In our ongoing defense of coffee, we have aggregated a number of important studies that have linked drinking coffee to the prevention and/or treatment of various diseases. It’s a pretty impressive list!

While not at all comprehensive, this list of 11 diseases and how coffee contributes to their prevention should give you a good idea of why drinking coffee isn’t just a nice morning routine, it’s a massive benefit to your health. So let’s get started!

Type II Diabetes

This disease currently afflicts nearly 30 million Americans–approaching 10% of the population. It’s safe to say it’s an epidemic, and it’s completely preventable.

The first step in avoiding diabetes is to limit or eliminate sugar consumption. But coffee can be a major deterrent as well. An analysis of 28 different studies that, all together, included more than a million participants, the journal Diabetes Care reported that for every cup of coffee per day that you drink, you reduce your risk of developing Type II Diabetes as an adult by 9%. Furthermore, drinking 6 or more cups of coffee per day reduces your risk of developing Type II Diabetes by 54% for men and 30% for women.

Stroke

Strokes are the number one cause of long-term disability in the United States, affecting nearly 800,000 people every year. For women at least, drinking coffee is a great tool for prevention.

A longitudinal study from Harvard University following 83,000 women for 24 years found that those who drank two or more cups of coffee per day reduced their risk of having a stroke by 19%. And if they were non-smokers, it reduced the risk by 43%.

Prostate Cancer

Nearly 27,000 American men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year. Every day in American, 75 men die from this disease. Coffee can help lower the chances of developing this deadly cancer.

A study funded by the National Institute of Health studied 50,000 male healthcare workers over a span of 20 years. They found that those who drank 6 or more cups of coffee per day were 60% less likely to develop prostate cancer. 4-5 cups a day reduced the chances of developing prostate cancer by 25% and 3 cups a day reduced the chances by 20%.

Liver Disease

The most prevalent type of liver cancer is called hepatocellular carcinoma and it affects more than 40,000 people every year in the United States.

A report by the journal, Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, in 2007 analyzed 10 studies, including a total of 240,000 participants, and found that by drinking three or more cups of coffee, the risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma was reduced by 50%. Simply drinking coffee on a daily basis reduced that same risk by 40%.

Depression

Depression affects more than 3 million Americans. A disproportionate number of these people are women–roughly 65%.

Two interesting studies have found a link between drinking coffee avoiding depression. The first, a study by Harvard School of Public Health Department of Nutrition found that 4 or more cups of coffee per day reduced women’s risk of developing depression by 20%. What’s particularly interesting about this study is that they also looked for a link decaffeinated coffee, and found none, indicating that caffeine is probably the key ingredient.

Another study by the Journal of the American Medical Association found that by drinking four or more cups of coffee a day, women reduced their risk of committing suicide by 50%.

Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer for American women, with more than 250,000 being diagnosed with this disease every year.

Studies on the link between lower breast cancer risk and coffee are relatively imprecise, but there has been found at least one positive piece of news. A study in the journal, Clinical Cancer Research, found that moderate-to-high coffee consumption in women suppressed the growth of two types of cells that lead to breast cancer (called ER+ and ER- type cells). And overall, moderate-to-high coffee consumption reduced the risk of developing breast cancer.

Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s Disease is an extremely debilitating neurodegenerative disease affecting more than 10 million Americans.

The link between coffee consumption and avoiding Parkinson’s is fortunately very strong. A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that, after following 8,004 people over the course of 30 years, those who did not drink coffee at all were five times more likely to develop Parkinson’s Disease. Drinking three or more cups per day will reduce the risk of developing Parkinson’s by 25%.

Heart Disease

Heart disease is currently the most dangerous disease for Americans overall, killing more than 600,000 people every year.

A study in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that, for men, drinking five or more cups of coffee per day reduced the risk of developing heart disease by 44%.

Gallstones

Gallstones, though not generally life-threatening, affect 30 million Americans every year and cost us roughly $10 billion per year–not to mention that severe discomfort that comes with this disease.

A Nurse’s Health Study found that by drinking between two and three cups of coffee per day, women could reduce their risk of developing gallstones by 22%.

Alzheimer’s Disease

Similar to Parkinson’s Disease, Alzheimer’s is a debilitating neurodegenerative disease affecting 5.5 million Americans. There is no cure and treatment is extremely limited.

A study by the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease followed 1,400 people for 20 years and found that those who drink between three and five cups of coffee per day had an impressive 65% lower risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

Overall Mortality

It is a safe assumption that by reducing the risk of these diseases (some of which are among America’s top killers), one reduces the risk of premature death overall. Fortunately, a New England Journal of Medicine study confirms this assumption.

By surveying 400,000 people over the course of 14 years, researchers found that men drinking between two and six cups of coffee per day had a 10% lower risk of premature death and women drinking between two and six cups of coffee per day had a 15% lower chance of premature death.

It is difficult, in the face of such extensive research across so many diseases, to argue that coffee is not a health food–perhaps even a “superfood.”

The final take-home point: drink more coffee. However, there is a smarter way to drink coffee. With most coffee being not organic, it is covered with pesticides, which raise the risk of several health problems, including cancer. Furthermore, most coffee is roasted and then left to store for several months where it develops toxic mold.

The best way to drink coffee is organic and roasted within weeks or even days of being roasted. The best (and most accessible) coffee I have found that fits these criteria is Purity Coffee. It is organic and roasted within 24 hours of being sent directly to your doorstep.

Bottoms up!