Coffee….Is Good For Me?

Coffee can be considered the source of productivity for many different people. It’s the lifeblood that enables people to get up in the morning and be productive throughout the day. Often, because of its magical awakening properties it is given a bad rap. Anything that works as magically as coffee must be evil and very unhealthy right? Especially with that dastardly ingredient caffeine!

Maybe not! When we look into what the effects caffeine has on the body and how it interacts in differing amounts we can paint a picture of whether or not is it truly a bad thing. Caffeine works by stimulating the central nervous system making you more alert and thus giving you more energy. You’ll often see cleanses and other so called “healthful” products claiming to get you healthy by getting rid of coffee and caffeine in a period of days. You can read what we think about cleanses here. 

Let’s look at the potential benefits coffee has to offer to get a better picture as to why this drink is one of the most healthy options available:

• A meta analysis suggested that those who drank coffee had a lower risk of cardiovascular disease. This was consuming more than 4 cups a day.
• Another meta analysis showed that 4 cups a day of coffee consumption had a reduced risk of mortality from all cause mortality and mortality associated with cardiovascular disease. 
• Research suggests Coffee may lower your risk for type 2 diabetes with every cup you drink. 
• Coffee may protect you from Alzheimer’s disease and Dementia according to some recent studies. 
• Studies suggest that Coffee has protective effects on the liver by protecting against cirrhosis. Those who drink 4 or more cups a day have an 80% lower risk. 

There are so many benefits to coffee consumption the list can go on for days, but we feel it is also important to talk about when you’ve had too much and when we need to cut back. The scenario when you would need to cut back is if you are drinking several 5 shot Americanos to survive the day and still falling asleep due to the feeling of exhaustion. If this is the scenario that explains your life then we need to look at other problems like lack of sleep that can be contributing factors. It’s important to pay attention to whether or not you’re using it as a crutch to get past other health problems or just a delightful pick me up to keep you moving throughout the day. 

Coffee can and is one of the healthiest things you can drink and should be enjoyed by most everyone. The healthy effects are all too numerous to list. Just be sure you’re not using it as a crutch to survive and you can consume to your hearts content. Most studies showed that 4 cups a day or more is when the beneficial effects really start kicking in regardless of it being caffeinated or not!