I stand amazed at what researchers actually do with their hard-won grant dollars. A recent study showed a connection between coffee drinking and adult onset (type 2) diabetes. Apparently, drinking several cups of coffee a day can reduce the chances of acquiring Type 2 diabetes for certain groups of people. It's always reassuring when a much-maligned comfort food or beverage does something noble enough to get out of Daily Health beat limbo.
But the study went on to explain that the benefits only appear in older men, and only those who drink at least 7 cups of coffee a day. Pardon me, I think I'm going to cry now. SEVEN cups a day? If I had the sheer force of will to down seven cups of coffee a day, diabetes would probably be low on my list of concerns. Provided I could even be found within a five mile radius of my house, I'd have plumbing on my mind. If enough of us drank that much coffee per day, we could solve the energy crisis with a few well-placed treadmills and biscotti.
I love it when researchers luck out like that. Figuring the average coffee drinker consumes 3-4 cups a day, you'd expect a standard deviation from "Coffee? Never touch the stuff." to "What do you mean we"re out of filters?!'. These scientists managed to find enough hardcore coffee inhalers to blow the curve completely out of the water. That fact alone, my friends, is worth the price of admission. Imagine the look on some poor researcher's face when he saw those responses on the questionnaires: Age: 74. Sex: Male. Occupation: Farmer. Average Coffee Consumption: Continued on back.
