stores will be housed in Shell gas stations, owned by Colbea Enterprises LLC of Cranston, R.I.

The first is scheduled to open in East Providence next month, with the other planned for North Providence, Smithfield, Johnson and East Greenwich. Hingham-based Marylou’s, founded in 1986, currently has 25 locations in the region south of Boston.

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Tim Hortons coming to Iqaluit

Tim Hortons is finally setting up shop in Iqaluit, one of the last places in Canada where the iconic coffee-and-donut shop chain doesn't have a foothold in the local market.

Tim Hortons officials announced this week that it's teaming up with the North West Company to open three kiosks in Nunavut's capital city starting in early December, creating the chain's northernmost franchise.

As a result, many Iqaluit residents and visitors can soon discontinue the long-held tradition of toting boxes of donuts, Timbits and beverages with them on flights from Yellowknife, Ottawa or Montreal.

"We heard stories, repeated stories, [about people] on the daily flights to Ottawa to Iqaluit … bringing dozens of donuts," Nick Javor, Tim Hortons senior vice-president of corporate affairs, told CBC News.

"We said, 'Wow, wouldn't be great to bring the Tim Hortons concept to the last true remaining part of Canada where we are not with a presence?'"
Basic menu

There are more than 3,000 Tim Hortons stores across Canada, including locations in Yellowknife and Whitehorse.

A historic fur trading company turned retailer, the North West Company owns the NorthMart general store and two Quick Stop convenience stores in the city of about 7,000

The kiosks that will be set up in those three stores will feature a basic Tim Hortons menu, according to officials. The chain will run its local bakery from the NorthMart store.

"We've taken our time on this," said Michael McMullen, executive vice-president of the North West Company's northern Canada retail division.

"We've done due diligence, and we've got the right format and market coverage, considered the traffic, considered the recycling, considered the cost. I think both companies came to this and said, 'We want to do this right, we don't want to do it quick.'"

Splitting up the Iqaluit Tim Hortons franchise into three kiosks will prevent traffic from piling up in front of NorthMart, McMullen said, adding that the smaller kiosks would also be easier to staff.
Feeling the 'Tims effect'

Rumours of the Tim Hortons arrival have been swirling for years in Iqaluit, which has several independent coffee shops — including one owned by Mayor Elisapee Sheutiapik called the Grind and Brew.

Brian Twerdin, Sheutiapik's partner and the Grind and Brew's manager, said their shop is feeling the "Tims effect" even before the chain has landed in the city.

"Knowing that they were probably coming, we tried to diversify," Twerdin told CBC News on Thursday.

"We still have the coffee shop, but now we do the pizza … kind of restaurant thing to kind of offset that," he said. "But I think it will still have some impact on, like I say, the coffee shops that are in town."

But news of the chain's opening had local coffee enthusiasts like Sarah Deneester — a customer at Fantasy Palace, another Iqaluit coffee shop — proclaiming continued loyalty to the existing establishments.

"I think that we're not going to give up on Fantasy Palace," Deneester said.

"We come here every day, sometimes even twice a day. Maybe we'll stop in for the odd Timbit or donut, since we miss that," she added. "But the coffee's good here, and we love the people."
Litter a concern

Some critics have already brought up environmental concerns, pointing to longstanding complaints about discarded Tim Hortons cups littering communities where the chain has an outlet.

"We already have a problem with Tim Hortons cups being the signature waste of Canada — or the signature litter, I guess you'd say — of Canada, from coast to coast," said Larry Lack of St. Andrews, N.B., an outspoken critic of Tim Hortons litter nationwide.

"This will make it coast to coast to coast if it starts to be accepted there without something being done about the problem of Tim Hortons litter, particularly the cups," he said.

Tim Hortons officials say the chain's disposable cups are now recyclable or can be composted — but only in cities where municipal recycling and composting programs are available, which rules out Iqaluit.

The North West Company's McMullen said the Iqaluit franchise is working on a litter-reduction plan in advance of its grand opening.

North West Company officials said they will also hold a charity event during the Tim Hortons grand opening, carrying on the coffee chain's tradition of community involvement.

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Blue Bottle Coffee backs out of Dolores Park deal

Blue Bottle Coffee's decision to back out of a city-blessed plan to open up shop -- albeit in a small 8-by-12 aluminum trailer -- in Dolores Park was a gimme-a-shot-of-espresso-no-make-that-a-double wake-up call for San Francisco officials eager to add commerce to the park visitors' experience: If there's one thing San Franciscans know how to do it's organize, especially if its over a neighborhood issue.

