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Science

Drinking Several Cups of Coffee a Day May Be Linked To Longer Lifespan in Study (bloomberg.com) 78

Drinking two to three cups of coffee a day could be linked to a longer lifespan, new research suggests. When compared with avoiding coffee, it was also associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, the study found. From a report: The findings applied to ground, instant and decaffeinated varieties of the drink, and researchers say they suggest coffee consumption should be considered part of a healthy lifestyle. According to the study, the greatest risk reduction was seen with two to three cups per day. Compared with no coffee drinking, this was associated with a 14%, 27% and 11% lower likelihood of death for decaffeinated, ground and instant preparations, respectively. Study author Professor Peter Kistler of the Baker Heart and Diabetes Research Institute, Australia, said: "In this large, observational study ground, instant and decaffeinated coffee were associated with equivalent reductions in the incidence of cardiovascular disease and death from cardiovascular disease or any cause. "The results suggest that mild to moderate intake of ground, instant and decaffeinated coffee should be considered part of a healthy lifestyle." The study examined the links between types of coffee and heart rhythms, cardiovascular disease and death using data from the UK Biobank study, which recruited adults between 40 and 69 years of age. Cardiovascular disease was made up of coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure and ischaemic stroke.
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Drinking Several Cups of Coffee a Day May Be Linked To Longer Lifespan in Study

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  • by Marxist Hacker 42 ( 638312 ) * <seebert42@gmail.com> on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @02:43PM (#62938021) Homepage Journal

    Without my 12 cups a day, I'm a zombie.

    What, you can operate without getting a major migraine from caffeine withdrawal?

    • You dupe your coffee 11 times a day? But I think the story itself is a dupe. A good news dupe, but still a dupe.

      Much as I like coffee, that's too much for me. (At least since I got retired.)

      Answering the question before it gets asked, but I never drank the coffee for the lifespan.

      "Why do you drink?"
      "I drink to forget."
      "Forget what?"
      "I forgot."

      • by cayenne8 ( 626475 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @03:38PM (#62938279) Homepage Journal
        I dunno, the only way I can stand coffee, is with some booze, a ton of heavy cream and sugar/sweetner, till it basically tastes like a boozy hot chocolate.

        I kinda doubt that is healthy, and besides, they kinda frown upon that during work hours, hence, I only fix it on the occasional weekend.

        I don't see how people drink that hot bitter liquid plain or without some sort of sweetener.

        I guess it is an acquired taste.

        • I don't see how people drink that hot bitter liquid plain or without some sort of sweetener.

          It might be cultural. I like the bitter taste of coffee and wouldn't want to add sugar, but not like the Turks do it. They drink endless tiny glasses of coffee so strong it is slightly viscus and add neither milk nor sugar.
          I found it way too much, although Istanbul is cosmopolitan enough that it is not hard to find something that suits a foreigner's taste.

        • by CODiNE ( 27417 )

          Sociopaths drink it black. There's been studies........... I'll now assume that everyone drinking it black is secretly a sociopath. Just don't tell THEM that.

    • by Tablizer ( 95088 )

      And with 12+ you are an ax murder, not much of an improvement if you ask me, both halves.

    • by slazzy ( 864185 )
      I drink about the same, we're gunna live to about 350 years old at least
    • Me? I want to know how "several" became "two or three" in less than a sentence.

      (...and does Diet Coke count?)

      • Me? I want to know how "several" became "two or three" in less than a sentence.

        several
        n determiner & pronoun more than two but not many.

        - Concise Oxford English Dictionary

        So it looks as if "three" counts as "several", but not "two". Their bad.

    • by hazem ( 472289 )

      What, you can operate without getting a major migraine from caffeine withdrawal?

      It's not easy, that's for sure. But the improvement in less stress and WAY better sleep is worth it.

      I'd been consuming caffeine for the last 35 years and I was up to drinking 2 pots of coffee/day plus 6 shots of espresso and 2 or 3 iced teas for the last few years. I tapered for about a month and then it took about 3 weeks to not feel like shit and about 6 months to feel "good".

      I never want to go back, not matter what this study of associations says. I got so tired of waking up a 4AM with withdrawal head

    • Want to live longer marry an accountant. Scientifically you probably will not live any longer but it will feel much longer..
    • Need something a little more than Coffee, a little less than Charlie Sheen.

  • This sounds mysteriously like the study where red wife was found to be good for you...sponsored by the wine industry.

