What's the best time to drink coffee? Study finds the perfect time that could reduce your mortality risk by 16%

A recent study published in the European Heart Journal suggests that drinking coffee in the morning may offer greater health benefits than consuming it throughout the day. Researchers, led by scientists from Tulane University in the United States, tracked the coffee consumption habits of 40,725 participants over nearly ten years to determine the impact of drinking patterns on health outcomes.

Study Finds Best Time to Drink Coffee

The researchers observed two distinct coffee-drinking patterns among participants. Some individuals followed a "morning-type" pattern, consuming coffee primarily between 4 a.m. and 11:59 a.m. Others followed an "all-day-type" pattern, spreading their coffee intake across the morning, afternoon, and evening.

The study revealed that morning coffee drinkers were 16% less likely to die from any cause compared to non-coffee drinkers. Additionally, they were 31% less likely to die from heart disease. In contrast, no significant reduction in mortality risk was observed among those who drank coffee throughout the day.

Timing of coffee consumption matters

Lead author Dr. Lu Qi emphasized the potential importance of timing in coffee consumption. "This is the first study testing coffee drinking timing patterns and health outcomes. We don’t typically give advice about timing in our dietary guidance, but perhaps we should be thinking about this in the future," Dr. Qi said.


The findings suggest that drinking coffee in the afternoon or evening might disrupt circadian rhythms and melatonin levels, which could increase cardiovascular risks.

Health implications of coffee consumption

The study adds to the growing body of evidence that moderate coffee consumption does not raise the risk of cardiovascular disease. It also highlights coffee's potential role in reducing the risk of chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes.

"Our findings suggest that coffee drinking in the morning may be more strongly associated with lower mortality than coffee drinking later in the day," the study concluded, emphasizing the need to consider the timing of consumption when evaluating coffee's health benefits.

This research underscores the significance of understanding not just how much coffee we drink, but also when we drink it.