If starting your day without a cup of coffee sounds like torture, you’ve got company. The latest statistics from the National Coffee Association show 90 percent of older coffee drinkers need a morning cup to jump-start their day.

We know that moderate coffee consumption — three to five cups a day or up to 400 mg of caffeine, according to the 2015-2020 federal Dietary Guidelines — can be part of a healthy diet and is linked to a lower risk of some diseases, including type 2 diabetes and some cancers.

But is that daily caffeine jolt good for your brain?
 

A new University of Arkansas study that looks at how caffeine affects our problem-solving skills should make coffee drinkers happy. While caffeine may not significantly improve creativity, the study finds, it does seem to increase focus and improve other important problem-solving skills, as well as our mood.

The 200 mg of caffeine significantly improved problem-solving that involved the ability to quickly come up with a single right answer, the researchers wrote. It did not significantly affect working memory. Test subjects did report feeling less sad.