Everything You Need to Know about the Health Benefits of Coffee
Coffee is an excellent source of several vitamins and antioxidants—like Vitamin B2 and polyphenols—that can help support overall health.
Studies have shown a connection between coffee drinking and a reduced risk of numerous health challenges—everything from type 2 diabetes to colon and skin cancer.
Research suggests that you can access some of the same health benefits whether your drink of choice is regular or decaf.
For many of us, there’s nothing quite like that invigorating jolt of coffee to kickstart our days. But have you ever found yourself wondering about the health implications of your beloved brew? If so, there’s great news for coffee drinkers. There’s a growing body of research on the potential health benefits of drinking coffee.
That’s right, your coffee habit isn’t just a delightful morning ritual or a midday pick-me-up. The benefit of coffee drinking is that it may actually support your health!
Is Coffee Healthy?
While we all know that coffee contains caffeine, many coffee drinkers don’t know that coffee is an excellent source of a number of healthful compounds. When you sit down with that cup of coffee, you’re actually giving your body a boost of good-for-you substances.
Coffee is an excellent source of Vitamin B2, also known as riboflavin. Riboflavin helps our bodies metabolize our food and convert what we eat into energy, and it assists in iron absorption too. One 8-ounce cup of coffee contains 11% of your recommended daily allowance of riboflavin.
Coffee is full of numerous antioxidants, including polyphenols, chlorogenic acids, and quinic acid. Antioxidants help decrease inflammation and prevent diseases by supporting our bodies in eliminating free radicals before they can damage cells. In fact, a cup of coffee can contain more antioxidants than a cup of tea or a glass of red wine.
Mark Inman, Director of Specialty Coffee at Mercon Coffee, says those antioxidants make coffee one of the world’s healthiest drinks. “It’s the one product that most men get all their antioxidants from,” he explains.
And maybe the most overlooked benefit of coffee is in its biggest ingredient—water! While caffeine is a mild diuretic, according to Harvard’s T. H. Chan School of Public Health, that effect “is offset by the total amount of fluid from coffee.” So while water is your best bet for hydration, coffee still gives you a boost of fluids!
Speaking of caffeine, you may be wondering…
Are There Any Caffeine Benefits?
If you’ve ever heard that you should limit your caffeine intake, you might assume that caffeine is bad for you, but actually, several studies suggest that there may be health benefits to drinking caffeinated beverages like coffee.
Ever wondered why coffee helps you wake up and stay alert? Caffeine blocks adenosine, a neurotransmitter that increases our sleep drive, or our need to sleep. By blocking adenosine, coffee makes us feel more alert, awake, and attentive.
That extra boost of energy can also help us be more active physically, which we know benefits everything from our mental health to our cardiovascular systems! And because caffeine is a stimulant, it may boost metabolism and speed digestion so that your body can eliminate waste more quickly.
And caffeine is actually considered an antioxidant, so it supports the elimination of free radicals from your body.
What Are the Benefits of Drinking Coffee?
There is a huge body of research that shows the potential health benefits of drinking coffee. In fact, research suggests that coffee drinkers have a lower risk of early death and may live longer.
Here are just a few specific health benefits from coffee!
1. Coffee could help you nail your workout.
The caffeine in coffee has been shown to help athletes increase the intensity of their workouts, improve their endurance while training, and push through training slumps. Researchers believe the same adenosine-blocking properties that allow coffee to perk us up mentally can also decrease pain, which might help you power through your workout. In fact, Mark Inman even had one of his high-caffeine espresso blends featured on Bike Magazine’s list of the best training supplements.
2. Coffee may lower your risk for type 2 diabetes.
Numerous studies have suggested that coffee drinkers may have a reduced chance of developing type 2 diabetes. That may be because the polyphenols and minerals like magnesium can help to improve the body’s use of insulin in the body.
In fact, a metanalysis of studies on type 2 diabetes, which encompassed more than one million participants, found that participants who drank a single cup a day had an 8% lower risk, while those who drank six cups a day were at a 33% lower risk of developing the disease.
3. Coffee drinkers may have a reduced incidence of colon cancer.
A study of more than 100,000 participants between the ages of 47 and 96 found that research participants who drank just two or more cups of caffeinated or decaf coffee a day were also less likely to develop colon cancer.
And coffee drinking may help improve results for people who have already been diagnosed with colorectal cancer. A study of 1100 patients being treated for colorectal cancer found that people who drank two to three cups a day were likely to live longer and have a slower progression of the disease.
4. Coffee could help reduce inflammation.
The antioxidants and other compounds in coffee may reduce inflammation in the body; inflammation can lead to fatigue, pain, digestive problems, and an increased risk of infections.
One study found that when regular coffee drinkers gave up their brew for one month, their inflammation levels increased by 6%. Then researchers tracked the same participants for another two months, where they were asked to drink 32 ounces of coffee for thirty days and then 64 ounces for thirty days. At the end of the study, their inflammation had been reduced by an average of 8–16%.