Opponents of the plan to let Blue Bottle open in Dolores Park mounted an aggressive campaign. ''It saddens me that Blue Bottle pulled out, but San Francisco neighborhood politics is what it is,'' said Recreation and Park Commission President Mark Buell.

He said he hopes the department can find another coffee vendor to go into Dolores Park. But first, he said, staff should embark on much more robust outreach with the surrounding community ''and find a magic formula of what would be acceptable.''

Recreation and Park Department staff learned of Blue Bottle owner James Freeman's decision late Tuesday, just days before his portable coffee stand was to open and amid continued controversy. Freeman told the City Insider that he bid for the Dolores Park concession because he thought ''it would be a fun delightful idea, but eventually it proved to be not so delightful.''

Nearby cafe owners, upset over the prospect of city-sanctioned competition, led the charge against Blue Bottle; other neighbors, upset over the idea of commercializing the park, joined in. Opponents signed petitions, packed public meetings and vented their fury on blogs.

In short, they made life miserable for park officials who had hoped to make it easy for people to buy a cup of coffee in the popular park and at the same time generate some money, in the $30,000 to $35,000-a-year range for the cash-strapped Rec and Park Department.

Rec and Park Department spokesman Elton Pon said opposition was led by just a handful of people and that the real proof of support or disapproval would have been ''whether people bought a cup of coffee there.''

The Blue Bottle controversy is just the latest to hit Rec and Park, with plans to find a new operator of the Stow Lake food and boat concession in Golden Gate Park and another to charge admission to out-of-town visitors to the city's Botanical Garden also drawing heat but eventually moving forward.

''Controversy is the reality of any change that takes place in a park,'' Buell said. But in the end, he added, rec and park officials are looking for new ways to make money to protect services. By the way, La Cocina, a Mission District-based business, is set to open a stand in Dolores Park, perhaps as early as next week.

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Coffee for a caring cause

FANCY hosting a coffee morning for a good cause? A Malaysian version of UK-based Macmillan Cancer Support’s fundraising event "The Biggest Coffee Morning" took place at the Lower Palm Square of Jaya One on Friday. Known as the Malaysian Biggest Breakfast, it was first held last year and managed to raise RM250,000 for the National Stroke Association of Malaysia – something the association is hoping to replicate.

"The event took place in shopping mall-based F&B outlets, homes and offices last year," association manager Shen Chan said. "The idea was that anyone can arrange a ‘Malaysia’s Biggest Breakfast’ event ... they just need to get in touch with us."The latest event, from 8am to noon, was sponsored by Nestle, and a week’s leafleting produced a steady trickle of employees from adjacent shops and offices at Jaya One.

"You can purchase a RM10 voucher which lets you choose from a selection of sponsored cereals, fruit, porridge and drinks, and all the money raised will go towards the operating costs of our eight recovery centres which are there to rehabilitate stroke survivors," Chan said.

"You can donate more if you choose – RM40 to get a Nestle goody bag," she added, while signing a tax exemption receipt for a smartly-dressed executive who had just arrived to collect his.

Two women sat down to a steaming container of Maggi Chicken Porridge sprinkled with an array of condiments, a cup of Nestum Fruits and a Milo each.

"We work at the offices across from here; I think it’s a good idea, I tried to get some clients to come along to contribute but it was too late a notice for them," Kim Yae, 56, said.

Chan hopes the idea will catch on. Macmillan’s Biggest Coffee Morning, which started in 1991, has been steadily getting bigger with 43,000 people registering to hold a coffee morning last year.

"We have had colleges like Inti College and UKM registering to host Malaysia’s Biggest Breakfast and they should be putting the events on in the next few weeks," she said.

Chan said the original aim was to raise RM1 million, which she conceded was ambitious, and expects something more like RM250,000 this year.

"We targeted the fundraising period for between now and Oct 24, but anyone interested in helping to host an event can contact us – we are flexible with the times."

She said anyone from offices to housewives and schools are welcome to host the event and that every effort would be a great help.

"The recovery centre operating costs can be up to RM1.8 million a year, and we derive all our funding from public funding and charity efforts," she said.

