Drinking Coffee Could Add Years to Your Life, According to a New Study

If your New Year's resolution was to quit drinking coffee, you may want to revisit that idea because, according to a newly published study, regularly sipping on the caffeinated beverage could add years to your life.

In December, researchers from the University of Coimbra in Portugal published a study titled "Impact of coffee intake on human aging: Epidemiology and cellular mechanisms" in the journal Ageing Research Reviews, showcasing how coffee can help reduce all-cause mortality.

"Coffee intake attenuates the major causes of mortality, dampening cardiovascular-, cerebrovascular-, cancer- and respiratory diseases-associated mortality, as well as some of the major causes of functional deterioration in the elderly such as loss of memory, depression, and frailty," the authors explain in their introduction. In fact, its review found that moderate consumption of coffee corresponds to an "average increase in healthspan of 1.8 years of lifetime."

Related: Those 3 Cups of Coffee a Day Could Actually Be Good for You

The team noted that the "inverse associations" between coffee intake and mortality with the lowest risk corresponded to about three cups per day. However, they added, it's difficult to nail down a specific number as the meta-analysis used research with self-reported data from participants, meaning people could have skewed the numbers on their actual consumption levels.

Still, it's a good benchmark, as the researchers found "discrete benefits afforded by the consumption of one cup of coffee a day, maximal benefits afforded by three cups a day, followed by a waning of the benefits with increasing doses of coffee consumed daily." And best of all, the benefits were seen in both men and women. It even found that the consumption of decaffeinated coffee was associated with a lower risk of death, "although the strength of this conclusion is limited by the fewer number of individuals consuming decaffeinated coffee."

“We know that the world’s population is aging faster than ever, which is why it’s increasingly important to explore dietary interventions which may allow people to not only live longer but also healthier lives," neuroscientist Rodrigo Cunha, the lead author of the study, shared in a statement. "Traditional clinical recommendations have at times overlooked coffee’s role in healthy aging, but with a strong research base around how regular consumption can potentially reduce some of the most chronic diseases facing society, it is likely time to re-evaluate these."

And here's one more tidbit to pull out of your pocket if you ever need to defend your coffee consumption: Cunha and his team found that while the idea of well-being is subjective, healthy adults who participated in the studies used in this meta-analysis reported a "heightened mood status and improved behavior upon intake of coffee or caffeine."

So, yes, it's great that coffee can help you live longer, but it's also nice to know that it could help you live happier years.

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