While many of us need a cup of coffee first thing in the morning just to function, your daily coffee routine may be helping protect your heart as well. A new study of five trials that looked at over 140,000 patients has found that consuming two cups of coffee each day lowers your risk of heart failure by 11% compared with someone who doesn’t drink any coffee. Slow down though, more than four cups a day can have the opposite effect and damage your heart. 

According to researchers though, coffee may not be directly helping your heart but actually lowering the risk of diabetes which in turn lowers your risk of heart failure. Two cups of coffee a day decreased that chance by more than 10% though researchers are quick to point out that overconsuming coffee wears away that protection and can lead to problems of its own.

A similar study released by the New England Journal of Medicine found that coffee drinkers are less likely to die from certain problems than non-coffee drinkers after tracking 400,000 people over the age of 50. In fact, coffee drinkers have a 10-16% lower risk of death.

Though researchers are still looking at the direct benefits of coffee, the antioxidants and compounds showed a link between coffee intake and lower risk of respiratory problems, diabetes, stroke, and infection. Unlike the American Heart Association, researchers behind this study don’t stick to just two cups, their findings showed that every cup of coffee contributed to lower risk of death up to six cups per day. Though overconsumption of coffee and sugar can lead to high blood pressure and other problems, researchers at the National Institutes of Health believe that regular coffee consumption is one of the best and easiest ways to prolong your life.