sf wrote:
>
> Wiki:
> Some studies have found that drinking large amounts of coffee made by
> the French press method increases LDL ("bad") cholesterol levels,
> while drinking filtered, percolated, or drip coffee does not [1]. The
> French press method allows certain Diterpenes, such as Cafestol and
> Kahweol, to remain in the coffee while other brewing methods either
> remove or limit these chemicals.
>
> One key word is *some*. Obviously not all studies have found it to be
> true.

You're going beyond what they said. I would not
make that statement if I did not have specific
knowledge that such studies (finding no harm)
existed. I have searched the PubMed database,
and I'm quite convinced the effect is real and
the risk is significant. The amount of coffee
you'd have to drink to be at serious risk is
fairly high -- five to six cups -- but I prefer
to minimize my risk even at my lower consumption
level.

There have been animal studies which did not
find evidence of significant cholesterol-raising
effect, but it has been suggested in later
research that a) the dose was too low, and
b) this cholesterol-raising effect is higher
in humans than in any experimental animal model
that has been tested (which includes hamsters,
rats, gerbils, and three species of monkeys).