& caffeine
Caffeine is a widely consumed chemical compound around the world.
Whether you enjoy it in the form of tea, coffee, soda, or even chocolate, most people use this stimulant daily. And while there is a ton of research on the health effects of caffeine, the majority shows that caffeine, when consumed moderately, is ultimately beneficial. However there are some things to keep in mind when consuming. Here, I will focus on my favorite form of caffeine - coffee - to discuss a little bit that it does for our bodies
Moderation, as with everything, is everything. Too much caffeine in the form of coffee can cause effects such as anxiety, high heart beat and increased blood glucose levels. It is also important to remember that coffee should not be a replacement for your liquid intake. While it does not necessarily dehydrate you, coffee does act as a diuretic meaning that it increases the amount of liquid excreted from the body. The FDA (i) recommends consuming no more than 400mg per day, which is about 4 or 5 cups of coffee. When you remain in the suggested range, the positive benefits of caffeine are seen.
The chemical composition of coffee accounts for the positive impact on human health. One study (ii) shows that regular consumption of caffeine, notably coffee, is associated to lower risk of mortality. Coffee contains a ton of bioactive ingredients, including antioxidants and diterpenes ( which are more commonly seen in espresso ). Antioxidants provide benefits to the body by protecting cells from oxidation, which leads to the formation of free radicals and ultimately the damage of cells. By consuming foods and beverages that contain antioxidants, we can help protect our cells from damages.
Another study (iii) shows that the consumption of coffee has protective effects in diseases like neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular, depression and mortality in general.
In simpler terms - the compounds in coffee are very good for us!
Despite all of the potential benefits of caffeine, It is important to note that caffeine can raise blood glucose levels and even keep them elevated for a longer period of time. This is due to the increasing effect that caffeine has on your stress hormones, which causes the liver to release more glucose in response. The elevation of these stress hormones can also cause a lower sensitivity to insulin, making it difficult for insulin to do its job and effectively lower blood glucose. With diabetes, it is important to keep an eye on the amounts of caffeine you are consuming to ensure that it does not have too much effect on your blood sugar. It is also smart to steer away from sweet, sugary coffee beverages as the caffeine combined with the sugars are not the best combination when aiming to maintain a healthy blood glucose level.
i Spilling the Beans: How Much Caffeine is Too Much? | FDA
ii . Ruggiero E, Di Castelnuovo A, Costanzo S, et al. Daily Coffee Drinking Is Associated with Lower Risks of Cardiovascular and Total Mortality in a General Italian Population: Results from the Moli-sani Study. J Nutr. 2021;151(2):395-404. doi:10.1093/jn/nxaa365
From <https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33382422/>
iii. Nehlig A, Cunha RA. The Coffee–Acrylamide Apparent Paradox: An Example of Why the Health Impact of a Specific Compound in a Complex Mixture Should Not Be Evaluated in Isolation. Nutrients. 2020; 12(10):3141. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12103141
From <https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/10/3141#cite>