GIVE IT THE BEANS

That cup of coffee may have a long-term perk

- ALICE CALLAHAN

Most people who drink coffee appreciate the quick jolt of energy it provides. But in a new study, presented last week at the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition, scientists have found that coffee may offer the much longer-term benefit of healthy ageing.

The study has not been peer-reviewed or published, but it was rigorous and included a large number of women who were followed for many years. It also adds to a large body of evidence linking coffee to longer lives and various health advantages, including lower risks of certain chronic diseases — though all of these studies had limitations, including that they were observational and could not prove cause and effect.

Still, the results linking coffee to healthier ageing were not surprising, said Fang Fang Zhang, a professor of nutritional epidemiology at Tufts University who was not involved with the study.

"The data is quite consistent that coffee consumption is actually beneficial," she said.

What did the new research find?

In the study, researchers followed more than 47,000 female nurses for several decades beginning in the 1970s. Every few years, the women answered detailed questions about their diets, including how much coffee, tea and cola they typically drank. Then the scientists looked at how many of the women were still alive and met their definition of "healthy ageing" in 2016.

Just over 3,700 women met that definition: They were 70 or older; reported good physical and mental health, with no cognitive impairment or memory problems; and were free of 11 chronic diseases such as cancer, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, kidney failure, Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis.