It turns out your daily drink could be doing far more good than you think. And it's good news for millions. Experts at Which? say that you may be sipping from the fountain of youth without knowing it. The drink is simple: coffee.
Coffee and Cellular Ageing
Hailing the drink as great for our health, sugars and syrups aside, the consumer champions explain that polyphenols found in coffee beans act as antioxidants to protect cells from damage and reduce inflammation. However, unfiltered coffee like cafetiere (French press) contains oils that raise cholesterol, but paper filters help remove these.
Which? cited a study from King's College London, which found that regular coffee drinkers, specifically those having 2 to 4 cups a day, have longer telomeres than those who don't. This applies to everyone, from pour-over purists to instant coffee drinkers.
What Are Telomeres?
According to the National Human Genome Research Institute, a telomere is a repeated DNA section at the end of a chromosome that protects it from damage. Every time a cell divides, telomeres get shorter. When they become too short, the cell can no longer divide properly and eventually dies. Telomeres are how cells protect chromosome ends. Shorter telomeres are linked to cellular ageing. Coffee drinkers who consumed within recommended levels are estimated to have a biological age that was five years younger than their chronological age.
Coffee Could Lower Dementia Risk
The benefits don't end there. Drinking coffee is associated with a lower risk of dementia. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that drinking 2-3 cups of caffeinated coffee per day was linked to an 18% lower risk of dementia. However, consuming more than this did not provide additional protection. It may be wise to limit yourself to four or fewer cups, especially if you want a good night's sleep.
Another study published on the Harvard Gazette found that among more than 130,000 participants, those with the highest intake of caffeinated coffee had an 18% lower risk of dementia compared with those who reported little or no consumption. Caffeinated coffee drinkers also had a lower prevalence of subjective cognitive decline and showed better performance on objective tests of overall cognitive function.
Change Up Your Coffee Beans for Gut Health
Which? notes that Lawsonibacter asaccharolyticus, a type of bacteria, is 6 to 8 times more abundant in the gut of coffee drinkers than in non-coffee drinkers. A gut with a diverse microbiome is a healthier one, so for better gut health, keep your gut guessing and switch up the origins of your coffee beans to feed the diverse bacteria.
Experts at Zoe, founded by Tim Spector, say the same. Zoe's PREDICT studies found that coffee drinkers tended to have more diversity in their microbiomes. One possible explanation has to do with the soluble fibre and prebiotic properties in coffee that feed beneficial gut bugs. In a Zoe Science & Nutrition podcast, Spector explained that coffee is probably the drink you have regularly that contains the most fibre, more than a glass of orange juice.
Coffee Could Lower Diabetes Risk
Finally, observational studies suggest that over the long term, 3 to 5 cups of black coffee a day can reduce type 2 diabetes risk by up to 30%. However, there is a catch: caffeine is a stressor, so on an empty stomach or after poor sleep, it might raise blood sugar levels in some people. To fix this, drink your coffee after breakfast to keep your insulin steady.
