Thursday, February 17 5:58pm By Jill Garrett

Coffee drinkers have reason to smile.

A new study finds daily coffee consumption seems to reduce the risk of liver cancer.

The study in the latest issue of The Journal of the National Cancer Institute involved more than 90,000 Japanese men and women who were followed over a 10-year period.

Researchers discovered a liver cancer rate of 547 cases per 100,000 people of those who never drank coffee. But that number decreased to 214 cases for those who drank coffee on a daily basis.

"They gave the patients a questionnaire regarding various habits they had. One of which was the consumption of coffee-from coffee very infrequently, to coffee on a daily basis, to several cups of coffee per day. And they discovered that the more coffee the person drank the less likely actually they were to develop liver cancer," Dr. David Barnes, The Cleveland Clinic.

Researchers found the protective benefit happened when people drank more than one cup a day every day of the week.

Coffee is known to have a high level of antioxidants, and that may stop the growth of cancer in the liver.

More than 15,000 Americans are expected to die from liver cancer this year.