    • by Geoffrey.landis ( 926948 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @02:52PM (#62938065) Homepage

      This work isn't an unexpected new result; it's pretty much just confirming several already known studies.

      Here are some studies from years back: http://www.npr.org/sections/th... [npr.org]
        http://time.com/4116129/coffee... [time.com]
        http://www.sciencedaily.com/re... [sciencedaily.com]
        http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/... [nytimes.com]
        http://www.medicalnewstoday.co... [medicalnewstoday.com]

      • by erp_consultant ( 2614861 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @03:12PM (#62938171)

        Yes, I'm not disputing the results I just think that all scientific studies should state clearly who is paying for or contributing funds towards the study. More and more, private companies are funding studies and that introduces bias. Not suggesting that is necessarily the case here but full disclosure is desirable.

        • Yes, I'm not disputing the results I just think that all scientific studies should state clearly who is paying for or contributing funds towards the study. More and more, private companies are funding studies and that introduces bias. Not suggesting that is necessarily the case here but full disclosure is desirable.

          Yep, always a good idea to know who's funding a study. I'm just pointing out that, even if you discard these results entirely, the conclusion seems to stand from other evidence.

          The article under discussion is here: https://academic.oup.com/eurjp... [oup.com]
          The author's notes (scroll to the end, just before the references) say:
          Conflict of interest: D.C. is supported by cofunded NHMRC/NHF post-graduate scholarship. The following industry funding sources regarding activities outside the submitted work have been declar

          • Point taken. Caffeine is known to open the capillaries and promote better blood flow. That probably leads to better heart health and lower blood pressure. 2,3,4 cups a day are beneficial. 10 cups a day not so much.

            I am actually encouraged by studies like this that seem to refute some of the things we used to hold as true. I'm so skeptical these days and pretty much question everything :-)

        • by tsqr ( 808554 )

          Yes, I'm not disputing the results I just think that all scientific studies should state clearly who is paying for or contributing funds towards the study. More and more, private companies are funding studies and that introduces bias. Not suggesting that is necessarily the case here but full disclosure is desirable.

          ...and you'll find the disclosures if you trouble yourself to find the paper [oup.com] and look at the Author Notes at the end. tl;dr: no apparent ties to the coffee industry.

        • by ceoyoyo ( 59147 )

          They usually do. You just have to read the paper.

          The UK biobank is a publicly funded project that collects a whole bunch of information on a couple hundred thousand people who volunteered to participate. Pretty much anybody can submit a proposal, get access to the data, and analyze it.

    • This sounds mysteriously like the study where red wife was found to be good for you.

      So, its healthier for you if you marry an Indian (feather, not dot) woman as your wife?

      Wow...who'd a thunk?

      ;)

    • by tsqr ( 808554 )
      The linked Bloomberg article is paywalled; here's a link [cbsnews.com] to one on a more accessible site. The study appeared in the peer reviewed European Journal of Preventive Cardiology. The author [baker.edu.au] appears to be a well-respected cardiac researcher, so maybe not beholden to the coffee industry.
    • Big Coffee
  • by RobinH ( 124750 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @02:49PM (#62938053) Homepage
    So, who funded the study? That's kind of important, isn't it?
    • by G00F ( 241765 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @02:59PM (#62938105) Homepage

      Well according to the papers on the study:
      https://academic.oup.com/eurjp... [oup.com]

      Funding: none

      Following the money more: The following industry funding sources regarding activities outside the submitted work have been declared in accordance with ICMJE guidelines. P.M.K. has received funding from Abbott Medical for consultancy and speaking engagements and fellowship support from Biosense Webster. J.M.K. holds a Practitioner Fellowship of the NHMRC and has research and fellowship support from Medtronic, Abbott, and Biosense Webster. D.M.K. is the recipient of an NHMRC Research Fellowship. S.P. has an NHMRC Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship. A.V. has a National Heart Foundation Early Career Fellowship. The remaining authors have nothing to disclose.

      So I'm not seeing a trail of conflicting interests yet...

  • Am I as invincible as I feel?
  • repeat stories (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Vomitgod ( 6659552 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @02:53PM (#62938079)

    Perhaps it does - but perhaps it makes you forget the same stories continually posted?

    https://science.slashdot.org/s... [slashdot.org]
    https://developers.slashdot.or... [slashdot.org]
    https://science.slashdot.org/s... [slashdot.org]
    https://science.slashdot.org/s... [slashdot.org]
    https://science.slashdot.org/s... [slashdot.org]

  • In the1990s these "studies" worked on us, the people. But in 2022, after sipping through so many lies like a fine brew, we can tell the good stuff. This is some good stuff.
  • So how much am I reducing my lifespan by the inclusion of enough French Vanilla creamer to make the coffee palatable?

