Coffee Linked To Reducing Heart Disease and Increasing Longevity

Photo by Jessica Lewis on Unsplash

Photo by Jessica Lewis on Unsplash

We've written posts on this blog about the benefits of coffee not only to cardio-health, but overall health, longevity, and cognitive function. Now again, a new study has surfaced with more evidence to support this trend.

According to new research published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, a journal of the European Society of Cardiology. The findings included ground, instant and decaffeinated varieties.

One of the study's authors, Professor Peter Kistler, from the Baker Heart and Diabetes Research Institute in Melbourne, Australia said that all types of coffee, ground, instant, and even decaffeinated, were all associated with not only reducing cardiovascular disease but increasing longevity as well. The results suggest that moderate coffee intake (of any type) should be considered part of a healthy lifestyle.

The study examined the associations between types of coffee and incident arrhythmias, cardiovascular disease, and death using data from the UK Biobank, which recruited adults between 40 and 69 years of age. Cardiovascular disease was comprised of coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure, and stroke.

The study included 449,563 participants all of whom were free of cardiovascular diseases when the study began. The median age was 58 years and over half were women. Researchers followed participants for a median time of 12 1/2 years.

During that time, cardiovascular disease was diagnosed in more than 43,000, 9.6%. Those who drank two to three cups of coffee a day had the lowest risk of developing the disease, researchers found. And, those who drank coffee saw reduced likelihoods of as high as 20%. 

By the end of the study, 27,809 (6.2%), participants had died. However, it was discovered that all types of coffee were linked with a reduction in death from any cause, with two to three cups a day associated with the greatest benefits.

Professor Kistler went on to say that their findings suggest that drinking modest amounts of coffee of all types can be enjoyed as a "heart-healthy behavior."

As mentioned above, this current study adds to the mounting evidence that coffee has many health benefits.  A study from 2018 and another published last year found that drinking three to four cups of coffee, regardless of caffeination, reduces the risk of developing and dying from a myriad of ailments including cardiovascular disease and chronic liver disease.

Author
Dr. Mark L. Meyer Dr. Meyer graduated from Haverford College with a Bachelor of Science, High Honors, in cellular and molecular biology, Phi Beta Kappa, Magna Cum Laude. He attended the Yale University School of Medicine, where he also completed a categorical residency in Internal Medicine, served for one year as an Emergency Department attending physician, and held the title of Clinical Instructor in the Department of Surgery. During this time, Dr. Meyer obtained a J.D. from the Yale Law School, concentrating on medical ethics, scientific research law, and FDA law. He then completed a fellowship in Cardiovascular Diseases at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, where he obtained Level 3 Nuclear Cardiology training.

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