I am a coffee drinker.   

I don’t like my coffee straight, and I don’t care if it is gourmet coffee.  I want milk and sugar in it, and I love the different flavors of coffee that I can brew in my Keurig coffee maker.

There is a potential health reason to drink coffee (other than not falling asleep when driving and crashing the car).

According to WebMD, coffee may slow the spread of colon cancer.  Click here if you would like to read the article. The study WebMD cited was published in the journal JAMA Oncology and was performed at the Mayo Clinic.  You can read the abstract of the article by clicking here. 

As summarized by WebMD “Of the nearly 1,200 patients in the study, those who drank four or more cups of java on a daily basis had 36% higher odds of surviving during the 13-year study period…. …researchers cautioned that although their work pinpoints a link between coffee and better cancer outcomes, it does not prove that drinking coffee actually causes mortality risk to drop or colon cancer growth to slow…For the time being, [they suggest] those who enjoy drinking coffee continue to do so, and I would not suggest that those who do not drink coffee begin doing so for perceived health benefits.”

Researchers are not sure why colon cancer growth seems to slow. Still, they speculate that it may have to do with antioxidant or anti-inflammatory effects or changes to insulin production.   

Also, researchers noted that lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise also “have been associated with prolonged life span for those dealing with…” advanced colon cancer.   

So, Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts fans rejoice – your salted caramel mocha frappuccino is waiting for you and may even help your colon!!