    • Drinking a few cups of hot water daily probably increases your lifespan.

      I don't believe this crap; so many people likely shorted their lives with all the stuff they put into their coffee to make it not taste bad. Now maybe it counters the tons of salt or sugar in their diet a tiny bit or more realistically, the drink is a replacement for soda or even high sugar juices.

      Tea on the other hand probably actually helps. problem is there are so many kinds of tea that can do so many things.

    • by Anonymous Coward

      Yeah, define "coffee". You see adults leaving a certain big chain coffee place with drinks that are more than a meal's worth of the worst kind of calories--sugars mostly. Face it. You're not an adult. You're a child. That's a milk shake with some caffeine in it. You're not a coffee drinker. You're a sugar fiend.

  • Coffee vs caffeine (Score:5, Interesting)

    by devslash0 ( 4203435 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @03:07PM (#62938151)

    It would be good to know if the longevity effect is due to coffee or caffeine. Coffee is known to increase production of certain stomach enzymes which aid digesting food which may be a factor. On the other hand, caffeine may make people live longer simply because it increases our alertness and potentially makes us less likely to die from or be injured in accidents. I would really like to know the answer which would help me decide if I can stick to energy drinks or if I should switch exclusively to coffee.

  • And what about 3x cream with all that coffee?
  • by buck-yar ( 164658 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @03:27PM (#62938235)

    something important is that glucose can lead to HIF-1a distabilization. This can drive cancer so its good to stay somewhat stationary when consuming something high glucose and then let blood sugar levels be low while active. Caffeic acid is the active constituent apparently as it activates ampk. A common feature of some cancers is the inability of AMPK to deactivate mTOR. Caffeic acid acts in synergy with exercize to produce a strong ampk expression.
    https://suppversity.blogspot.c... [blogspot.com]

    The normal person through evolution, when they do something overly strenuous HIF-1a activates and preserves that muscle in the hypoxic environment. When high sugar is around, HIF-1a is easily activated. How people get carpal tunnel is by eating something glycemic then typing. When in the rebuilding environment, ie sedentary, the body is hyper senstive and activates the growth pathways readily. Then as glucose falls, and activity rises, the growth pathways are suppressed. The problem is when people have high sugar then go try and do something the body becomes disregulated and cells that should be maintained are (via HIF-1a). HIF-1a is one of the master regulators in the body.

  • by ShadowRangerRIT ( 1301549 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @03:36PM (#62938271)
    I can nearly guarantee you that any effects disappear when adjusted for socioeconomic status, just like the "wine makes you live forever" stories from a decade or so ago. Regular coffee drinking is:
    1. Expensive and/or time-consuming
    2. Primarily beneficial to (typically better paid, with better health benefits) office workers (who need the off-brand stimulants)

    Turns out, people with more money live longer.

    • by tsqr ( 808554 )

      Coffee is only expensive if it's handed to you by a barista. Making coffee with a drip coffeemaker is pretty cheap. And where I work, the coffee is free. As far as the comments regarding the unhealthy effects of creamer and sugar go: dosing a cup of coffee with a portion of French Vanilla creamer and a couple of cubes of sugar adds about 70 calories. Three cups of that every day may result in a bit of weight gain, but it isn't going to be a health hazard unless the rest of your diet is made up of pizza and

      • We get coffee at Costco, "grind" it at home with a coffee chopper, and get a mediocre experience for pennies on the dollar compared to going out for that mediocre experience. I used to buy coffee from the local roaster when I lived in Santa Cruz, but it hasn't ever been convenient other than that (when I could just adjust my path home through downtown.) I miss my Steve's Smooth French.

    • Expensive and/or time-consuming

      Lol, have you ever worked with blue collar people? Presumably you believe none of them smoke anymore either because it is also expensive and time-consuming...

      Coffee is dirt cheap - on parr with tea bags when in the cheap no-brand instant or pre-ground filter machine variety. I seriously doubt socioeconomic status is a big confounder in this study based on how much coffee production workers would drink at the manufacturing companies I used to work at.

