It turns out that a morning cup of coffee can do more than just wake you up for work. A reputable study has found that drinking coffee of any kind lowers the risk of multiple types of liver disease and liver cancer. The study applies to ground, instant, caffeinated, and non-caffeinated coffee.

The study’s authors followed 494,585 people for an average of 10.7 years. 384,818 participants in this group were coffee drinkers, with the remainder serving as a control group of non-coffee drinkers.

The study further finds that those who drink coffee from ground beans are 35 percent less likely to develop chronic or fatty liver disease, 34 percent less likely to develop hepatocellular carcinoma, and a stunning 61 percent less likely to die of liver disease.

Despite the promising results of this study, not all are convinced of its conclusions.

Professor Nathan Davies of University College London’s Institute for Liver and Digestive Health notes that other factors are likely also at play in determining liver health. Nevertheless, it lays the exciting groundwork for future research.

“Coffee is widely accessible, and the benefits we see from our study may mean it could offer a potential preventative treatment for chronic liver disease,” said the lead author of the study Dr. Oliver Kennedy. “This would be especially valuable in countries with lower income and worse access to healthcare and where the burden of chronic liver disease is highest.”

Source study: BMC Public Health – All coffee types decrease the risk of adverse clinical outcomes in chronic liver disease: a UK Biobank study