Findings from a new study of almost 50,000 women followed for 30 years suggest that a morning cup of coffee might do more than boost energy; it could also help women stay sharp, strong and mentally well as they age. The analysis found that women who drank caffeinated coffee in midlife were more likely to exhibit healthy aging. However, the researchers didn’t find any links with tea or decaf coffee, and drinking more cola was tied to a significantly lower chance of healthy aging.

“While past studies have linked coffee to individual health outcomes, our study is the first to assess coffee’s impact across multiple domains of aging over three decades,” said Sara Mahdavi, PhD, of Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the University of Toronto. “The findings suggest that caffeinated coffee—not tea or decaf—may uniquely support aging trajectories that preserve both mental and physical function.”

The study included 47,513 women from the Nurses’ Health Study with dietary and health data collected since 1984. The researchers assessed caffeine intake using validated food frequency questionnaires that included consumption of top contributors of caffeine such as coffee, tea, cola and decaffeinated coffee.

Healthy aging was defined as living to age 70 or older, being free from 11 major chronic diseases, maintaining physical function, having good mental health, exhibiting no cognitive impairment and showing no memory complaints.

By 2016, 3,706 of the women in the study met all the requirements for being considered healthy agers. In mid-life, ages 45-60, these women typically consumed an average of 315 mg of caffeine per day — roughly the amount in three small cups of coffee or one and a half large cups by today’s standards. More than 80% of that caffeine came from regular coffee consumption.

For women in the healthy agers group, each extra cup of coffee per day was tied to a 2% to 5% higher chance of doing well later in life, up to five small cups per day, or about 2.5 cups according to today’s measures.

Importantly, each additional small glass of soda—another major source of caffeine—was associated with a 20% to 26% lower likelihood of healthy aging, reinforcing that not all sources of caffeine confer benefits.

“These results, while preliminary, suggest that small, consistent habits can shape long-term health,” said Mahdavi. “Moderate coffee intake may offer some protective benefits when combined with other healthy behaviors such as regular exercise, a healthy diet and avoiding smoking. While this study adds to prior evidence suggesting coffee intake may be linked with healthy aging, the benefits from coffee are relatively modest compared to the impact of overall healthy lifestyle habits and warrant further investigation.”

To read a description of the study, presented at NUTRITION 2025 in Orlando, Florida, click here