There have been countless studies involving how coffee can either be good for the health or risky. Now, a latest study of coffee is saying that it is good for the health, and not only that, it is said to be literally a lifesaver, whether regular or decaf.
The new study, published in the journal "Circulation," was conducted by a team from Harvard University's school of public health.
According to NBC News, the new study's researchers came up with the conclusion after finding more evidence of one of the world's favorite drinks. The study claims that regular or moderate coffee drinkers are less prone to death from a wide range of diseases, including diabetes and heart disease.
The cutoff is reported to be five cups a day. However, smokers who are also heavy coffee drinkers cannot offset the damage that smoking does to their body.
"The main message is that regular consumption, meaning three to five cups of coffee a day, is associated with lower risk in total mortality and mortality from several causes like diabetes, cardiovascular disease and suicide," according to nutrition and epidemiology professor, Frank Hu.
"In previous studies on that issue, most of the coffee was caffeinated coffee. In our study, both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee showed a lower mortality risk but there is no final conclusion yet," he added.
The coffee study involves more than 200,000 women and 50,000 men, doctors and nurses, as its test subjects.
There are two primary sources of information, according to NBC News - one is a survey of the test subjects' eating and lifestyle habits; the other is their health details for more than 20 years.
Overall, the coffee study found that coffee lovers were less prone to death than non-drinkers. In addition, the effects of lower mortality rate were stronger when smokers were not included. Apparently, coffee lovers who are also non-smokers were less likely to die 8 and 15 percent less, depending on the coffee consumption.
The study's researchers came up with the following data on the correlation of coffee and diseases:
- Heart Disease - coffee drinkers are less likely to die by 10%
- Neurological Diseases (e.g. Parkinson's and dementia) - coffee drinkers are less likely to die by between 9% and 37%
- Suicide - at least one cup a day prevents death between 20% and 36%, lower amounts increase death by suicide by 36%
What's In The Coffee That Saves Lives
One of the researchers of the coffee study said that the health benefits probably stem from the ingredients in a cup of joe.
"The chlorogenic acid, lignans, quinides, trigonelline, and magnesium in coffee reduce insulin resistance and systematic inflammation," the researchers wrote.
Coffee basically contains lignans and chlorogenic acid, chemicals that could reportedly reduce inflammation and control blood sugar, thus also reducing the risk of heart disease.
It's also possible that heavy coffee drinkers have healthier diets since they drink less soda, which, in a recent study, has also been linked to higher risks of heart disease.
What This Means
"This is good news for people who drink coffee because the evidence is strong. Drinking coffee may be good for health outcome," said Hu.
However, the coffee study doesn't provide a clear correlation since smoking, drinking and eating red meat also needs to be considered. Researchers also didn't report on the kind of coffee the participants took, and whether they had additives such as cream and sugar.
"We are not advocating coffee as a strategy for prevention of the chronic diseases because coffee drinking is individual behavior and there are other factors in the diet that have a bigger effect. People should also be aware of the amount of added sugar to coffee drinks which can become a problem," Hu added.
According to CNN, previous studies have also claimed that drinking coffee may prevent prostate and liver cancer, however, the recent coffee study did not find lower death rates from cancer.
In conclusion, drinking coffee shouldn't be a worry for heavy drinkers, because in fact, it is extremely beneficial.
