Harvard Study Finds Coffee-Drinking Women Age Healthier
Women with "healthy aging" drank an average of two tall-size cups
Coffee caffeine lowers risk of chronic diseases such as cancer
No effect from tea or decaf coffee... Cola has negative impact
A study has found that women who drink an appropriate amount of coffee have a much higher probability of aging healthily, such as not developing chronic diseases.
The research team led by Dr. Sara Madavi at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health analyzed data from 47,513 American female nurses who participated in Harvard University's Nurses' Health Study and obtained these results. The team tracked the participants for 30 years, starting in 1984, and found that women who consumed caffeine through coffee were much more likely to experience "healthy aging." In this study, "healthy aging" was defined as not developing any of 11 chronic diseases, such as cancer, stroke, or type 2 diabetes, maintaining good mental health without cognitive impairment, and having normal physical function.
The nurses who participated in the study regularly and diligently responded to surveys about their diet, lifestyle, and health status over the 30-year period. Among the respondents, only 3,706 women, less than 10%, met all the criteria for "healthy aging." The research team found that these women consumed an average of 315 mg of caffeine per day through coffee. This amount of caffeine is equivalent to about three small cups of coffee, or about two "tall size Americanos," which are popular in Korea.
The researchers analyzed that for middle-aged and older women, each additional small cup of coffee per day was associated with a 2% to 5% higher probability of "healthy aging." However, this increased probability was only observed up to a maximum of five small cups per day. Importantly, this effect was seen only with caffeinated coffee; similar effects were not found with decaffeinated coffee, tea, cola, or other caffeinated beverages. In fact, consuming caffeine through cola was found to have a significantly negative impact on healthy aging.
The research team stated, "We obtained these results after comprehensively considering various variables such as body weight, smoking status, drinking habits, and physical activity." However, they emphasized, "Compared to more important lifestyle factors such as exercise, maintaining a healthy diet, and not smoking, the benefits of coffee consumption are relatively minor." To achieve healthy aging, it is necessary to accompany coffee drinking with other healthy habits such as a balanced diet, regular exercise, not smoking, and moderate alcohol consumption. These findings were presented at the 2025 American Society for Nutrition conference held in Orlando, United States.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
