Coffee and Health has explained the plentiful benefits of a hot black drink – coffee. Backed by research, coffee is linked to a lower risk of all-cause mortality, with some studies underlying its ability to cut the risk of heart disease and cancer.
If you prefer a cup of coffee instead of tea, you might be onto something as the drink offers some positive benefits.
A large study, published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, found a link between higher coffee consumption and lower risk of all-cause mortality.
The number of cups was set at more than three coffees a day.
Looking at more than 500,000 participants, the study followed up with its participants and saw 41 693 deaths.
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The participants who drank the most of the hot drink had “significantly” lower all-cause mortality.
Another study, published in the journal Circulation: Heart Failure, looked at the relationship between coffee and cardiovascular disease.
They found the more coffee people drank, the lower their risk for heart failure was.
However, this didn’t apply to people who only drank the decaf version of the drink.
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Senior author Dr David Kao said: “The association between caffeine and heart failure risk reduction was surprising.
“Coffee and caffeine are often considered by the general population to be ‘bad’ for the heart because people associate them with palpitations, high blood pressure, etc.
“The consistent relationship between increasing caffeine consumption and decreasing heart failure risk turns that assumption on its head.”
However, the researchers also noted that more studies might be necessary to draw a firm conclusion.
Furthermore, a 2017 review suggested that increased frequency of coffee consumption was associated with a lower risk of cancer incidence in both men and women.
Including 39,685 men and 43,124 women, the study also found that drinking coffee was associated with reduced mortality from the deadly disease.
However, data are not consistent or mixed when it comes to different cancer types, reports the European Journal of Cancer Prevention.
The reason why coffee is so potent is not quite clear.
However, Coffee and Health explained that a number of theories exist as researchers have considered roles for specific coffee constituents, including caffeine, cafestol and kahweol, as well as some of the phyto-chemicals found in the dark drink.
When it comes to the amount to drink, the non-profit organisation said: “The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in a review on the Safety of Caffeine concluded that moderate caffeine consumption, of around 400mg caffeine per day (the equivalent of up to 5 cups of coffee), can be enjoyed as part of a healthy balanced diet and an active lifestyle.
“Pregnant and breastfeeding women are advised to limit their caffeine intake to 200mg per day.”