Coffee dramatically reduces your chances of having a heart attack and stroke, but only if you drink it in the morning.
Research suggests that when you enjoy an espresso or flat white is more important to your health than how much you drink.
Drinking one to several cups before noon was found to reduce the risk of heart and circulatory diseases by 31 percent compared to those who drink it throughout the day.
Drinking coffee is linked to better heart health and reduces the risk of some chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes.
In the first study to examine timing, researchers used data from more than 40,000 American adults who participated in studies examining health, nutrition and lifestyle over a decade.
They found different patterns of coffee consumption: 36 percent enjoyed it before noon, 16 percent consumed coffee throughout the day, and half did not drink it at all.
Compared to people who didn’t touch the caffeinated beverage, morning drinkers were 16 percent less likely to die from any cause and 31 percent less likely to die from cardiovascular disease.
These benefits were seen in both “moderate” drinkers who enjoyed two or three cups and “commercial” drinkers who enjoyed more than three coffees before noon.
Coffee Dramatically Reduces Your Chances of Heart Attack and Stroke, But Only If You Drink It in the Morning
Research suggests that when you enjoy an espresso or flat white is more important for your health than how much you drink
Those who drank one cup or less also benefited, but with a smaller decrease in risk, according to findings published in the European Heart Journal.
There was no reduction in risk for all-day coffee drinkers compared to those who never drink it.
Lead author Dr Lu Qi, from Tulane University in Louisiana, said: “Our findings indicate that what matters is not just whether or how much you drink coffee, but also the time of day you drink it.”
“We don’t typically give advice on timing in our dietary recommendations, but perhaps we should think about this in the future.”
The authors said that drinking coffee after noon can disrupt circadian rhythms, the biological clock that influences daily cycles of physical, behavioral and mental changes.
Many all-day coffee drinkers may experience sleep disturbances because it suppresses melatonin, an important sleep mediator in the brain. This, in turn, can lead to changes in cardiovascular risk factors, such as inflammation and blood pressure.
Professor Thomas Lüscher, consultant cardiologist at the Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals in London, said: “Overall, we must accept the now substantial evidence that drinking coffee, especially in the morning hours, is probably healthy.” So, drink your coffee, but do it in the morning.