A green tea and coffee habit can significantly reduce the risk of death from all causes in patients with type 2 diabetes, a new observational study suggests.

The study is first to show a benefit from drinking tea and coffee for patients with diabetes, say researchers from Kyushu University in Fukuoka, Japan.

In the study tracking nearly 5000 Japanese people with type 2 diabetes (57% male, mean age 66), they found those who drank green tea or coffee were less likely to have died from any cause at five years than those who drank neither beverage.

But the greatest benefit was found in people who drank both green tea and coffee, with the higher the consumption the lower the risk of death in the median 5.3 years of follow-up.