Dyslipidemia is a common metabolic disease worldwide and also an important predisposing factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Coffee is loved by people all over the world; however, the association between coffee consumption and blood lipids has yielded inconsistent results. So we carried this meta-analysis to explore the effects of coffee consumption on blood lipids.

Medline, PubMed, Web of science, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases were systematically searched until April 2020. Combined weighted mean differences (WMD) with their 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using random-effects models, and between-study heterogeneity was assessed by Cochran's Q test and I² statistics. Subgroup analysis and meta-regression analysis were also conducted to explore the potential heterogeneity. A total of 12 RCT studies involving the association between coffee consumption and blood lipid levels were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled results showed that coffee consumption significantly increased total cholesterol (TC) (WMD: 0.21 mmol/L, 95% CI: 0.04; 0.39, P = 0.017), triglyceride (TG) (WMD: 0.12 mmol/L, 95% CI: 0.03; 0.20, P = 0.006) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) (WMD: 0.14 mmol/L, 95% CI: 0.05; 0.24, P = 0.003) while had no significant effect on high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C) (WMD: −0.01 mmol/L, 95% CI: −0.06; 0.04, P = 0.707). Dose–response analysis results revealed significant positive nonlinear associations between coffee consumption and the increase in TC, LDL-C, and TG levels.

Evidence from this meta-analysis suggested that coffee consumption may be associated with an elevated risk for dyslipidemia and CVDs. So a reasonable habit of coffee consumption (<3 cups/d) is essential for the prevention of dyslipidemia.