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Why Coffee Puts You in a Good Mood and Chocolate Makes You Feel High

A study from Ohio University tells you why certain foods such as coffee and chocolate affect your moods. Just like alcohol or drugs, food and spices can excite, calm or rattle the brain."The distinction of what is a drug and what is food is blurring completely. Natural things are also drugs," The New York Post quoted Gary Wenk, a professor at the Ohio State University and Medical Center and the author of the new book 'Your Brain on Food', as saying.

Different foods stimulate different regions of the brain, releasing chemicals like dopamine and serotonin that promote well-being. On the flip side, a lack of certain amino acids can cause depression and, in severe cases, madness.

The glow created by chocolate and coffee isn't just caused by caffeine, but also by a rush of dopamine that triggers the brain's pleasure receptors, Wenk said.

Chocolate also releases a form of opiate that causes that la-la feeling, along with a small amount of a substance akin to marijuana. With all that pleasure packed into a Hershey bar, it's a miracle the feds don't regulate the stuff, he joked.

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'Cancer curing coffee' among thousands of seized drugs

The seizures, co-ordinated by the Irish Medicines Board (IMB), were part of Interpol's Operation Pangea III. The week-long campaign involved 45 countries and targeted internet sales of counterfeit and illegal medicines. The seized items included a slimming coffee which, along with supposed weight loss benefits, also claimed to be a treatment for cancer.

Other items included fake erectile dysfunction medication as well as mood stabilisers such as diazepam. Some of the weight loss products contained sibutramine, which is banned in the EU due to associated health risks.

Dangerous deception.

IMB chief executive Pat O'Mahony warned that even websites which seem professional and genuine could be selling harmful substances disguised as medication. "The reality is they are an elaborate and potentially dangerous deception," he said.

"Purchasers have no way of knowing what these medicines really contain, where they were made or the effect they might have on your health."Five websites in the Republic of Ireland were taken down and one person has been arrested.

In total Operation Pangea III led to the seizure of 1,014,043 tablets and the closure of 290 websites worldwide.

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Iced Americano Recipe

Ingredients:
Shot of your favorite espresso
8-10 ounce glass full of ice cubes
Ice water
Sugar to taste
Milk or half and half to taste

Preparation:

Pull your shot, and pour it slowly over the ice while swirling. The full glass of ice should chill the espresso quickly. Fill the glass with cold water and stir in sugar (optional). Add a splash of milk or half and half as desired. Sit back and relax.....

You may want to play with the amount of espresso, sometimes I find a double shot into a 12 ounce glass of ice and then follow the general directions above is a bit more appealing, and a bit more of a punch too.

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Coffee consumption may drop significantly with younger generation

New market research suggests younger drinkers (18-24) are less likely to enjoy a cup of coffee than their older counterparts (45-55).

On September 27, the market research company NPD Group's Consumer Reports on Eating Share Trends (CREST) found Dunkin' Donuts is "the number one retailer in the hot regular/decaf plus flavored coffee and iced coffee categories" in the US and noted that more than 40 percent of young workers (aged 18-34) said "they can't concentrate as well without coffee" and "have lower energy if they don't drink coffee.

However new research from Mintel, a global media intelligence company, concluded on October 8 "that while 40% of 18-24-year-olds believe coffee improves their concentration, only 27% drink coffee on a daily basis."

To target younger drinkers Mintel's senior analyst Bill Paterson suggests new products are needed to "convert these younger drinkers to everyday users"; otherwise, "long-term growth may suffer."

The research shows 40 percent of 18-24-year-olds "prefer sweetened coffee drinks to plain coffee... compared to only 22 percent of 45-54-year-olds." And only 28 percent like the taste of plain coffee whereas "53% of 45-54-year-olds" drink their coffee black.

According to Patterson, two ways to attract daily young drinkers for the long-term are to develop new products that bring the "caffeine fix" home not just to cafes and capture the energy drink market as "young adults are somewhat more likely than over-55s to associate negative health consequences with coffee consumption."

Canada's health agency Health Canada "concluded that the general population of healthy adults is not at risk for potential adverse effects from caffeine if they limit their consumption to 400 mg per day," in a public statement on October 4.

The blogger EspressoGuy calculates "you can expect to find about 100 mg of caffeine in a shot of espresso, and about 130 mg of caffeine in a cup (around 8 oz) of coffee."

In 2008, 63 percent of the functional drink category belonged to energy drinks with Red Bull (available in 160 countries) the go-to brand (42 percent), and the importance of convenience was highlighted, according to the Institute of Food Technologists's 2010 Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety (CRFSFS).

