Coffee, caffeine and kidney stones in genetic studies
What it found
People with genes linked to drinking more coffee or taking in more caffeine were less likely to have kidney stones.
The study used genetic data from two large groups of people of European ancestry.
What they found
Studies in people
Coffee and kidney stones
Genetically predicted coffee consumption was linked to a lower risk of kidney stones. The combined estimate was 0.60 per a genetically predicted 50% increase in coffee consumption.
Caffeine and kidney stones
Genetically predicted caffeine consumption was also linked to a lower risk of kidney stones. The combined estimate was 0.81 per a genetically predicted 80-mg increase in caffeine consumption.
Consistency across groups
The links were seen in the UK Biobank study and were similar in direction in the FinnGen consortium.
Animal and lab studies
Possible mechanisms
Caffeine may increase urine flow and reduce calcium oxalate crystal adhesion in the kidney. Coffee also contains citric acid, which can inhibit stone formation.
What the authors conclude
“Using genetic data, this study provides evidence that higher coffee and caffeine consumption may cause a reduction in kidney stones.”
Also in their conclusions
- They conclude that higher coffee and caffeine consumption may cause a reduction in kidney stones.
- They say that increasing coffee and caffeine consumption may be a prevention strategy for kidney stones.
How it was done
Observational studies have linked coffee and caffeine to a lower risk of kidney stones, but whether this link is causal had not been established because of possible confounding and a lack of randomized controlled trials.
The researchers used genetic variants linked to coffee and caffeine consumption as stand-ins for actual consumption. They looked at kidney stone data from the UK Biobank (6,536 cases and 388,508 noncases) and the FinnGen consortium (3,856 cases and 172,757 noncases).
What it can’t tell you
- This study used genetic data from people of European ancestry, so the findings may not apply to other populations.
- The genetic variants used as stand-ins may affect kidney stone risk through other pathways not involving coffee or caffeine.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Sweden; Uppsala University, Sweden
The paper
- Title
- Coffee and Caffeine Consumption and Risk of Kidney Stones: A Mendelian Randomization Study
- Type
- Meta-analysis
- Evidence
- Studies in people · animals · lab
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Licence
- CC BY. Words in quotation marks are the authors’; the rest is our summary.
- Cite
- Yuan S, Larsson SC (2022). Coffee and Caffeine Consumption and Risk of Kidney Stones: A Mendelian Randomization Study. American journal of kidney diseases. doi:10.1053/j.ajkd.2021.04.018Free full textPubMed 34690004DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error