From the 8-27-06 USA Weekend - www.usaweekend.com
Are you ready? Coffee, not known as a health tonic, is now hailed for its wide-ranging health benefits.
Here's what you need to know:
Heart Saver: A large new Harvard study found no increased heart attacks in longtime coffee drinkers. More remarkable: Coffee may save lives. Women ages 55 to 69 who drank 1 to 3 cups a day were 24% less likely to die of heart disease than non-coffee drinkers, says a new analysis of the Iowa Women's Health Study of 27,000 women. Indeed, their odds of dying from any cause during the study decreased about 15%.
Liver Protector: Coffee, even in very low doses, appears to protect the liver. Kaiser Permanente researchers found less cirrhosis in heavy alcohol users who also consumed coffee. Drinking less than a cup a day cut risk of cirrhosis by 30%, and 4 or more cups cut it by a remarkable 80%, compared with drinking none.
Diabetes foe: Drinking lots of coffee slashed risk of type 2 diabetes in recent studies. At Harvard, men drinking 6 or more cups of caffeinated coffee every day had half the risk of type 2 diabetes as non-coffee drinkers. In women, 6 or more cups daily cut risk by 30%. Even decaf cut odds somewhat.
Parkinson's fighter: Coffee drinkers are about one-third less likely to develop Parkinson's disease, say Harvard investigators. Italian research found a steeper drop of 80%.
Still, researchers don't recommend guzzling more coffee, because it can be harmful to some, promoting headaches, insomnia, anxiety and even heart attacks in individuals who are especially suspectible to caffeine. For specific advice, consult your doctor.
