Coffee is probably one of the most misunderstood beverages. When I was in training the general notion about coffee was that it was simply not good for you. A couple of studies even showed an increased mortality from cardiovascular diseases for coffee drinkers.

Caffeine in coffee is known to elevate the blood pressure, increase homocysteine levels and increase the release of epinephrine. All those are detrimental effects that could lead to hypertension and heart disease. There is more to coffee than just caffeine, though. Several studies, actually, found an inverse association between coffee consumption and several markers of inflammation and endothelial dysfunction. The phenolic compounds in coffee are believed to exert an antioxidant effect as well.

So, could coffee, in fact, be good for you?

The most recent article that I was able to find was published in the 2008 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine. The study was powerful enough to evaluate the effect of coffee consumption on mortality from cardiovascular diseases, cancer and as well as all-cause mortality.

Before we jump to conclusions, there were several interesting observations made by the researches. Regular coffee consumption was associated with smoking. Also, individuals who drank more coffee were more likely to drink alcohol and less likely to exercise. Who said that coffee is not a lifestyle beverage?

Anyway, the authors of this study “failed” to prove that coffee consumption was associated with an increased risk of death from cardiovascular or cancer causes. There, actually, was a decreased risk of death from “other causes” for regular coffee drinkers. This, for some reason, was mainly true for women.

To evaluate the “other than caffeine” theory, the researchers looked at the association between mortality and consumption of decaffeinated beverages. They found that higher decaffeinated coffee consumption was still associated with a slightly lower risk of all-cause mortality among women.

Although, the authors didn’t bother to explain why women benefit from coffee more than men, no association between coffee drinking and increased risk of death was found for either group. So, even though, coffee might not buy you any extra years of life, it is unlikely to shorten it either.

Enjoy it!