Coffee Could Save Your Sedentary Life

Researchers have long warned that sitting for most of the day is bad for your health. But if you're drinking coffee while you're sitting, the picture is better, according to new research. In a study published in the journal BMC Public Health, Chinese researchers who analyzed data on more than 10,000 Americans said that the higher mortality rate associated with sitting for long periods was only found in non-coffee drinkers, Medical Daily reports.

• According to the study, people who sat for more than eight hours a day had a 46% higher risk of death from all causes, and a 79% higher risk of death from cardiovascular disease.

• Lead researcher Huimin Zhou at the Medical College of Soochow University's School of Public Health in China tells the Washington Post that sedentary coffee drinkers had a 24% reduced risk of mortality compared with those who sat for more than six hours and didn't drink coffee.
• Researchers also found that among those who drank at least two cups of coffee a day, the risk of deaths from all causes was reduced by 33% and the risk of death from cardiovascular disease was reduced by 54%.
• The study used data from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey participants over a 13-year period.
• "The association of sedentary with increased mortality was only observed among adults with no coffee consumption but not among those who had coffee intake," researchers wrote. "Given that coffee is a complex compound, further research is needed to explore this miracle compound."
• The study doesn't mean that "drinking a lot of coffee permits you to sit around all day," says Mallika Marshall at CBS Boston. "There may be other factors at play, but it does offer more evidence that drinking coffee may provide some health benefits."

(More coffee stories.)