ROME - Coffee has been added to the list of possible elixirs of life: the daily consumption of the drink, a maximum of 5 cups of Italy’s favourite beverage, could diminish the 'chance of premature deaths for any cause, particularly from diabetes, Parkinson's disease, cardiovascular diseases, neurological and even suicide.’

  The study was carried out by researchers and scientists at the prestigious Harvard University in the USA, compiling data from the analysis of the health of 160,000 women and 40,000 men over the last 30 years.

  The analysis, led by Dr. Ming Ding, proved that drinking coffee moderately, 3-5 cups a day, led to fewer premature deaths, and was the same case for both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee.

  The greatest benefits were seen among the volunteers who drank the above amount of coffee and did not smoke daily: among them the percentage of reduced risk was highest, between 8 and 15 percent.

  "There are bio-active substances in the coffee 'that reduce insulin resistance and systemic inflammation, there are anti-oxidants and magnesium," noted Ding. 

  Published in the journal 'Circulation', the report also notes that caffeine plays an antidepressant and this can 'explain the beneficial effect in the prevention of suicide.’

  However, the lead author of the findings, Dr. Ming Ding has cautioned, “Our study is observational, so it’s hard to know if the positive effect is causal or not.”