Edited by David G. Fairchild, MD, MPH

Coffee consumption is associated with reduced mortality risk, suggests an observational study in Circulation.

The analysis included nearly 210,000 U.S. health professionals free of cancer and cardiovascular disease at baseline. Participants completed food-frequency questionnaires at baseline and every 4 years thereafter. Roughly 32,000 died during 4.7 million person-years of follow-up.

Participants who drank one to five cups of coffee (decaf or regular) daily had slightly lower risk for all-cause mortality than nondrinkers (hazard ratios, 0.91–0.95). For heavier coffee drinkers, there was no association. When the analysis was limited to people who never smoked, there was an inverse linear relationship between coffee consumption and all-cause mortality, with those drinking over five cups daily having the lowest risk (HR, 0.88). Among never smokers, coffee appeared protective against mortality related to cardiovascular and neurological diseases and suicide.

The authors conclude: “Results from this and previous studies indicate that coffee consumption can be incorporated into a healthy lifestyle.”