The stories generally go like this: "a study finds drinking coffee is associated with a X% decrease in [bad health outcome]" followed shortly by "the study is observational and does not prove causation." In a new study in the American Heart Association's journal Circulation: Heart Failure, researchers found a link between drinking three or more cups of coffee a day and a decreased risk of heart failure. Led by David Kao, a cardiologist at University of Colorado School of Medicine, researchers re-examined the Framingham Heart Study (FHS), "a long-term, ongoing cardiovascular cohort study of residents of the city of Framingham, Massachusetts" that began in 1948 and has grown to include over 14,000 participants. Able to analyze massive amounts of data in a short amount of time--as well as be programmed to handle uncertainties in the data, like if a reported cup of coffee is six ounces or eight ounces--machine learning can then start to ascertain and rank which variables are most associated with incidents of heart failure, giving even observational studies more explanatory power in their findings. And indeed, when the results of the FHS machine learning analysis were compare to two other well-known studies, the Cardiovascular Heart Study (CHS) and the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study (ARIC), the algorithm was able "to correctly predict the relationship between coffee intake and heart failure."

If you've been a reader of Sprudge for any reasonable amount of time, you've no doubt by now ready multiple articles about how coffee is potentially beneficial for some particular facet of your health. The stories generally go like this: "a study finds drinking coffee is associated with a X% decrease in [bad health outcome]" followed shortly by "the study is observational and does not prove causation." In a new study in the American Heart Association's journal Circulation: Heart Failure, researchers found a link between drinking three or more cups of coffee a day and a decreased risk of heart failure. This study used machine learning to get to its conclusion, and it may significantly alter the utility of this sort of study in the future. As reported by the New York Times, the new study isn't exactly new at all.

Next time you're wondering whether or not to have that extra cup of coffee, think about the health benefits it could offer you. According to the American Heart Association, coffee has been linked to a decreased risk of heart failure and stroke. The research was presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Session this year. The researchers used machine learning and data from the Framingham Heart Study to examine what people eat and their heart health. The heart study has tracked the health of thousands of participants since the 1940s contributing to a wealth of data made available to researchers.