Is coffee good or bad for your health?
With a plethora of different information on the internet, it can be hard to distinguish the real from the fake. Which sources can you trust?
It’s difficult, but sometimes there are just so many answers because there are so many theories and studies that have different results.
One of these is coffee.
Coffee is known to reduce many diseases, give you energy and has little to no calories.
On the other hand, coffee is addictive, it can increase anxiety and disrupt sleep.
Here we look at both the positives and negatives in order to determine if coffee is good or bad. This can them help you determine if it is good for you, because, well, everyone is different.
Coffee and nutrition
As most of us know, coffee (providing you are not drinking a latte, or some other specialty) has on average 2-5 calories, with 0g of carbohydrates, protein and sugar.
Coffee is known for its high dosage of antioxidants. In more recent studies, it has been suggested the dosage could be even higher than tea and cocoa.
Coffee is naturally high in vitamin B2, magnesium, pantothenic acid, potassium and many more. Other studies have shown coffee has contributed in decreasing your risk of heart failure, cancer and even the prevention of diabetes.
Coffee has also shown to help cognitive function by increasing the flow of blood to your brain.
Weight loss
One of the biggest, more commonly known benefits of coffee is its ability to boost your metabolism and in turn your weight loss efforts. Of course, this is providing you do not drink it with sugar, sweeteners and/or milk. Coffee would still have the same benefits, but the amount of sugar your consume can have the opposite effect.
Performance
Probably the most common use of coffee is for the performance benefits. Coffee is consumed in the morning, before the gym and before a long drive, in order to increase alertness, mental performance, concentration and stamina.
Numerous studies have shown this is because coffee has the ability to block the part of your brain that sends ‘tired’ signals and instead, releases other signals, called neurotransmitters, to make you feel more alert.
As well as some great benefits, coffee also has some negative effects. These are not absolute and can depend on the individual. The most common negative effects of coffee are increased anxiety, shakiness and heart palpitations.
Anxiety
If you already suffer with anxiety, then avoiding coffee may be the best bet. Due to the level of caffeine in a cup of coffee, one too many can increase your anxiety to unwanted levels. If you struggle at work to concentrate, give speeches, not very confident or purely have a fear of failure, you can be sure that coffee will enhance these feelings and it is probably advisable to cut out the coffee. Not intended to scare you – just the honest experiences from real people.
Sleep
As discussed in the benefits, coffee increases your alertness. If you’re after a good night’s sleep, it is advised not to consume coffee before bed.
Infact, some studies show that coffee is in your system for at least 6 hours after consumption. This means that if you drink coffee for that afternoon pick me up… It can be disturbing your sleep more than you think.
Experts advise to stop drinking coffee after 1pm in the afternoon. This allows your body and brain to be restored to its normal functionality and increase your chances of a good night’s sleep.
Addiction
Coffee is a great way to start they day and keep your energy going to get through those long days at work. But, coffee is not so good when you become addicted. Just like any other addiction, if you do not consume caffeine, you will begin to get withdrawals. You can also get caffeine poisoning from the same.
So, this article does not give you an definite answer to the question, is coffee good or bad. This is because it has both positive and negatives affects, and how this affects you depends on your own health and consumption.