If you are among the millions of Americans who can’t even fathom starting the day without a cup of brew, you probably aren’t drinking coffee for its health benefits. While medical experts have never considered drinking coffee an especially unhealthy dietary choice, there’s also never been that much reason to believe that drinking coffee will improve your health either. That is until a new study published in Annals of Internal Medicine found sweetened and unsweetened coffee consumption to be associated with a lower risk of death. Now, coffee lovers everywhere have one more reason to consider coffee an essential part of every morning.
Coffee Consumption and Life Expectancy: What the Study Found
In a study that examined 171,000 participants from the UK who did not have any known cancer or heart diseases, researchers asked participants a number of dietary questions in order to determine their coffee consumption habits then tracked the study’s participants for a seven-year period.
During this seven-year follow-up period, researchers found that participants who drank any amount of unsweetened coffee were 16 to 21% less likely to die than participants who did not drink coffee. The really surprising part, though – and what makes this study unique from other studies that have examined the link between coffee consumption and life expectancy – is that researchers found drinking sweetened coffee to reduce the risk of death even further; according to the study, participants who drank coffee sweetened with sugar on a daily basis were 29 to 31% less likely to die than participants who did not drink coffee.
The fact that participants who drank sweetened coffee lived longer on average than those who drank unsweetened coffee or no coffee at all is a little astounding. It seems to suggest that sugar alone is able to boost life expectancy. However, there are a few important factors to consider before you start adding an extra teaspoon or two of sugar to your coffee each morning.
In an editorial that accompanied the study, editors at Annals of Internal Medicine pointed out that confounding variables such as differences in socioeconomic status, diet, and other lifestyle factors make it difficult to say for certain that the study’s results should be taken at face value.
It’s also important to keep in mind that the study’s participants were from the UK where sugary, specialty coffee drinks are not nearly as popular as they are in the United States. So while adding a little sugar to your coffee each morning might not be all that unhealthy, drinking specialty coffee that is more of a dessert than it is coffee probably isn’t the healthiest habit.
Other Health Benefits of Drinking Coffee
Along with potentially improving your life expectancy, drinking coffee has been found to offer several other noteworthy health benefits, including benefits such as:
- Boosted energy levels
- Lower risk of type 2 diabetes
- Weight loss
- Supports brain health
- Supports heart health
- Lower risk of depression
- Protects against liver conditions
Along with these potential benefits, though, there are also a few potential health risks associated with drinking too much coffee. For one, too much caffeine can increase anxiety in those with panic or anxiety disorders. Excess coffee consumption can also lead to digestive issues, high blood pressure, insomnia, and rapid heart rate in some people.
Conclusion
Studies showcasing the link between coffee consumption and improved life expectancy have offered no solid explanation as to why drinking coffee would make a person live longer. Nevertheless, the fact that drinking coffee seems to boost life expectancy is a conclusion that numerous studies have reached.
Today, most physicians advise that there is no harm in drinking coffee as long as you are careful about how much cream, sugar, and other high-calorie ingredients you are adding. So the next time you fire up the coffee pot for your morning ritual, we hope that you will take a little comfort knowing that you may be adding time to your life with each sip!
