Study shows drinking 3-5 cups of coffee per day can save your life

The prognosis is good in today’s coffee news, with the latest study showing that drinking coffee, whether regular or non-caffeinated, can reduce the risk of death.

The study looked at surveys with adults in the U.S. who were asked how much java they drank, as well as other food and drinks. Then they looked at the rate of deaths and disease over the next 20 years. The research, which was published in the journal Circulation, surveyed more than 200,000 women and 50,000 men.

The study didn’t find a direct link between coffee drinking and mortality. Those who drank between less than a cup to three cups daily had 5 to 9 per cent lower risk of kicking it than those who didn’t touch the stuff. There was no suggested benefit to those who drank more than three cups of java a day.

Researched then examined the consumption of coffee among non-smokers. Those who drank between less than a cup to three cups daily had a 6 to 8 per cent lower risk of dying than non-coffee consumers. The percentages went up for those who drank three to five cups and more than five cups – 15 per cent and 12 per cent lower death rates.

“The lower risk of mortality is consistent with our hypothesis that coffee consumption could be good for you (because) we have published papers showing that coffee consumption is associated with lower risk of type 2 diabetes and (heart) disease,” Ming Ding, a doctoral student in the Harvard School of Public Health department of nutrition and the study’s lead author, told CNN.

Researchers acknowledge that coffee drinkers have healthier diets overall, though that’s probably not what links java to lower death rates. They considered the benefits of drinking less soda and maintaining a healthy diet – but also the fact that coffee fans were more likely to have vices like alcohol and red meat.

Coffee’s chemical makeup, which includes lignans and chlorogenic acid, could reduce inflammation and help control blood sugar, both of which could help lower the risk of heart disease.

Overall, Ding and the other researchers found that coffee drinkers were 10 per cent less likely to die as a result of heart disease, and 9 to 37 per cent less likely to go as a result of neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s and dementia.

Suicide and coffee drinkers was also considered, with those who drank at least a cup a day having a 20 to 36 per cent lower change of committing suicide. (Those who drank less than a cup a day had a 36 per cent higher rate, however.)

So until the next study comes along, it’s best to drink till the last drop.