European Heart JournalCoffee Drinking Timing and Mortality in US Adults

A comprehensive analysis of coffee consumption patterns in more than 40,000 US adults reveals significant associations between coffee drinking timing and mortality risk. The study, published in the European Heart Journal, identifies two distinct patterns of coffee consumption – morning-type and all-day-type – and examines their relationship with all-cause and cause-specific mortality over a median follow-up period of 9.8 years.

Key Points:

• Morning-type coffee drinkers (36% of participants) showed a 16% lower risk of all-cause mortality (HR: 0.84; 95% CI: 0.74-0.95) and a 31% lower risk of cardiovascular disease mortality (HR: 0.69; 95% CI: 0.55-0.87) compared to non-coffee drinkers
• All-day-type coffee drinkers (14% of participants) showed no significant mortality benefit compared to non-coffee drinkers (HR: 0.96; 95% CI: 0.83-1.12)
• Heavy coffee consumption (>3 cups/day) was associated with lower mortality risk only among morning-type drinkers, with no significant benefit observed in all-day drinkers (P-interaction = 0.031)
• Coffee consumption timing did not significantly affect cancer-specific mortality in either pattern group
• The findings remained consistent after adjusting for multiple variables including sleep duration, trouble sleeping, and competing mortality risks

“The anti-inflammatory effect of a pattern of coffee consumption concentrated in the morning may be more beneficial than that of a pattern of coffee consumption spread across morning, afternoon, and evening.”

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