The time of day you drink a cup of coffee may lower the risk of an early death, new research suggests.

The study found that people who drank coffee in the morning had a lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease and had a lower mortality risk than all-day coffee consumers – but the research could not prove whether coffee was the sole cause.

Dr Lu Qi, lead researcher and director of Tulane University Obesity Research Center, said while the study does not show why drinking coffee in the morning reduces the risk, one explanation could be that consumption later in the day may disrupt a person’s internal body clock.

The study was published on Wednesday in the European Heart Journal.