How six cups of coffee a day can help you to live longer

Thanks a latte! How six cups of coffee a day can help you to live longer

• Coffee and its main ingredients are among most researched items in our diet
• US scientists recently revealed ten-year study involving a total of 10,000 people
• One cup of coffee per day reduced the risk of dying early by eight per cent 
• Two-five cups reduced risk by 12 per cent, six cups reduced risk by 16 per cent 
• The benefits are most likely due to polyphenols, chemicals that occur in plants

Coffee may not help you sleep if you drink it late in the day, but scientific evidence increasingly suggests it helps us live longer, by protecting against age-related conditions such as dementia, cancer and heart disease.

Coffee and its main ingredients, caffeine and plant-based compounds called polyphenols, are among the most researched items in our diet.

While the evidence on coffee and life expectancy is far from conclusive, a recent major investigation seems to have tilted the argument heavily in favour of it aiding longevity.

Nature: The benefits are likely due to polyphenols, chemicals that occur naturally in plants

Last month, scientists from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health in the U.S. revealed the findings of a ten-year study involving more than 10,000 people. These showed that the more coffee — whether regular or decaf — that people drank, the less likely they were to die prematurely from any illness.

One cup a day reduced the risk of dying early by eight per cent. Two to five cups reduced the risk by 12 per cent, while six cups reduced the risk by 16 per cent.

More though, and coffee’s protective effects started to wane — eight cups or more reduce the risk by 14 per cent.

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What the study didn’t identify was the ingredient in coffee that seems to have this life-enhancing effect.

However, it did reveal that the beneficial effects held true whether it was ground, instant or, crucially, decaffeinated — which researchers said suggests it may not be the caffeine that’s providing the anti-ageing magic.

The benefits are most likely due to polyphenols, chemicals that occur naturally in plants.

Did you know? Coffee and its main ingredients are among most researched items in our diet

As well as providing vivid colours (such as the red in tomatoes), polyphenols protect plants against harm from damage caused by UV light from the sun and also free radicals — molecules that result from the breakdown of oxygen in the plant.

Countless studies have shown that polyphenols protect against inflammation in the body. This can cause, or be triggered, by conditions such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

Last year, scientists at Stanford University, California, reported that coffee could dampen down ‘internal’ inflammation and potentially protect against age-related illness.

They tracked 100 people over the age of 60 using annual health surveys and regular blood tests. The results, published in Nature Medicine, showed those consuming the most coffee had lower levels of inflammation likely to cause serious illness.

Further evidence of coffee’s anti-ageing prowess came from another recent study from Brigham Young University.

The researchers found coffee drinkers had longer telomeres — the protective ends of each chromosome (the string-like structure that houses our DNA). The longer the telomeres, the better protected our DNA is from damage.

But while coffee itself seemed to have a protective effect, caffeine didn’t, again suggesting polyphenols may be the significant factor. So does this prove coffee can help you live longer?

Well, no, says Professor Naveed Sattar, an expert in metabolism based at Glasgow University’s Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences. He points out that even the latest large-scale study by reputable U.S. research bodies is only observational — that means researchers saw a link between coffee consumption and longevity but produced no irrefutable evidence.

‘The people drinking coffee may already be living a healthier lifestyle, with better incomes and education.

‘There may well be something about coffee that protects against ill health but we cannot say that is definitively the case,’ Professor Sattar says. 

 

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