Drinking up to four coffees a day 'reduces type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure'
Coffee lovers, rejoice – because a moderate intake of your favourite cuppa could reap benefits for your health, according to a new study.
Consuming up to four cups of coffee on a daily basis could help reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, a study has found.
Scientists discovered both “an association between coffee consumption and a decreased risk of type two diabetes" and that "long-term coffee consumption is associated with a decreased risk of hypertension", in a study conducted jointly by research teams at the universities of Navarre in Spain and Catania in Italy.
READ MORE: Breastfeeding mum shamed by a relative for drinking too much coffee
This is because a “moderate consumption” of the popular hot drink was positively associated with lowered metabolic syndrome risk – reducing an individual’s risk by an average of by 26 per cent.
Metabolic syndrome is an umbrella term for a number of conditions that often occur together and increase the risk of diabetes, stroke and heart disease. This includes obesity, high blood pressure, high blood triglycerides, low levels of HDL cholesterol and insulin resistance.
What’s more, you can reap the benefits of coffee drinking even if yours is a decaf – with scientists noting the same benefits with both caffeinated and decaffeinated kinds.
But be warned: any more than this and you could lose the benefit altogether, as any positive effects from coffee consumption disappeared after more than four cups.
Assistant professor Giuseppe Grosso’s research suggested the positive correlation might be down to the presence of polyphenols – a type of micronutrient – in coffee.
READ MORE: Drinking tea or coffee within four hours of bedtime 'has no impact on sleep'
The research was conducted independently but was commissioned by the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee, whose members are six of the major European coffee companies: illycaffe, Jacobs Douwe Egberts, Lavazza, Nestle, Paulig and Tchibo.
