Can coffee help you live longer? An expert explains what’s important when consuming it

Drinking coffee daily can have health benefits. An expert offers tips for mindful consumption.

There’s hardly a better expert to answer that than Anna Flögel. The nutrition and health scientist has conducted extensive research on the effects of coffee on health and is familiar with the current scientific understanding of these effects.

“Coffee is not unhealthy,” she says. In fact, current research suggests the opposite. “At least moderate consumption is more likely to be associated with a generally reduced risk of illness,” says Flögel.

She recommends moderate coffee consumption of about two to four cups per day. However, it remains unclear whether excessive coffee consumption has negative health effects. In particular, there is evidence that excessive caffeine consumption in pregnant women may negatively affect the development of the unborn child. It is important to note, however, that this does not apply to everyone, and there is no one-size-fits-all statement about coffee consumption.

Study: Coffee drinkers live longer

Anna Flögel has evaluated long-term studies in which tens of thousands of people were repeatedly asked about their lifestyle habits over decades, and newly occurring diseases were recorded.

One finding from this should please coffee enthusiasts: “Those who drink coffee live longer - across continents,” she says.

Coffee has long had a rather bad reputation when it comes to health. Why is that?

According to Flögel, this is due to the study designs and, above all, to the fact that a crucial factor was given too little consideration: smoking. Smokers tend to drink coffee more often, and the data shows that coffee consumption increases with the number of cigarettes smoked.

Health risks, such as the increased risk of cardiovascular disease, were therefore sometimes wrongly attributed to coffee. Often, cigarettes were the real culprits.

Coffee may reduce the risk of certain diseases.

In fact, numerous scientific studies now point to health-promoting aspects. For example, coffee consumption likely has a preventive effect against endometrial and liver cancer.

The same applies to type 2 diabetes. However, according to Flögel, the risk of healthy individuals developing high blood pressure is not related to coffee consumption.

While blood pressure does rise temporarily after drinking coffee, especially in the first hour afterwards, current studies show that this does not increase the risk of stroke for people with high blood pressure, according to Flögel. Nevertheless, she advises them always to discuss their coffee consumption with their doctor. They can also ask whether coffee might negatively affect the efficacy of any medications they are taking.

The German Heart Foundation writes that people with high blood pressure don’t generally have to give up coffee. However, they should time their blood pressure measurements so they don’t measure within 20 to 30 minutes of drinking coffee, as this can cause a temporary spike in blood pressure. People with heart rhythm disorders should be cautious – if these are exacerbated by coffee consumption, they should drink less or abstain altogether.

Interim conclusion: As a rule, drinking coffee without a guilty conscience is possible; on the contrary, it’s probably even healthy. What remains to be clarified is how coffee directly affects the body. To that end, we’ll take a closer look at three widely held theories.

Coffee myths put to the test

These 1: Coffee dries you out!

That’s not true. “Coffee can be counted towards your daily fluid intake just like water,” says scientist Anna Flögel. This means it contributes to your daily total. Generally, it’s recommended to drink 1.5 to 2 liters a day. So, someone who drinks two cups of coffee to start their day is on the right track.

Although coffee contains caffeine, which has a diuretic effect, this is balanced by moderate consumption and sufficient overall fluid intake.

These 2: The more coffee, the more alert!

That’s not entirely true. How quickly caffeine is metabolized varies greatly from person to person, explains Flögel. “For one person, half a cup is enough to keep them up all night, while another can drink four cups and go to sleep.”

There is also a habituation effect: For those who regularly drink a lot, a cup no longer gives such a strong kick.

These 3: Coffee gets the digestive system moving.

That’s absolutely true. For many people, it’s part of their morning routine: first a cup of coffee, then off to the toilet for a bowel movement. Flögel says this effect is mainly due to caffeine, which generally stimulates metabolism. “Blood pressure rises briefly, and the digestive system is stimulated.”

However, this theory is not universally true either: Whether and how much coffee stimulates digestion ultimately varies from person to person.

What if the coffee upsets your stomach?

Then it might be worth trying espresso. This is the recommendation of certified nutritionist Birgit Warnecke from the German Coffee Association in Hamburg. Due to the roasting and preparation process, espresso contains slightly fewer substances that could potentially irritate a sensitive stomach.

“The widely communicated advice to switch to long-roasted coffee for better ‘tolerability’ is a myth based on outdated knowledge,” says Warnecke.

The fact is that while long roasting does lead to greater breakdown of chlorogenic acids, these acids do not upset the stomach in roasted coffee or in the cup, but rather likely protect it. Therefore, the claim that long-roasted coffee is better tolerated is now outdated.

Milk in coffee can help.

“If you already suffer from an irritated stomach, you should avoid drinking coffee – and many other foods, for that matter – on an empty stomach,” advises the expert. Adding milk is also a good option, as it reduces direct contact between the coffee and the stomach lining.

Because caffeine stimulates digestion, decaffeinated coffee is sometimes better tolerated than caffeinated coffee. It is also a good alternative for those who wish to avoid caffeine’s stimulating and energizing effects.

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