Because tipplers and java fiends need good news, too, a new study from the University of California, Irvine, has found that drinking alcohol and coffee increases your chance of living past 90 by a statistically significant amount. The university's 90+ Study has followed about 1,700 nonagenarians since 2003, and those "who drank moderate amounts of alcohol or coffee lived longer than those who abstained." "Moderate" means two glasses of beer or wine and two cups of coffee, which decrease your chances of premature death by 18 percent (alcohol) and 10 percent (coffee).
"I have no explanation for it, but I do firmly believe that modest drinking improves longevity," study lead researcher Dr. Claudia Kawas said at an American Association for the Advancement of Science conference in Austin last weekend. But there's good news for more than just beverage aficionados in the study. "People who were overweight in their 70s lived longer than normal or underweight people did," the study found, even if the difference was just 3 percent. People with a hobby were 21 percent less likely to die early, and — sorry — exercising 15-45 minutes a day also reduced premature death chances by 11 percent.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
5 exclusive cartoons about Trump and Putin negotiating peaceCartoons Artists take on alternative timelines, missing participants, and more
-
The AI arms raceTalking Point The fixation on AI-powered economic growth risks drowning out concerns around the technology which have yet to be resolved
-
Why Jannik Sinner's ban has divided the tennis worldIn the Spotlight The timing of the suspension handed down to the world's best male tennis player has been met with scepticism
-
Giant schnauzer wins top prize at Westminster showSpeed Read Monty won best in show at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show
-
Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar take top GrammysSpeed Read Beyoncé took home album of the year for 'Cowboy Carter' and Kendrick Lamar's diss track 'Not Like Us' won five awards
-
The Louvre is giving 'Mona Lisa' her own roomSpeed Read The world's most-visited art museum is getting a major renovation
-
Honda and Nissan in merger talksSpeed Read The companies are currently Japan's second and third-biggest automakers, respectively
-
Taylor Swift wraps up record-shattering Eras tourSpeed Read The pop star finally ended her long-running tour in Vancouver, Canada
-
Drake claims illegal boosting, defamationSpeed Read The rapper accused Universal Music of boosting Kendrick Lamar's diss track and said UMG allowed him to be falsely accused of pedophilia
-
'Wicked' and 'Gladiator II' ignite holiday box officeSpeed Read The combination of the two movies revitalized a struggling box office
-
Jussie Smollet conviction overturned on appealSpeed Read The Illinois Supreme Court overturned the actor's conviction on charges of staging a racist and homophobic attack against himself in 2019
