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May 17th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda WEDNESDAY, May 16 (HealthDay News) — Older adults who consume
three cups of coffee or more daily might lower their risk of dying from
common causes by 10 percent, compared with those who drink no coffee, a
large U.S. National Cancer Institute study suggests.
The finding applies to 50- to 71-year-olds drinking either caffeinated
or decaffeinated coffee. And it suggests that coffee drinking is
associated with a dip in fatalities stemming from cardiovascular disease,
respiratory illness, stroke, diabetes, infections, and injuries and
accidents.
But the team stressed that it remains unclear in what way coffee might
confer a health benefit, and that the study did not establish any
cause-and-effect relationship.
“I think it’s really important to point out that our study was
observational,” said study lead author Neal Freedman, an investigator with
the division of cancer epidemiology and genetics at the U.S. National
Cancer Institute in Rockville, Md.
“That means that we simply asked people how much coffee they drink and
followed them,” he said. “But coffee drinking is just one of the many
things people do. Coffee is associated with many different behaviors. So
we don’t know what else might be affecting this association.”
For instance, coffee drinkers tend to smoke more, which is a major
cause of death, Freedman noted. “And so when we first looked at the
association, we found that coffee drinkers actually faced a higher risk of
death, and it was only when we discounted smoking that we found the
reverse relationship.”
The study is published in the May 17 edition of the New England
Journal of Medicine.
For the study, the investigators focused on the dietary habits of about
400,000 men and women enrolled in the National Institutes of Health-AARP
Diet and Health Study between 1995 and 1996. None of the participants had
a history of cancer, stroke or heart disease when the study started.
Each participant was questioned about their coffee consumption, ranging
from zero to a maximum category of six cups a day or more. The health of
each was tracked through 2008 or until death.
The results showed that drinking even one cup of coffee a day was
linked to a lower overall risk of dying and a lower specific risk of dying
from many of today’s most potent public health concerns.
The notable exception: Coffee drinking was not linked to a reduction in
cancer fatalities among women, and had only a marginal protective impact
on cancer deaths among men.
The protective effect appeared greater among those who drank more than
one cup a day, although Freedman noted that little difference was seen
between the apparent benefit at two cups a day and six cups a day.
“And going forward we really need to look at the many different
components in coffee,” he added. “Besides caffeine, coffee contains about
another 1,000 compounds and antioxidants, some of which may be beneficial
and some not.”
Coffee preparation also needs to be explored, Freedman noted. “Because
a lot of people like drip coffee, but others have espresso or French
press. And the beans can be roasted to different amounts. And each of
these choices affects the compound. And we don’t know whether this affects
the association with disease as well,” he explained.
The authors cautioned that participants were not asked if their
coffee-drinking habits had changed over the study period. Also, the study
did not take into account pre-existing health issues.
For now, Freedman recommends talking to your doctor before starting to
drink more coffee because personal health history might affect the advice
you receive.
Lona Sandon, a registered dietitian and assistant professor of clinical
nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at
Dallas, said that, at a minimum, the new study seems to confirm what most
research to date has suggested: that coffee drinking is not bad for
you.
“Now this study is going beyond that to suggest that it might actually
be helpful,” Sandon added. “But what is the connection? We don’t know
yet.”
Whether it’s the caffeine, the beneficial antioxidants and
phytochemicals found in coffee beans or simply something lifestyle-related
remains to be seen, she said.
More information
For more on coffee and health benefits, visit the Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide.
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