Coffee is one of the most important beverages in the world. Most of us would be lost without our coffee every morning. In the United States, 54% of people have at least one cup of coffee per day. In Italy, espresso is regulated by the government because they consider it an essential part of their daily life. And, with over 10 thousand Starbucks locations in the United States alone, it doesn’t seem like our obsession with coffee is going away any time soon, and that’s probably a good thing. Regardless of what you might think, coffee in moderation is actually pretty good for you. Here are 9 reasons that you should be sipping on that cup of joe in the mornings:

1. Provides Antioxidants

Coffee contains a ton of antioxidants, which are molecules that interact with and neutralize free radicals. This is beneficial because free radicals are highly reactive chemicals that have the potential to harm your cells. Your body makes some antioxidants on its own, but it relies heavily on external sources—a.k.a. your diet—to get the rest of the antioxidants that it needs. Nothing else in the Western diet comes even close to providing as many antioxidants as coffee.

2. Lessens the Symptoms of Parkinson’s

Multiple studies have shown that coffee consumption can reduce or delay the development of Parkinson’s Disease. The use of caffeine is not only helpful in making users less likely to develop the disease, but it has also been shown recently to help those who already have Parkinson’s control their movements better.

3. Protects Your Liver

Liver cirrhosis is an autoimmune disease that can be caused by excessive alcohol consumption, and can lead to liver failure and cancer. However, those who drink at least one cup of coffee a day are 20% less likely to develop the disease. It has also been shown to fight off non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This protection from liver problems is normally contributed to the high number of antioxidants in coffee.

4. Improves Your Depression

Studies have shown that those who drink four or more cups of coffee a day were around 10% less likely to suffer from depression than those who didn’t drink coffee. Again, this is normally attributed to the antioxidants in coffee. It was originally thought that it might be the caffeine in the coffee giving you a caffeine high and, thus, decreasing the depression, but that is not supported. Coke, which also has a high amount of caffeine, is actually linked to greater depression.

5. Reduces Chances of Skin Cancer

Coffee has also been shown to reduce the chances of getting skin cancer, at least in women. Women who drink three or more cups of coffee were found to be less likely to develop skin cancer than those who didn’t drink coffee.

6. Makes You a Better Athlete

A cup of joe before your workout can improve your athletic performance, especially in endurance sports like distance running or cycling. The coffee increases the number of fatty acids in your bloodstream, which allows your muscles to absorb those fats for fuel. This also allows your body to keep its reserve of carbs for later on in your workout.

7. Reduces Risk of Type 2 Diabetes

Drinking coffee might also help you ward off diabetes. It was found that people who drink 4+ cups of coffee a day reduce their chances of getting type 2 diabetes by 50%. It was also found that, with every additional cup of coffee, your risk of diabetes is lowered by 7%.

8. Makes You More Intelligent

If you are looking to become smarter, you might want to start drinking coffee. We tend to drink coffee when we are sleep deprived and need a pick me up. Well, that jolt from coffee also makes your mind sharper. Coffee makes your brain work in a more efficient way by improving your reaction times, attention, and logical reasoning—functions that we associate with intelligence.

9. Aids Brain Health

Coffee can also help keep your brain healthier. While coffee doesn’t help protect you from Alzheimer’s Disease completely, it was found that it can help reduce the risk of getting the disease and delay the onset of symptoms. People who were 65 years or older, who also had a high blood level of caffeine, were shown to develop Alzheimer’s Disease two to four years later than those who had a lower blood level of caffeine.