For a lot of people, a mug of coffee every morning is what keeps them functioning. According to a study from multiple countries, this may be doing you a lot of good too.
A study of almost half a million people from 10 European countries has concluded that three cups of coffee a day may be helping you to live longer.
The research, published in the journal: The Annals of Internal Medicine, suggests that an extra cup will lengthen a person’s lifespan. Even if it’s decaffeinated.
Skeptics are quick to bash these findings though, arguing it’s impossible to tell if it’s actually the drink that is having this effect. They suggest it may just be a healthier lifestyle in coffee drinkers.
(Image: Getty)
The Research
In all fairness, they could be onto something. I wouldn’t bother going to grab another cup just yet. Not all factors were taken into place when this research was being carried out.
Things such as people who drink 3 cups a day could be more social, which in turn would boost their well-being. Earnings and lifestyle in comparison to non-coffee drinkers wasn’t taken into account either.
Even then, not all risks were put lower. For example, higher coffee drinking may be linked to a higher rate of ovarian cancer in women.
While the research took a lot of people into account, it excludes anybody with diabetes, heart attacks or strokes at the beginning of the study.
(Image: Men’s Journal)
Is coffee good for us?
Previous studies are quite conflicted when it comes to whether coffee is actually any good for us.
For most of us, caffeine will make us feel a lot more alert. However, it tends to affect some people more than it does for others. It varies from person to person.
The NHS has no limits on how much caffeine a person should consume, but it is advised that pregnant women don’t exceed 200mg, as too much could lead to a miscarriage.
Caffeine isn’t only found in coffee either. 200mg would be found in 2 cups of tea and can of coca-cola rather than two mugs of coffee.
Energy drinks tend to be extremely caffeinated also, with a lot of controversy surrounding them as they’re believed to be the cause of the death of some teens. Oh, and avoid mixing energy drinks with alcohol. It’s not good.
(Image: RU)
So, does coffee really make us live longer? It’s hard to say. The research is fairly flawed. You may as well just enjoy it anyway, especially if you incorporate Malcolm’s simple trick to a better coffee.
I wouldn’t recommend drinking too much caffeine though. Carl is one of those heavy Red Bull consumers and he constantly looks wired.
Source: BBC