Most people fuel their day by pouring a cup of coffee. Whether you like it hot or iced, drinking more than one cup a day may reduce the risk of heart failure — but that isn’t the case for decaf.
After analyzing data from three previous studies involving 21,000 people over a 10-year period, University of Colorado medical school researchers concluded that those who drank three or more cups of coffee a day had a reduced long-term risk of heart failure.
In two of the studies, the risk of heart failure decreased by 5% to 12% for each daily cup of coffee compared with those who consumed no coffee.
Among participants in the third study, there was no change in heart failure risk for drinking just one cup a day. However, the risk was 30% lower for people who drank two cups or more per day.
For decaffeinated coffee drinkers, there were no such benefits. In one of the studies, researchers found a significantly increased risk of heart failure among those who drank decaf compared with those who did not. Those outcomes were not substantiated in another one of the studies the Colorado researchers analyzed.
The analysis did not test for differences in coffee preparation methods, where the beans were grown or if the findings apply to other forms of caffeinated products.
So how much coffee is too much? Federal guidelines say three to five 8-ounce cups of black coffee is part of a healthy diet. And skip the fancy coffee-based drinks: macchiatos and lattes can pack a lot of sugar, fat and added calories.
And like most other foods and beverages, moderation is key. Continue to enjoy the smell and taste of your daily coffee — but make it part of a well-balanced diet.