Okay, so we’ve been posting a lot about coffee lately. So much so that you may be wondering if we own shares in coffee beans. Well the truth is we are just addicted to the stuff! Any news which confirms our love for a golden crema is healthy is good news in our books. In addition to the myriad of health benefits we’ve already written, new research suggests coffee is good for you as it may prolong your life.
We should have known sooner that this delicious elixir would be the key to a long life.
Research confirms coffee is good for you
A study conducted by the University of Southern California discovered that people who drink coffee appear to live longer and have a lower risk of death due to heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, and kidney disease.
They found that those who drink a cup of coffee a day were 12% less likely to die compared to those who don’t drink coffee. The more you drink the stronger the association is. If you’re more of a two to three cups a day kind of person you’re 18% less likely to die.
If you’re caffeine conscious you can still reap the benefits. The study also found the same results for both caffeinated and decaf coffee drinkers.
While it can’t yet be said that drinking coffee will definitely prolong your life there is a strong association. “We cannot say drinking coffee will prolong your life, but we can see an association,” said Veronica Setiawan. The lead author of the study.
The study considered multiple ethnicities
The results of this study held true for a number of different ethnicities, a finding which the authors believed was vital. “Until now, few data have been available on the association between coffee consumption and mortality in nonwhites in the United States and elsewhere,” the study stated.
“Such investigations are important be cause lifestyle patterns and disease risks can vary substantially across racial and ethnic backgrounds, and findings in one group may not necessarily apply to others.”
The association between coffee consumption and mortality was evident in four ethnicities: African-Americans, Japanese-Americans, Latinos and Caucasians. Therefore, the results that confirm coffee is good for you can be extrapolated to include other groups.
Coffee might be your new life saver
“This study is the largest of its kind and includes minorities who have very different lifestyles,” Setiawan said. “Seeing a similar pattern across different populations gives stronger biological backing to the argument that coffee is good for you…”
The health benefits don’t stop at reducing mortality. There are many other ways coffee is good for you. Coffee can prevent some forms of cancer, decrease the risk of alzheimers, reduce depression, boost brain power, and much more. You don’t have to limit yourself to just one cup either.
“If you like to drink coffee, drink up! If you’re not a coffee drinker, then you need to consider if you should start,” said Setaiwan.
