Association between beverage consumption and risk of rheumatoid arthritis: a prospective study from the French E3N Cohort.

This article examines the association between consumption of commonly consumed beverages—coffee, tea, alcohol, and soft drinks—and the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in a large prospective cohort of 62,631 French women from the E3N Study (Étude Épidémiologique auprès des femmes de la Mutuelle Générale de l'Éducation Nationale). Over a 21-year follow-up, tea, alcohol, and sugar-sweetened soft drinks showed no significant association with RA risk, whereas higher intake of total and caffeinated coffee and consumption of artificially sweetened soft drinks were linked to an increased risk of RA, particularly among never-smokers. Additionally, moderate liquor intake was associated with a reduced RA risk in ever-smokers, and moderate wine consumption correlated with a lower risk of seropositive RA. These findings suggest potential beverage-related influences on RA development that warrant further investigation for preventive strategies in at-risk populations.