5. Coffee may lower your stroke risk.
Whether you prefer regular or decaf, drinking at least four cups a day may put you at a lower risk of having a stroke. In a study of more than 83,000 nurses, researchers found that participants who drank four or more cups of regular coffee had a 20% lower stroke risk, and participants who drank two or more cups of decaffeinated coffee per day were 11% less likely to have a stroke. Notably, the researchers didn’t notice any similar correlation with other caffeinated drinks, suggesting that coffee’s unique properties might have made the difference.
6. Coffee could support cardiovascular health.
Whether you prefer regular or decaf, drinking at least four cups a day may put you at a lower risk of having a stroke. In a study of more than 83,000 nurses, researchers found that participants who drank four or more cups of regular coffee had a 20% lower stroke risk, and participants who drank two or more cups of decaffeinated coffee per day were 11% less likely to have a stroke. Notably, the researchers didn’t notice any similar correlation with other caffeinated drinks, suggesting that coffee’s unique properties might have made the difference.
7. Coffee may reduce your risk for depression.
A meta-analysis that encompassed more than 330,000 participants found a 24% lower incidence of depression in people who drank 4.5 cups per day compared to people who drank less than one cup per day.
8. Coffee may help lower your risk for Parkinson’s disease.
Numerous studies have shown a correlation between coffee and caffeine consumption and a lower risk of developing Parkinson’s disease. While the connection still isn’t completely clear, some researchers have suggested that by blocking adenosines, caffeine may also improve motor function.
9. Coffee could slow dementia progression.
One study found that midlife coffee drinkers had a lower incidence of dementia in their later years, and numerous studies have shown a correlation between coffee drinking and caffeine consumption and a reduced risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease (one of the most common types of dementia). Not only that, some studies suggest that coffee drinking may slow the progression of the disease. Caffeine seems to reduce the number of ꞵ-amyloid peptides in the brain, which have been linked to the disease.
10. Coffee may lower your risk of developing gallstones.
In a ten-year study of more than 46,000 men, participants who drank coffee regularly were significantly less likely to develop gallstones, and similar studies have shown the same is also true for women. The exact reason isn’t yet clear. Coffee’s unique properties may prevent cholesterol from binding into stones, or it may be because caffeine stimulates bile flow, clearing toxins before they can form into stones.
11. Coffee could help you maintain your liver health.
Coffee drinking has been correlated to a reduced risk of liver cancer, cirrhosis of the liver, and fatty-liver disease and slower progression of hepatitis C. That may be because coffee reduces the activity of the liver enzyme linked to liver disease.
In fact, after reviewing more than 1000 studies on the link between moderate coffee consumption and lowered risk of liver cancer, the World Health Organization confirmed that connection.
12. Coffee may help reduce the risk of skin cancer.
In a ten-year study of 447,000 people, researchers found that participants who drank four or more cups of caffeinated coffee per day were 20% less likely to develop malignant melanoma. That may be because caffeine’s antioxidant properties help the body eliminate sunburned cells before they can mutate into cancerous cells.
What About Decaf Coffee?
While in the States, the FDA requires coffees labeled “decaffeinated” have at least 97% of its caffeine removed, you may still get some of the same health benefits, thanks to all of those vitamins and antioxidants, and it’s a great option for people who need to limit their caffeine intake.
Ildi Revi, Chief Coffee Officer at Purity Coffee, which specializes in health-focused coffees, says that she’s proud they “honor these decaf drinkers” by creating decaf roasts that maintain high levels of antioxidants while safely eliminating caffeine.
Ildi says that there are lots of good reasons to drink decaf coffee if you need to avoid caffeine. “You’re going to do some really good internal work with that coffee,” she says.
How Many Cups a Day Should I Drink?
Ildi says that the benefits you’ll get from drinking coffee often depend on how much coffee you drink. “Health benefits in many cases are dose dependent,” she explains. “So two cups is better than one, three cups is better than two.”
But she also cautions coffee drinkers to be conscious of their caffeine intake, especially if they’re sensitive to its effects.
Most research studies and experts suggest that three to four cups per day seems to be the sweet spot where you could tap into coffee’s great health benefits without tipping into the possible negative side effects of caffeine.
The Final Verdict
If you relish your morning cup, you may be getting more than just an energy boost from that caffeine; you may also be tapping into some pretty exciting health benefits too! Research has linked coffee to numerous potential health benefits thanks to its powerful blend of vitamins and antioxidants.
So choose your favorite coffee roast, whether you prefer whole beans or ground coffee, perfect your brewing skills, and raise a mug to knowing that you’re fueling your body by leveraging all the health benefits of coffee! Special cheers to you on increasing your knowledge and embracing all the benefits of drinking coffee. #coffeemugsunite
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