New research suggests that drinking coffee might improve health and help people to live longer.
A new observational study that involved nearly 20,000 people who drank a minimum of four cups daily showed a risk of early death that was 64% lower in comparison to those who rarely or never drank coffee.
The risk reduction was even more significant when people reached 45 years of age, suggesting it might be even more beneficial to drink coffee as we age.
Coffee has been shown as well to lower the risk of a number of diseases, including liver disease, type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, skin cancer and colorectal cancer.
Coffee is full of antioxidants, says a spokesperson for the U.S. National Coffee Association. A number are antioxidants that are naturally occurring, are found in coffee beans, and others are created at the time of roasting the beans.
It is these compounds that are linked by science with positive effects for lowering the risk of many diseases, said the spokesperson.
Certain compounds commonly found in the drink have been related to higher insulin sensitivity, better liver function and lower chronic inflammation, said a professor and one of the lead authors of a recent study on coffee drinking and longevity.
However, while coffee consumption might appear to help with health for many, caution should be used by others. For example, pregnant women should limit intake of coffee that is caffeinated.
If one has any heart conditions, coffee consumption should be limited as well as caffeine consumption. An author of one of the studies said caffeine was an accelerator and aggravator of the heart rate.
Those she said with atrial fibrillation or more commonly called an irregular heartbeat or hypertension are cautioned to limit consumption of caffeine. One or even two cups of coffee daily is likely fine, but if sensitive caffeine needs to be restricted.
Keep in mind decaffeinated coffee contains some caffeine. A cup that is 8 ounces in size of brewed coffee has from 75 milligrams to 165 milligrams of caffeine, while a cup the same size of decaf averages between 2 milligrams and 7 milligrams.