The same review found "the U.S. energy drink industry is anticipated to more than double and reach an astounding $19.7 billion [€14 billion] in 2013, which is almost a 160% increase from 2008."

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Coffee Club names new CEO

Australia’s largest home-grown café group The Coffee Club has today announced the appointment of James Nixon-Smith as the company's CEO. The new addition follows the resignation of former CEO Rod Wakefield, who stepped down after 12 years at the helm of the Coffee Club in April to pursue personal interests.

Nixon-Smith joins The Coffee Club after spending the past six years as General Manager of national retail franchise Battery World. During that time, he reinvigorated Battery World’s franchise system and doubled its expected annual revenue to $60 million across its network of 100 stores.

Prior to that, Nixon-Smith was National Operations Manager with Australian-owned franchise Eagle Boys Pizza.

In his newly-appointed role as CEO of The Coffee Club, he will be focusing on achieving operational excellence across the business in order to spearhead its continuing expansion plans.

“With 253 cafés across Australia, New Zealand and Thailand, double digit year-on-year growth and strong interest from overseas markets, The Coffee Club is already a highly successful business,” Nixon-Smith says.

“It is perfectly positioned to be the brand of choice in franchising, the food and coffee industry, the property market, and employment,” he says.

Over the next five years, Nixon-Smith expects to double The Coffee Club’s presence so that by 2015 there will be 500 cafés in more than 15 countries around the world

“My first priorities will be to focus on service delivery to support a rapidly expanding network, from our café staff to our management team, and investing heavily into brand acquisition along with aggressive property selection of the business,” he says.

In the remainder of 2010, The Coffee Club is set to open 20 new stores, including its first café in New Caledonia and third First Avenue store in Surfers Paradise.

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‘Corn coffee’ now sold in Davao, Manila

"Our corn coffee is special because it’s caffeine-free, all-organic and all-natural, with no additives and no preservatives," said Maria Carmela Sue P. Otarra, spokesperson for the Sumilao Agri-Enterprise (SAE), Inc. comprising local farmers. The Coffee for Peace, which used to be called Peace-building Community Cafe, sells and promotes civet coffee beans from the mountain ranges of Davao and Cotabato.

A third of Sumilao Agri-Enterprise’s daily production of 200 cartons, weighing 200 grams each, is shipped to Luzon while the remaining cartons are sold in Mindanao. Presently, its organic coffee products are available through a specialty bakeshop in Metro Manila.

Since August 2010, 12 Baskets Bakeshop in Little Baguio, San Juan City, as well as the 18 Days Coffee Roaster inside Cash & Carry in Makati City, have been carrying the Sumilao Corn Coffee brand.

The health benefits of the corn coffee come "from its untouched organic corn," which means each kernel is insulated from chemicals and genetic engineering. Ms. Otarra said her group is planning to blend the taste of coffee beans like arabica and robusta with their corn coffee to further distinguish it from other products in the market.

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Revival of coffee marketing unit evokes mixed reaction

The revival of the India Coffee Marketing Co-operative (Comark) has evoked a mixed reaction from industry experts and coffee board officials. Industry experts are of the opinion that coffee market is vibrant enough to take care of the small and medium growers in this sector. But, Coffee Board officials are of the view that this will help provide the right prices to small and medium planters.

“Revival of Comark is expected to help the small and medium planters in getting right price for their produce,” a top Coffee Board official said on condition of anonymity. However, it should be well-managed and should cater to small planters across board, he added.

Comark had been founded in early 1990’s to provide marketing assistance to small and medium growers. The mandate of the organisation is to provide right price to the planters who are otherwise exploited by brokers due to less knowledge about the global market. However, the marketing federation was closed after some years of functioning due to unsustainable debt level.

Recently, Comark has been revived with the support of Karnataka government which has extended a grant of Rs10 crore to this co-operative. As a result of the state government’s assistance, Comark is expected to increase its procurement facility from the present levels.

It is also likely to increase the ware housing facility to store the produce for better prices. “Co-operative federation will help in disseminating the information that has been released by the coffee board,” the official added.

However, some of the industry experts have different opinion about this matter.

“Coffee market is proactive to take care of small and medium planters and planters have enough knowledge to sell their produce at right price. So, co-operative marketing federation will solve less purpose in this regard,” Ramesh Rajah, president of Coffee Exporters Association said.

He, also, said that co-operatives should be financially viable to operate and assist the small planters.

As part of the marketing assistance, Coffee Board is providing information regarding prices in the global and domestic market, export scenario, market analysis with possible price movement on a daily basis to all stake holders.

