More than 46,000 people observed in a coffee study. Here's what happened to the ones who took theirs black
Those who drink one to two cups of black coffee a day are at a lower risk of death, a new study suggests.
Black coffee and coffee with small amounts of added sugar and saturated fat were linked to a 14 per cent lower risk of all-cause mortality (death from any cause) compared to no coffee consumption, according to the study from Tufts University's Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.
Researchers of the study, published online in May in The Journal of Nutrition, observed the drinking habits of more than 46,000 people who were 20 years old or older between 1999 and 2018. Data was used from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which collects health and dietary information from adults in the United States.
While black coffee was linked to a lower risk of death from all causes, cardiovascular disease and cancer, per the study, coffee with high amounts of added sugar and saturated fat had no such benefits.
The study's findings suggest that adding more than 5 per cent of the daily value of sugar, saturated fat, or both, to coffee diminishes the mortality benefits associated with coffee consumption. Per the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, daily values are the recommended amounts of nutrients to consume or not to exceed each day.
Researchers considered a low amount of added sugar (from granulated sugar, honey, and syrup) to be around 2.5 grams per 8-ounce cup or approximately half a teaspoon of sugar. Those amounts are under 5 per cent of the daily value. They considered low saturated fat (from milk, cream, and half-and-half) to be around 1 gram per 8-ounce cup or the equivalent of five tablespoons of 2 per cent milk, 1 tablespoon of light cream, or 1 tablespoon of half-and-half. Those amounts are also under 5 per cent of the daily value.
'The health benefits of coffee might be attributable to its bioactive compounds, but our results suggest that the addition of sugar and saturated fat may reduce the mortality benefits,' the study's senior author Dr. Fang Fang Zhang said in a news release. Bioactive compounds are types of chemicals found in small amounts in plants and certain foods that promote good health, and are being studied in the prevention of cancer, heart disease, and other diseases, according to the National Cancer Institute.
The amount of coffee consumed per day also played a part in how the drink could potentially be beneficial.
Drinking at least one cup a day was linked to a 16 per cent lower risk of death, whereas two to three cups were associated with the 'greatest reduction,' at a 17 per cent lower risk of death. However, researchers observed that drinking more than three cups of coffee per day 'was not associated with additional reductions in all-cause mortality.'
Many studies have aimed to show the overall health benefits of coffee consumption, including a 2017 study published in research journal The BMJ indicating that it seems 'generally safe within usual levels of intake.' More recently, a 2024 study by the Endocrine Society found that drinking three cups of coffee a day might help to reduce the risk of developing more than one cardiometabolic disease.
However, coffee may not be beneficial for everyone. 'Individuals drinking more than five cups of coffee per day can have an increased risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack) or unstable angina (heart problem causing sudden chest pain),' according to a 2022 study published in the Journal of Personalized Medicine. Researchers at the National Institutes of Health also noted in a 2021 study that 'pregnant women who consumed the caffeine equivalent of as little as half a cup of coffee a day on average had slightly smaller babies than pregnant women who did not consume caffeinated beverages.'
One of the limitations of the Tufts' study is that the information used was based on self-reported recall data, which is 'subject to measurement error due to day-to-day variations in food intake.' There was also a lack of significant associations between decaffeinated coffee and all-cause mortality, which could be due to the low consumption among the population studied, per the news release.
Zhang, who is the Neely Family Professor at the Friedman School, said in an email to National Post on Tuesday that the driving force behind the research was to address concerns about how coffee additions such as sugars and creams 'may counterbalance coffee's health benefits.'
'Our findings confirm our hypothesis that adding high levels of added sugar and saturated fat make the benefits of coffee consumption lowering mortality risk go away,' she said.
She added: 'The key take away is that we need to be mindful about the amount of sugars and saturated fat that we add to coffee when we drink it.'
The study is one of the first to quantify the amount of added sugar and saturated fat in coffee. It concluded: 'Although our findings support the health benefits of coffee consumption, the potential negative effects of adding excessive amounts of sugar or saturated fat to coffee warrant public attention.'
