If you can't even think about starting your morning without coffee, you'll be pleased to know that your daily habit may be extending your life.
Bold claim, you say? Apparently you're not aware of all the benefits of coffee, and the copious amounts of caffeine contained therein.
But don't take my word for it—let's look at some science.
A recent study published in Annals of Internal Medicine found that people who drink 1.5 to 3.5 cups of coffee a day are roughly 16 to 31% less likely to die than those who don't drink coffee.
Now, I have to be honest here. As much as I love coffee—and I do—my very first thoughts upon seeing this were:
"Small sample size?"
"Short study period?"
"Correlation does not equal causation!" I shouted at my laptop screen, in pre-emptive dismissal of a thing I hadn't even read yet.
I was wrong—this study spanned over 7 years, and involved more than 171,000 participants from the United Kingdom. (All of whom were without known heart disease or cancer.)
Now, we're relying on their self-reported data about their caffeine consumption habits, and there are all kinds of other factors that may impact the findings—things like lifestyle factors, socioeconomic status, diet, etc.
But with such a huge group of participants, it's still pretty intriguing. And besides, it’s not like they’re asking people to self-report how often they drink and smoke for a life insurance policy; there’s not a whole lot of motivation to lie to the researchers about whether they drink a single cup of black coffee a day, or 3 cups of coffee with sugar a day.
Interestingly, the participants in this study who sweetened their coffee (meaning a teaspoon of real sugar—they didn’t count artificial sweeteners) were the least likely participants to have died during the 7 year follow up period.
That is, the participants who drank 1.5 to 3.5 daily cups of un-sugared coffee were 16 to 21 percent less likely to die than participants who did not drink coffee. And participants who drank 1.5 to 3.5 daily cups of coffee sweetened with sugar were 29 to 31 percent less likely to die than the participants who didn’t drink coffee.
So what might be going on here? Well, that's not for us to say—but of course, we do know that coffee contains a lot of antioxidants and can reduce inflammation. And that it's also been linked in studies with a lower risk of death from several chronic diseases—like heart disease and certain cancers. So there's all of that.
The sugar thing... I really can't say. Maybe the sugar people are happier than the people who drink their coffee black… and that's translating into a lower risk of death? (I'm just stabbing in the dark roast here, but it's an interesting correlation if nothing else.)
Anyway, if you're looking for another excuse to drink more coffee—this study is probably it.
So if you're a coffee drinker, keep on doing your thing.
And if you're not, maybe this study is the push you needed to finally give it a try.
Oh, one more thing: I couldn't find any mention of milk or creamer in this study, so I'm going to say you should probably drink it black—or, apparently, slightly sweetened—for optimal protection against the grim reaper.
Just remember, everything in moderation. Even if it is the secret to immortality. (Disclaimer: It's not, but hey—it helps!)
Coffee: The elixir of life. Drink up!
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