How many times have you heard someone say they are going to cut back on their coffee consumption?
Oftentimes coffee is victimized to cover up poor lifestyle, nutrition and exercise habits. Are you tired due to your reliance on coffee or because you only slept 5 hours the night before?
What if we told you that in fact coffee is responsible for a number of important health benefits. More research is indicating that people should be increasing the consumption of their daily brew.
Let’s start with a meta-analysis from 2017, which indicated that those who drank 4 to 6 cups of coffee per day had a lower risk of metabolic syndrome. A separate meta-analysis also concluded that coffee reduced the risk of liver diseases such as liver cancer, fatty liver disease and cirrhosis. Frequent coffee consumption appeared to be correlated with a lower risk of liver stiffness (fibrosis), which is often a precursor for liver issues. There is even some research to suggest that moderate coffee intake is associated with a lower risk of heart failure and symbiosis of the gut microbiome.
The interesting aspect is that it is still somewhat of a mystery how coffee yields these health benefits. We know that coffee is a source of antioxidants, polyphenols and metabolites, yet the exact mechanisms are still unclear.
Coffee is certainly not a silver bullet, although it can be a great addition to a balanced diet and regular exercise. Bear in mind that this post is targeted for coffee specifically and not other caffeine containing products such as energy drinks.
Sure, coffee and caffeine in general can have some undesirable side effects such as insomnia, increased heart rate and nervousness. These symptoms are typically associated with very high intakes of caffeine. The recommended intake for healthy adults is 400mg of caffeine per day which equates to approximately 4 cups of coffee. We’ll also leave this here to finish – coffee is not a diuretic and can in fact positively contribute to hydration status.
Go on, have a drink on us!