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Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
More than 46,000 people observed in a coffee study. Here's what happened to the ones who took theirs black
Those who drink one to two cups of black coffee a day are at a lower risk of death, a new study suggests. Black coffee and coffee with small amounts of added sugar and saturated fat were linked to a 14 per cent lower risk of all-cause mortality (death from any cause) compared to no coffee consumption, according to the study from Tufts University's Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. Researchers of the study, published online in May in The Journal of Nutrition, observed the drinking habits of more than 46,000 people who were 20 years old or older between 1999 and 2018. Data was used from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which collects health and dietary information from adults in the United States. While black coffee was linked to a lower risk of death from all causes, cardiovascular disease and cancer, per the study, coffee with high amounts of added sugar and saturated fat had no such benefits. The study's findings suggest that adding more than 5 per cent of the daily value of sugar, saturated fat, or both, to coffee diminishes the mortality benefits associated with coffee consumption. Per the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, daily values are the recommended amounts of nutrients to consume or not to exceed each day. Researchers considered a low amount of added sugar (from granulated sugar, honey, and syrup) to be around 2.5 grams per 8-ounce cup or approximately half a teaspoon of sugar. Those amounts are under 5 per cent of the daily value. They considered low saturated fat (from milk, cream, and half-and-half) to be around 1 gram per 8-ounce cup or the equivalent of five tablespoons of 2 per cent milk, 1 tablespoon of light cream, or 1 tablespoon of half-and-half. Those amounts are also under 5 per cent of the daily value. 'The health benefits of coffee might be attributable to its bioactive compounds, but our results suggest that the addition of sugar and saturated fat may reduce the mortality benefits,' the study's senior author Dr. Fang Fang Zhang said in a news release. Bioactive compounds are types of chemicals found in small amounts in plants and certain foods that promote good health, and are being studied in the prevention of cancer, heart disease, and other diseases, according to the National Cancer Institute. The amount of coffee consumed per day also played a part in how the drink could potentially be beneficial. Drinking at least one cup a day was linked to a 16 per cent lower risk of death, whereas two to three cups were associated with the 'greatest reduction,' at a 17 per cent lower risk of death. However, researchers observed that drinking more than three cups of coffee per day 'was not associated with additional reductions in all-cause mortality.' Many studies have aimed to show the overall health benefits of coffee consumption, including a 2017 study published in research journal The BMJ indicating that it seems 'generally safe within usual levels of intake.' More recently, a 2024 study by the Endocrine Society found that drinking three cups of coffee a day might help to reduce the risk of developing more than one cardiometabolic disease. However, coffee may not be beneficial for everyone. 'Individuals drinking more than five cups of coffee per day can have an increased risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack) or unstable angina (heart problem causing sudden chest pain),' according to a 2022 study published in the Journal of Personalized Medicine. Researchers at the National Institutes of Health also noted in a 2021 study that 'pregnant women who consumed the caffeine equivalent of as little as half a cup of coffee a day on average had slightly smaller babies than pregnant women who did not consume caffeinated beverages.' One of the limitations of the Tufts' study is that the information used was based on self-reported recall data, which is 'subject to measurement error due to day-to-day variations in food intake.' There was also a lack of significant associations between decaffeinated coffee and all-cause mortality, which could be due to the low consumption among the population studied, per the news release. Zhang, who is the Neely Family Professor at the Friedman School, said in an email to National Post on Tuesday that the driving force behind the research was to address concerns about how coffee additions such as sugars and creams 'may counterbalance coffee's health benefits.' 'Our findings confirm our hypothesis that adding high levels of added sugar and saturated fat make the benefits of coffee consumption lowering mortality risk go away,' she said. She added: 'The key take away is that we need to be mindful about the amount of sugars and saturated fat that we add to coffee when we drink it.' The study is one of the first to quantify the amount of added sugar and saturated fat in coffee. It concluded: 'Although our findings support the health benefits of coffee consumption, the potential negative effects of adding excessive amounts of sugar or saturated fat to coffee warrant public attention.' Protein coffee is gaining momentum, with Tim Hortons and Starbucks joining the fray What drinking 3 cups of coffee daily did to a study group of more than 170,000 people
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12 hours ago
