Coffee: Clean Bill of Health

"Based on this study, clinicians can tell their patients that there is no need for most coffee drinkers to eliminate the beverage from their diet but to be cautious about higher calorie specialty coffees."

Lead study author Dr. Dan Liu, department of epidemiology, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China

 

"Researchers from Southern Medical University in Guangzhou, China used data from the U.K. Biobank study health behavior questionnaire to evaluate the associations of consumption of sugar-sweetened, artificially sweetened, and unsweetened coffee with all-cause and cause-specific mortality. More than 171,000 participants from the U.K. without known heart disease or cancer were asked several dietary and health behavior questions to determine coffee consumption habits. The authors found that during the 7-year follow up period, participants who drank any amount of unsweetened coffee were 16 to 21 percent less likely to die than participants who did not drink coffee. They also found that 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 participants who did not drink coffee. The authors noted that adults who drank sugar-sweetened coffee added only about 1 teaspoon of sugar per cup of coffee on average. Results were inconclusive for participants who used artificial sweeteners in their coffee."

Summary, Annals of Internal Medicine

Results of a recent survey showed that for people who drank a moderate amount of coffee, had about a 30 per cent lower death risk compared with non-coffee drinkers. (Adobe Stock/CNN)

According to yet another published study on the health benefits of coffee consumption out of Guangzhou, China published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, people who consume moderate amounts of coffee -- up to three and a half cups daily -- might gain improved chances at achieving a longer life span. This, whether or not the coffee taken is lightly sweetened with sugar.

 

Study researhers tracked coffee consumption and health of 171,616 study participants for a period of seven years. The average age of the participants was around 56 years. All were free of cancer and cardiovascular disease a the beginning of the study. The researchers discovered that people who had a regular habit of drinking one and  a half to three and a half cups of coffee daily either plain or sweetened with a teaspoon of sugar were up to 30 percent less likely to die in the time frame studied from any cause, inclusive of cancer and cardiovascular disease, as opposed to those who drank no coffee at all. 

In addition it made no difference to the outcome, whether the type of coffee consumed was instant, ground or decaffeinated. The study results were noted to be inconclusive for the use of artificial sweeteners. The research does not prove coffee alone to be responsible for lowered mortality risk in participants, but over the years research revealed a variety of health benefits attributed to coffee consumption.

As for xample, a reduced risk for succumbing to Type 2 diabetes, or Parkinson's disease, depression and other chronic life-changing medical conditions. The benefits of coffee has often been attribued by nutritionists to the richness of antioxidants in coffee beans. Believed to help reduce internal inflammation and cell damage as well as protect against disease.

Consuming caffeinated coffee provides as well, an energy boast and is known to increase alertness. At the other end of the spectrum, caffeine is known to have a role in sleep disruption, as well as becoming a risky habit during pregnancy.

 

Coffee drinkers who consumed 2.5 to 4.5 cups a day, without sugar, had a 29% lower risk of death than non-coffee drinkers, in a seven-year study. Photograph: Anthony Devlin/PA

"The observational nature of this new study means these conclusions are far from definitive."

"This is because coffee drinkers are in general more affluent and have healthier lives than non-drinkers and I remain unconvinced whether these factors can be overcome in observational studies."

"I would suggest people stick to coffee or tea, preferably without sugar, which most people can adapt to, and try to do all the other things we know keep you healthy – move more, eat and sleep better."

Dr. Naveed Sattar, professor of metabolic medicine, University of Glasgow