Coffee Talk
We thought we would finish off the year with some actual coffee talk about…um, well…Coffee!
Caffeine is the most widely consumed behaviorally active substance in the world. It is estimated that 2.25 billion cups of coffee are consumed every day. Perhaps a combination of the facts that coffee gets your heart beating a bit faster, plus the fact that coffee drinking and heart attacks are both very prevalent in Western countries–has had researchers studying the effects of coffee on the heart since the 1960s. The results are very clear: Even heavy coffee consumption (>6 cups/day) does not increase your risk of having a heart attack. In fact, a meta-analysis published in 2014 found that 3-5 cups of coffee per day was associated with lowering your risk of having a heart attack. A 2022 study took the good news a step further by finding that drinking coffee daily was linked to a significantly lower risk of dying within the seven-year study period. The benefits tapered off after more than 4.5 cups per day, however, so don’t go too nuts. So–not dying! That’s pretty good. What other gifts does our little friend have for the holiday season?
Well, besides lowering the incidence of cardiovascular disease, 3-5 cups of coffee per day has also been found to lower the incidence of:
Type 2 Diabetes
Liver disease
Inflammatory diseases of the gastrointestinal tract
Cancer
Kidney disease
Parkinson’s Disease
Alzheimer's Disease
Depression
Coffee also has neuroprotective effects against aging–improving cognition, psychomotor behavior, and neuroplasticity. The same effect was not found in caffeine alone, but was apparently due to other bioactive compounds in coffee.
Many studies have focused on coffee’s enhancement of thermogenesis–meaning–it burns calories! Yes, coffee has been found to aid in weight loss by creating a calorie deficit due to its thermogenic properties.
You may be asking by now, “Wow, Coffee Talk Guys, I guess that's why you guys love coffee so much.” Nope. We haven’t even gotten to our favorite part yet.
The verdict is undeniably in, since a 2018 review of 21 meta-analyses: Coffee improves exercise performance across a range of exercises, including muscle endurance, muscle strength, anaerobic power, and aerobic endurance.
So, fuel up this holiday season and enjoy the miracle brew that is coffee. Imbibe freely up to 12:00 pm each day–but then switch to decaf. Research has also shown that drinking coffee after 12:00 pm affects sleep adversely.
Pro Tip: Delay your morning coffee for 90-120 minutes upon waking to enhance and elongate its benefits throughout the day and improve mood and energy–with no afternoon crash.
Thanks for joining us for our Coffee Talks this year.
Happy Holidays
Scott and Lennart