Coffee May Actually Be a Superfood

Study after study continues to show consumption of java associated with better health / longevity.

Each and every day, one billion people on this planet ingest a particular psychoactive substance. This chemical has fairly profound physiologic effects: it increases levels of nitric oxide in the blood, leads to vasodilation, and, of course, makes you feel more awake. The substance comes in many forms, but almost always in a liquid medium. Do you have it yet? That’s right. The substance is caffeine, quite possibly the healthiest recreational drug that has ever been discovered.

This might be my New England upbringing speaking, but when it comes to lifestyle and health, one of the rules I’ve internalized is that things that are pleasurable are generally bad for you. I know, I know — some of you love to exercise. Some of you love doing crosswords. But you know what I mean. I’m talking French fries, smoked meats, drugs, smoking, alcohol, binge-watching Firefly. You’d be suspicious if a study came out suggesting that eating ice cream in bed reduces your risk of heart attack, and so would I. So I’m always on the lookout for those unicorns of lifestyle factors — those rare things that you want to do and are also good for you.