If sipping on a hot cup of coffee in the morning is one of your simple pleasures, you’ll be happy to learn that coffee may also add years to your life. People who live on the Greek Island of Ikaria are known for their long life expectancies, and researchers have been studying the islanders to learn the reason why.
According to a recent reportpublished in the New York Times, one explanation may be the coffee they drink. This boiled coffee appears to produce antioxidants and they found that the older islanders who drank the boiled coffee had better functioning endothelial cells (cells line the interior surface of blood vessels throughout the circulatory system).
However, it is important to note that coffee is only one factor that may be contributing to the islanders’ longevity. Researchers plan to conduct further studies to discover how the island’s water, minerals and air quality might also be playing a role.