Why you should drink coffee with milk, according to scientists

You may prefer the taste of black coffee.

But scientists now say there’s a reason you should quit.

Because adding milk to your drink can make one cup twice as good for you, in theory.

Coffee is packed with antioxidants called polyphenols, which have been shown to reduce inflammation.

Inflammation is the body’s response to a threat, such as bacteria, toxins, trauma, and even extreme temperatures, which damage the body’s tissues.

However, chronic inflammation increases the risk of diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and rheumatoid arthritis.

New research suggests that consuming polyphenol-rich items alongside those packed with amino acids, like milk, makes antioxidants even more effective at reducing inflammation.

Very few studies had looked at what happens when polyphenols, which are also found in fruits and vegetables, tea, red wine, and beer, combine with other molecules in food, such as amino acids, the building blocks of protein.

To investigate this, researchers at the University of Copenhagen applied artificial inflammation to immune cells.

Some of the cells received different doses of polyphenols that had reacted with an amino acid (reflecting coffee with milk), while others only received polyphenols in the same doses (reflecting black coffee).

A control group received nothing.

The study found that immune cells treated with the combination were twice as effective at ‘fighting off’ inflammation, compared to cells to which only polyphenols were added.

Researchers, whose work was published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistrysaid: “A combination of protein and antioxidants doubles the anti-inflammatory properties on immune cells.”

The findings suggest that coffee with milk has an anti-inflammatory effect, the researchers said.

Milk is rich in protein and contains all nine essential amino acids required by humans.

Professor Marianne Nissen Lund, who led the study, said: “We show that when a polyphenol reacts with an amino acid, its inhibitory effect on inflammation in immune cells is enhanced.”

‘As such, it is clearly conceivable that this cocktail could also have a beneficial effect on inflammation in humans.

“Now we will investigate further, initially in animals.”

Professor Lund added: “I can imagine something similar happening in, say, a meat dish with vegetables or a smoothie, if you make sure you add some protein like milk or yoghurt.”

The new research joins a plethora of studies linking coffee to numerous health benefits, including overall longevity and less chance of depression or diabetes.

The chemicals in coffee are believed to reduce inflammation, speed up metabolism, and improve insulin sensitivity.

However, the research was done in a laboratory setting, not in the real world.

The researchers will now investigate the effect on immune cells, initially in animals before studying in humans.