New research suggests that drinking four or more cups of coffee a day may reduce the risk of frailty in older adults. That’s according to a Dutch study published in the European Journal of Nutrition and cited in SciTechDaily.
The study is the first to explore how coffee intake relates to the presence and incidence of frailty – defined by the presence of three or more of the following symptoms: weight loss, weakness, exhaustion, slow gait (walking) speed, and low physical activity. Researchers used data collected from 1,161 adults aged 55 and older over a seven-year period, sorting participants into five coffee consumption categories: 0 cups per day, 0 to 2 cups, 2 to 4 cups, 4 to 6 cups and more than 6 cups per day. Researchers found that regularly consuming 4 to 6 or more cups of coffee per day (with each cup defined as 125 ml) is associated with lower frailty in older adults.
“Our findings highlight the possible beneficial association between daily coffee consumption and reduced risk of frailty in later life in the older population,” said Margreet R. Olthof, lead author and associate professor at the Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
“Coffee consumption may thus enhance healthy aging, but it is important we also explore further dietary interventions, to ensure older adults can continue to live fulfilling lives,” she said.
[See more: Here’s a simple hack for using less coffee to make a stronger beverage]
The study, funded by the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee (ISIC), builds on previous research that links coffee consumption to a reduced risk of age-related conditions, including cognitive decline and inflammation-related diseases. Researchers believe part of coffee’s ability to reduce frailty can be attributed to antioxidants, which may help reduce inflammation, sarcopenia (muscle loss) and prevent muscle damage. Coffee may also help to improve regulating insulin sensitivity and glucose uptake in older people.
Those who are interested in coffee’s health benefits, but find drinking four or more cups of coffee a day a significant jump from their regular cup or two, are advised to increase consumption slowly. People who are more sensitive to caffeine may experience jitteriness, sleep disruptions, gastrointestinal discomfort, headaches and a racing heart when their caffeine intake is high.
If that’s you, don’t worry, decaf is also an option. There are several ways to remove caffeine from coffee, some of which reduce the amount of antioxidants, but levels still remain high overall.
A 2014 meta-analysis of 28 different studies indicated that both decaf and regular coffee drinkers saw a reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes, with increasing amounts correlating to decreasing risk. A 2022 European study following nearly 450,000 participants over 12.5 years found a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and death in all coffee drinkers, including those who drank decaf.
