Found this article on Tea and Coffee Consumption and MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) Nasal Carriage. http://www.annfammed.org/cgi/content/full/9/4/299 The study reported results, very unclearly, on a "sample included 5,555 individuals" and "we excluded individuals who were missing data on any variable. A total of 3,172 individuals were missing data." They found "secondary analysis of data from the 2003-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to investigate the relationship between the consumption of coffee, hot tea, cold tea, and soft drinks, and MRSA nasal carriage ...Individuals who reported consuming coffee had about a one-half reduction in the risk of MRSA nasal carriage relative to individuals who drank no coffee (odds ratio = 0.47; 95% confidence interval, 0.24-0.93)."
Nasal carriage does not imply infection but increases the risk for such, it is neither necessary nor sufficient. Food (or drink) for thought.

and "Coffee Helps Minimize Hepatitis C Treatment Side Effects"
"Not only does coffee consumption slow liver disease progression and increase the chances of success while undergoing treatment for chronic hepatitis C infection, but drinking three or more cups a day also appears to reduce the incidence of hep C treatment side effects by more than 80 percent.

These findings, suggesting that coffee may greatly improve the tolerability of hepatitis C treatment, were presented at the 10th AIDS Impact conference, held from September 12 to 15 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and reported by aidsmap." http://www.aidsmeds.com/articles/hiv_hcv_coffee_1667_21137.shtml This treatment is very poorly tolerated and most people forego Rx.

and "Advanced hepatitis C patients with chronic liver disease may benefit from drinking coffee during treatment, according to a new study in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute. Patients who received peginterferon plus ribavirin treatment and who drank three or more cups of coffee per day were two times more likely to respond to treatment than non-drinkers." http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110607105212.htm Original article not available to nonsuscribers

Marvin

Fascinating.

I am a health care worker, and I've been told by one of our senior Critical Care attending physicians that nearly all of us working in a hospital are carriers of MRSA in our nares.

Also, I've delivered Ribavirin for about 7 years now, it's the friggin' scourge of my field. An absolute PITA to properly administer and set up, and decontaminate a treatment area afterwards. Maybe we should just be giving these patients some java instead.