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Advertisement The disease-causing bacteria thrive in warm, moist environments and are spread through the urine of infected animals, which can contaminate water or soil. They're found worldwide, but as temperatures rise due to climate change, they're becoming increasingly common in cooler areas, including the Northeast, said Marieke Rosenbaum, co-senior author of the study and assistant professor in the Department of Infectious Disease and Global Health at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. Humans can contract the disease when infected water or soil gets into the Advertisement Rosenbaum said it's hard to say how many people have been infected with the disease in Boston, as many don't get tested because they are asymptomatic or only receive a diagnosis if their illness is severe. But the study did track one human case of leptospirosis from 2018 in the city and found that it likely originated from a rat. The patient was hospitalized but ultimately recovered. 'There is a need for more awareness about this disease in this area, also among clinicians,' she said. 'A lot of times it's a disease that clinicians will test for in more extreme cases … but not everyone develops such serious illness.' The paper is part of a larger project out of Tufts dubbed the leptospirosis — one of the 'It's a really unique population of people that are at high risk for contact with rats,' Rosenbaum said. 'I hope this will raise some awareness about populations that could be targeted [with interventions], like people who are homeless or are engaged in outdoor injection drug use, in particular.' In January, a Advertisement Ariana Eggleston, the director of rat education for the 'Not only do you have to be careful, you also have to make sure your dog's feet are clean, you have to be hypervigilant,' Eggleston said, adding that many residents are 'exhausted' from mitigating their risk of catching other infectious diseases like Eggleston said a lot of her work with the festival revolves around educating people in Allston-Brighton — and other items that can attract rats. Trash was strewn in front of 5 Ashford St. during the annual "Allston Christmas" in 2023. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff That may be the best bet against an expanding rodent population, experts said, even more so than using reactive measures like poison. Last year, officials launched the Advertisement 'There's a huge need for a concerted effort to sanitation,' Rosenbaum said, adding officials should focus on areas where humans have the most interactions with rodents. 'And ultimately, if we restrict their access to food and water, they won't be able to reproduce, and that will manage their populations.' Dave Wagner, co-senior author of the study and executive director of the Pathogen and Microbiome Institute at Northern Arizona University, said establishing that local rat populations have their own strains of the disease could improve mitigation techniques. Using information about distinct strains and populations, researchers tracked several rats that had migrated to other colonies, bringing their local strain of leptospirosis with them. That could mean common disruptions to rat populations, including construction, may lead to 'intermingling of rat populations' and increased, not decreased, leptospirosis spread, Rosenbaum said. 'We need to start shifting our approach from, 'Let's try and kill them and eradicate them,' to better understanding how to coexist with them. We're not ever going to eradicate them,' Rosenbaum said. Wagner said he hopes the study, which was published in the Public Library of Science of Neglected Tropical Diseases, will help the public appreciate that the disease is becoming more prevalent worldwide. 'It's something we should be keeping an eye on,' he said. Emily Spatz can be reached at
UPI
a day ago
- UPI
Coffee may help you live longer, but skip the extra sugar
Drinking at least one cup of caffeinated coffee per day was linked to a 16% lower risk of premature death from any cause, researchers found. Photo by Andrea Piacquadio/ Pexels June 18 (UPI) -- Drinking a cup or two of coffee every day may help you live longer -- but only if you skip the heavy cream and sugar, new research suggests. The research, published in The Journal of Nutrition, found that black coffee or coffee with just a little sugar and saturated fat was tied to a lower risk of premature death. But when people drank coffee with lots of sweeteners or cream, the health benefits disappeared. "Coffee is among the most-consumed beverages in the world, and with nearly half of American adults reporting drinking at least one cup per day, it's important for us to know what it might mean for health," senior author Fang Fang Zhang of Tufts University said in a news release. Researchers looked at data from more than 46,000 U.S. adults who took part in national health surveys between 1999 and 2018. They analyzed what kind of coffee people drank -- caffeinated or decaf -- and how much sugar and saturated fat they added. They compared that data to deaths from any cause, as well as heart disease and cancer. The results? Drinking at least one cup of caffeinated coffee per day was linked to a 16% lower risk of premature death from any cause. Drinking two to three cups a day was linked to a 17% lower risk. No clear association was found between coffee and cancer deaths. Researchers said people who drank black coffee or added coffee with low amounts of added sugar and saturated fat seemed to benefit the most. In the study, low sugar was defined as about one-half teaspoon per 8-ounce cup. Low fat, meanwhile, was defined as about 1 gram per cup - equal to 5 tablespoons of 2% milk or 1 tablespoon of light cream. "Few studies have examined how coffee additives could impact the link between coffee consumption and mortality risk, and our study is among the first to quantify how much sweetener and saturated fat are being added," added lead author Bingjie Zhou, a recent doctoral graduate at Tufts. The study was based on self-reported food data, which may not be fully accurate. It also found fewer people drank decaf, which may explain why no strong link was found between decaf coffee and early death. Still, the findings support the idea that coffee can be part of a healthy diet -- just be mindful of how much sugar and cream you add! More information Johns Hopkins Medicine has more on why coffee is good for you. Copyright © 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