  • by argStyopa ( 232550 ) on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @03:47PM (#62938307) Journal

    Unless they ask WHY people were drinking 2-3 cups a day this study doesn't have much traction.

    It could be that people who had early jobs and NEEDED 2-3 cups of coffee to get up to speed in the morning have some longevity benefit vs slouches who don't get up until they fluff out of bed at 10am and shuffle to their "work" for the day.

    • by piojo ( 995934 )

      I'm skeptical that that the type of job makes any difference (except variable start time jobs). I need that coffee whether my job starts at 9 or 11 AM. And when for a short time I kicked the addiction, I had no problem waking up for an early job. (I still fell asleep in afternoon meetings though.)

      My chronotype might be responsible--I usually want to stay up later and sleep later than I reasonably can. But "later" is independent of the actual starting time of the job. So late chronotype folks might live long

  • A 'cup' of coffee for me is at least 20 ounces. And I can drink up to 3 or 4 of those a day. Will I live forever?
    • A 'cup' of coffee for me is at least 20 ounces. And I can drink up to 3 or 4 of those a day. Will I live forever?

      You don't seem to be good at reading summaries. So probably not. Some fine print that you gloss over will probably get you relatively quickly compared to the baseline of average readers.

      According to the study, the greatest risk reduction was seen with two to three cups per day.

  • If I do daily anything, I'm still alive. Good enough for me.

    Also, coffee helps you poop!

  • bUt iT mAkEs mE qUiVerrr.

    I just read a study that says too many cups cause heart problems. It seems they alternate their conclusion about coffee every few years for the hell of it; seen dozens of studies. When the medical news appears waffly, I'll just stick with "all things in moderation" as the default.

    • I'm making up the numbers, but not the trends.

      1995: Coffee helps people in Category A live longer.
      2000: Coffee lowers the lifespan of people in Category B.
      2005: Coffee lowers the lifespan of people in Category A, and extends the lifespan of people of Category B.
      2010: Coffee extends the lifespan of people in Category A, and extends the lifespan of people in Category B, except for those also in Category C.
      Me in 2022: it doesn't matter either way. Coffee and tea need so much sugar and creamer to not taste like

      • by Tablizer ( 95088 )

        Then I'm doomed:

        2023: "Coffee lowers the lifespan of people who don't know what category they are in."

  • Put a pot on and they'll tell you all about it. :)

  • Drinking several cups of coffee makes me safer around other people.
  • The Ink Spots were singing about their love of coffee [youtube.com] back in 1940, and that song's just as true now as it was then.
  • by filesiteguy ( 695431 ) <perfectreign@gmail.com> on Tuesday October 04, 2022 @06:08PM (#62938787)
    I love these "observational studies" and their "findings." While coffee may actually be good for us, there's no valid information in an observational study. Also, they could have picked 449,000 people with advanced heart disease who drank no coffee and 563 healthy individuals who jog five miles per day an drink copious amounts of black coffee. Also, how did they collect the data? This is just like those bogus fat vs. sugar studies done in the '60s.
  • So the thing is, i drink a lot of coffee and so far i'm still alive. Study must be true right...Source, just trust me bro.

    Overall coffee has a lot going on in it. Proper quality coffee beans contain over 800+ chemical components and although many of these are volatile types and mainly contributes towards the smell it gives off. There are also many others forming stuff like long chain polymers containing a wide variety of natural acids that can form during the process, like malic and citric acid, that can fo

  • Says the article sponsored by Starbucks.

  • Yes, inquiring minds are suspicious! Of what? That said study was likely funded by the coffee industry.
  • Is good for you, said the coffee farmer.
  • Because I remembered back when Futurama actually was an incredible show.

  • Get back to me when you actually know.

  • Since the likelihood of death is 100%, the sentence: "Compared with no coffee drinking, this was associated with a 14%, 27% and 11% lower likelihood of death" is statistical bullshit.

  • People who drink that amount of coffee are more productive. More productive people generally make more money and are smarter to begin with. Such people generally have better health outcomes.

  • When you take a physical examination, a doctor will always ask you the following: How much [alcohol] do you drink? How much do you smoke? How much coffee do you drink? It's not hard to read between the lines on that one. I don't drink coffee, but everyone I know that does can't live without it (they claim). It's classic addict behavior. Whenever I see a claim about alcohol or coffee being "good for you" in some moderate amount, there is usually a less-circulated rebuttal to that claim not too far away (anec

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