With a familiar chill in the air and so much to do before summer is officially over, a steaming cup of coffee is a welcome start to the day for many adults who plan on grabbing this long weekend by the horns. And a new large-scale study out of Spain will have middle-aged and older adults feeling good about enjoying a second or even fourth cup of joe.
The observational study followed 20,000 people over a span of ten years. Researchers found that older participants who drank two cups of coffee each day enjoyed a 30 per cent lower mortality rate. The study also took into account other factors such as age, sex and diet and still those who regularly drank coffee were less likely to die as a result of heart disease, stroke or liver disease.
Why is coffee so beneficial? While drinking coffee won’t reverse existing health problems, it is high in antioxidants which may offer anti-inflammatory protection for the brain and body. Co-author of the study Dr. Adela Navarro, a cardiologist at the Hospital de Navarra in Pamplona, reported the study findings at the European Cardiac Society Congress 2017. Analysis of data found that people over the age of 45 benefitted most by drinking four cups of coffee each day.
In a related study by David Furman of Stanford University, caffeine was found to inhibit chronic inflammation which the aging body is less able to regulate. Most diseases associated with older age including arthritis, Alzheimer’s, hypertension and cancer, are believed to be a result of increased inflammation.
To learn more about how caffeine may help fight inflammation in older age, visit Stanford University School of Medicine News Center by following this link.
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