Caffeine is the first thing that comes to mind when you think about coffee. But coffee also contains antioxidants and other active substances that may reduce internal inflammation and protect against disease, say nutrition experts from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Your brew gives you benefits beyond an energy boost. Here are the top ways coffee can positively impact your health:

• You could live longer.

  Recent studies found that coffee drinkers are less likely to die from some of the leading causes of death in women: Coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes and kidney disease.

• Your body may process glucose (or sugar) better.

  That’s the theory behind studies that found that people who drink more coffee are less likely to get type 2 diabetes.

• You’re less likely to develop heart failure.

  Drinking one to two cups of coffee a day may help ward off heart failure, when a weakened heart has difficulty pumping enough blood to the body.