A recent study has found that coffee drinkers live longer - even if they add sugar to the popular brew.
Scientists tracked 171,000 middle-aged participants in the UK between 2009 and 2018 to see how likely they were to die within a nine-year period.
The researchers found that adults who enjoyed a regular brew are up to a third less likely to die young.
Between 1.5 and 3.5 cups per day with a teaspoon of sugar lowered the risk by 29 to 31 percent, while any amount of unsweetened black coffee reduced the danger by between 16 and 21 percent.
Dr Dan Liu, from Southern Medical University in China, said: “Our study found that adults who drank moderate amounts of coffee sweetened with sugar every day were about 30 per cent less likely to die from any cause compared to non-coffee drinkers.”
Regular drinkers face less danger of developing cancer or heart disease, while instant, ground and decaf versions were all linked to a lower death risk, researchers found.
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Coffee beans are packed with antioxidants that help the body battle harmful cells and chemicals.
Previous research has associated coffee drinkers with lower rates of type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and liver disease.
This study, published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, is the first to link sugary coffee with health benefits, claims Dr Liu.
Dr Christina Wee, deputy editor of the journal, added: “Coffee is believed to contribute to the body's antioxidant effects through both caffeine and chlorogenic acids.
“For unsweetened coffee, those who had approximately three cups per day had the lowest risk.
“Among consumers of sugar-sweetened coffee, those having approximately two cups a day had the lowest risk.”
Drinking more than 4.5 cups of sweetened coffee everyday - or consuming the extra milk and sugars in takeaway drinks - may strip away the benefits.
Dr Duane Mellor, a dietitian at Aston University, said: “This suggests that moderate coffee intake may be beneficial but it is important to remember what you might have with it – this study did not look to see if dunking a biscuit in your coffee was good or not, let alone having a slice of cake.”
A British Coffee Association spokesperson said: "Scientific evidence concludes that moderate coffee consumption of four to five cups per day can contribute to a healthy, balanced diet and may even confer a range of health benefits."
