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Coffee is a favorite drink to many people across the globe. We usually enjoy it in the morning to wake up properly and focus better on our day. However, are there actual coffee benefits for us or is it harmful?
When is it best to take it?
Read more to find out.
Are There Any Benefits to Drinking Coffee?
Coffee is one of the most popular beverages on the planet. It has many antioxidants and nutrients that can be healthy. Coffee drinkers have a lower risk of many diseases and there are many other benefits to drinking coffee.
Here are some of those benefits:
Coffee is full of antioxidants
There are plenty of antioxidants in coffee which develop in the plant itself and in the roasting process. Studies have shown that coffee is one of the major sources of antioxidants. These can fight inflammation and neutralize free radicals.
Caffeine can give you more energy
Caffeine can help you have better brain function and help you have more energy, better memory and focus.
Coffee can help keep your brain healthy
Coffee can help you with a memory boost. It can also help you retain brain health for longer. It can prevent Alzheimer’s and other cognitive decline diseases.
Coffee can be healthy for the heart
Moderate coffee drinkers can actually help their heart stay stronger and healthier for longer.
Men who drink coffee have a lower chance of developing prostate cancer. Women who drink coffee have a lower chance of getting endometrial cancer and people can also get lower chances of breast, liver, colon and rectal cancers.
It can lower your risk of type 2 diabetes
Previous studies have shown that coffee drinkers have a lower chance of getting type 2 diabetes than people who don’t drink coffee. More research has to be done in this area but results are promising so far.
Coffee is good for your liver
Coffee drinking can help your liver remain healthy and it can prevent cirrhosis.
It can improve your workouts
Caffeine is not dehydrating. In fact, it can help you have better workouts. Moderate caffeine consumption can fight fatigue and enable you to exercise for longer. It helps with muscle contraction and the perception of pain.
Coffee can help with depression
Many studies have shown that drinking coffee can help you deal with depression better. In many studies, relations were found between decreased depression and coffee drinking.
Top 12 Reasons Coffee Benefits Your Health
Coffee is a great beverage that can make you alert and focused. Here is why you should drink it often:
1. Improves energy levels and it can boost your memory because of caffeine because it blocks a neurotransmitter in your brain which causes you to get tired and fatigued.
2. Help you lose weight by burning fat and boosting your metabolism
3. Can improve your workout sessions by increasing adrenaline levels in your blood and signaling fat cells to break down
4. It has many beneficial nutrients like vitamins B, manganese, potassium, niacin, magnesium
5. Can lower risk of type 2 diabetes
6. Help prevent the Alzheimer’s and Dementia because of caffeine
7. Can lower your risk of Parkinson’s with the similar rates to Alzheimer’s and Dementia because of caffeine as well.
8. Protect your liver and keep you safe from hepatitis, fatty liver disease and other diseases
9. Can make you a happier, more optimistic person and prevent depression
10. Prevent certain types of cancer
11. It doesn’t cause heart disease and it can lower your risk for heart diseases as well as stroke risk.
12. Coffee can help you live longer and be less likely to get various diseases
Coffee is not only a popular beverage but also an extremely healthy one. It can help you feel energized, lose weight and help with a whole host of health problems and issues.
What is the Best Time to Drink Coffee?
Anyone who has been reading through blog posts and journals lately, knows how great coffee is for your overall health. Long thought to be bad for your health, coffee is now revered as one of the best drinks for your health, as 127 studies have proven. It accomplishes all of this by giving your body antioxidants, DNA repair, calm inflammation, improves enzyme efficiency, regulates insulin and glucose.
Drinking coffee at different points in your day is a healthy habit – simply depending on which part of the day you drink coffee in. For example, some parts of the day decrease its usefulness and health while some increase it.
A part of your brain controls cortisol; this makes you alert and focused when present but sleepy when not present in your system. This part of the brain releases cortisol according to your own circadian rhythm. This is a day-long cycle which is slightly different for everyone. For instance, early birds enjoy mornings and night owls like nights so they have opposite circadian rhythms.
Drinking coffee when your brain already released plenty of cortisol is counter effective and doesn’t do you any good. In fact, it causes stress. But if you drink coffee when your cortisol levels are low, it can help your body feel better and get you in the right mood and energy to help you stay focused and awake. So, if an average person wakes up at 6:30 AM, their cortisol levels are the best at 8 or 9, between noon and 1 PM and between 5:30 and 6:30.
Early birds – people who get up at 5 am or earlier, just adjust those numbers back three hours. For night owls, move those hours three hours forward. So, by calculating that, you can tell when your cortisol levels are high so you can drink coffee in the meantime. So, for an average person, it’s between 9:30 and 11:30 AM.
During this two-hour time window you can drink between four and six cups of coffee – of course, you can also drink it in the window after 1 PM. But don’t drink it later so that you can have good sleep.
Tips to Make Your Coffee Tastier and Healthier
Coffee is a great beverage that can help you stay alert. It can also help you stay healthy because of the large amount of antioxidants and nutrients in it. However, it can be bad for you if you take it improperly. So, you need to first learn how to consume it properly to make sure that you get the most of the benefits that are in it.
Don’t drink caffeine after 2 PM. This can help you sleep better. If you drink caffeinated coffee after this time, it can overstimulate you and make you jittery. It can damage your sleep which causes stress and anxiety. However, some people feel completely fine when they drink coffee in the afternoon so it might not be as bad for you. But if you feel like you could improve your sleep, you should abstain from taking coffee after 2 or 3 PM.
Don’t use too much sugar. Because coffee is bitter in general, many people use sugar as a way to make it taste a bit better for them. But when you put loads sugar into coffee it is no longer a healthy drink. Sugar is linked to a huge amount of issues and diseases. Use a natural sweetener such as Stevia if really don't enjoy black coffee.
Drink high quality coffee. Organic, high quality coffee is one of the best things you can drink. Always strive to purchase healthy products to make sure that you are taking something that’s good for you. This will prevent you from drinking coffee with pesticides and chemicals.
Don’t drink too much coffee. Drinking coffee moderately is completely fine but drinking it in huge amounts can reduce the benefits that coffee has. People have a different sensitivity to coffee, so this will also depend on their preference and needs. Two cups a day are enough but you can also take four to six cups of coffee. Listening to your body when it comes to this is the best way to go.
Cinnamon is great with coffee. It will improve the flavor of your coffee and it can lower blood sugar and cholesterol. It’s really healthy and good for you. As a bonus, you don’t have to add too much of it. Your coffee will taste amazing and you will be consuming some extra vitamins, nutrients and antioxidants.
Don’t use powdered or hydrogenated creamers. They are usually very processed and contain various ingredients that are not so good for your body. Go for real cream or a nut-based creamer, like almond or coconut.
Use cocoa in your coffee. It not only tastes great, it also brings numerous health benefits for you. It’s full of antioxidants and vitamins and it can reduce the risk of having a heart attack.
Use a paper filter. Brewing coffee causes cafeestol to appear. This is bad because cafestol causes high levels of cholesterol in your blood. Using a paper filter can help you get rid of it and make coffee great for your heart. All of the beneficial nutrients pass through the paper but cafestol doesn’t.
We're off to brew our favorite cup of joe! Feel free to share any of your secret barista tips to enjoying the benefits of coffee!
Sources:
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/top-13-evidence-based-health-benefits-of-coffee#section14
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