“Information provided by Coffee Board is more than enough to have a view of the market and get right price for the produce,” Rajah said. Referring to loan facility and other financial support, he said that there were enough financial institutions to give loans to the planters and there was no need to depend on a co-operative marketing federation for any kind of debt.

A small planter from Karnataka, however, supported the formation of Comark. “The revival of co-operative marketing federation will definitely help small planters as we will be able to get right price for our produce,” a small planter from Karnataka said.

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Coffee, tea or dance? (Video)

Manila: When was the last time you listened carefully to a flight attendant giving safety instructions before take-off? Chances are, never. But if you are flying Cebu Pacific, chances are, you've taken notice. Air hostesses on the Philippines carrier break into a dance while giving the safety instructions. "Cebu Pacific has always been known as a fun airline. We were looking for something new and different to show that flight safety doesn't have to be boring," Cebu Pacific vice-president for marketing and distribution Candice Iyog said in an interview aired on GMANews.TV.

Cebu Pacific's dancing flight attendant campaign started last Thursday and going by the reviews on YouTube, it's here to stay.



In the YouTube video, the flight attendants deliver instructions while dancing to Lady Gaga's Just Dance and Katy Perry's California Gurls. Less than two days after the video was posted, the nearly two-and-a-half-minute clip had been viewed more than 700,000 times, reports said. Air travel is generally boring and uneventful, but Iyog said the dancing flight attendants are something to look forward to in every flight. Professional choreographers composed the dance routine.

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COFFEE Morning Boost From Inverclyde

AROUND 50 coffee mornings were held in Inverclyde as part of the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support. Macmillan charity bosses are hopeful they have raised around £10,000.

They are urging local people who haven’t yet supported them to give their fundraising figures a further boost by spending £3 to buy a virtual coffee by texting COFFEE to 70123. Macmillan’s fundraising manager in Inverclyde Elsie Riley thanked everyone who took part in the event and said “The World’s Biggest Coffee Morning was a real success.

“It was a great event, and once again the people of Inverclyde got behind us whole-heartedly, helping us raise thousands of pounds to fund our services.

“We also urge those who couldn’t take part in the event itself, to support our work by sending a text to donate around £3 to Macmillan.

“That’s around the price of a coffee and depending on the network we’ll get between the full £3 and £2.67. Those donations will really add up so we’re very hopeful loads of people will buy virtual coffees over the next few days.”

Macmillan Cancer Support say it’s too early to tell how much money has been raised from the World’s Biggest Coffee Mornings that took place as much of the money won’t reach them for a few weeks. Elsie added: “Every year we raise more and more from the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning.

“It’s an event that really seems to capture the interest of all kinds of groups, from large UK-wide businesses, to individuals and small community organisations.”Texts will cost £3 plus the standard network rate.

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Coffee hope for IVF complication

Researchers suggested a life-threatening complication of fertility treatment could be prevented by a cup of coffee, after a study identified a possible cause. In vitro fertilisation has resulted in the birth of many babies since the first "test tube" baby in 1978. But around 5% to 10% of women undergoing IVF experience a condition known as ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS).

Although the majority of cases are mild, with symptoms including abdominal bloating, nausea and weight gain, in its most serious form it can cause blood clotting disorders, kidney damage and chest pain. Scientists from Middlesex University and Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry who analysed fluid around the human egg reported finding surprisingly high levels of the chemical adenosine. They believe OHSS is caused when IVF drug stimulation creates high levels of adenosine, causing the blood vessels to dilate and blood fluid to leak into tissue.

The authors of the study, published in Metabolism Journal, wrote: "Although adenosine has been detected in follicular fluid before, we were surprised at the extremely high levels detected in this study."They described the chemical as a "significant contender as the molecular cause of OHSS". To detect adenosine in blood samples, the scientists used a technique called metabolomics, which involves the study of chemical evidence of cellular processes. The researchers said a solution could lie in caffeine, which acts as a block to adenosine.

Ray Iles, professor of biomedical science at Middlesex University, said: "It may be that a cup of strong coffee with every IVF cycle could reduce the chances of OHSS. Caffeine competes with adenosine for the same receptors, effectively blocking adenosine's action, and it could therefore potentially treat the cause of this condition."Further research is under way at Barts and The London Centre for Reproductive Medicine with IVF patients who have suffered OHSS to find out if caffeine could help avoid the complication.

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