Compound Monograph
Kahweol
Kahweol is a diterpene found in coffee oil that, with cafestol, can raise blood cholesterol when unfiltered coffee is consumed.
Classification
Kahweol is a diterpene (kaurene-type), part of the terpenoids class. The largest class of plant compounds, built from five-carbon isoprene units — the essential-oil aromatics, resins, bitter principles, saponins, and plant sterols.
Where Does It Come From? (1)
Kahweol is a naturally occurring diterpene (kaurene-type), found in Coffee. It is well tolerated orally (low toxicity).
Research & Evidence
Kahweol is a kaurene-type diterpene present in the oil of coffee beans, found alongside the closely related compound cafestol. These “coffee diterpenes” are largely removed by paper filtration, so they are most abundant in unfiltered preparations such as boiled, French-press and Turkish coffee. Kahweol and cafestol are the constituents responsible for the well-documented cholesterol-raising effect of unfiltered coffee; kahweol has also been studied in the laboratory for various effects, though human evidence beyond the lipid findings is limited.
Toxicity & Safety
Kahweol is consumed routinely as part of normal coffee intake and is regarded as low in toxicity at those levels. Its main recognised consequence is that, with cafestol, it can increase serum cholesterol when intake of unfiltered coffee is high.