"Two Cups of Coffee a Day, Better Than Medicine?"

A cup of coffee every morning is a given, and another cup after lunch.

It turns out that the coffee we drink without much thought

might actually be an "anti-aging item," according to research findings.

Dr. Sarah Madavi's research team at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health tracked nurses for 30 years. Photo by Getty Images Bank

A research team from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

tracked over 47,000 female nurses for 30 years.

This long-term project is known as the "Nurses' Health Study."

Based on the data, the researchers concluded that people who consistently drank about two cups of coffee a day

were much more likely to age healthily compared to those who did not.

Less than 10% of the subjects, totaling 3,706 individuals, met all the criteria for "healthy aging." Photo by Getty Images Bank

'Healthy aging' here does not simply mean looking younger.

It refers to being free from chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and stroke, having no cognitive decline such as dementia,

and being able to carry out daily activities both mentally and physically without difficulty.

Less than 10% of all respondents met all these criteria,

and one thing they had in common was that they consumed about 315mg of caffeine per day through coffee.

This is equivalent to three small cups of coffee,

or about two tall-sized Americanos, which is a common serving size in Korea.

Similar effects were not observed in other caffeinated beverages. Photo by Getty Images Bank

Some might think that any "caffeine" would do the trick.

However, the effect was observed only in "coffee containing caffeine."

There were no similar effects from decaffeinated coffee, tea, energy drinks,

or other caffeinated beverages like cola.

In fact, consuming caffeine through cola

was found to have a negative impact on healthy aging.

Healthy aging requires healthy lifestyle habits. Photo by Getty Images Bank

So, how many cups of coffee per day is okay?

According to the research team, for each additional cup of coffee consumed per day,

the likelihood of healthy aging increased by 2% to 5%.

This effect was significant up to five small cups per day,

and beyond that, there was little to no additional benefit.

Does this mean all you need to do is drink coffee?

That's not the case. The research team made this very clear.

They emphasized that "lifestyle habits such as exercise, healthy eating, and not smoking are much more important."

Coffee is merely a supplementary measure that can be added

when you are already maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

The fact that two cups of coffee can have a positive impact on health
is certainly welcome news.

However, that alone is not enough.
Balanced meals, regular exercise, quitting smoking, and moderation are still fundamental.

Coffee can be helpful, but what ultimately creates healthy aging
is daily lifestyle habits.

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