10 Amazing Benefits of Coffee You Should Know

 

Coffee has been prized for centuries for its stimulating effect: it is the main source of caffeine for adults, a substance that acts on the nervous system. Are you familiar with its other benefits?

Is coffee good for your health?

Recent studies show that coffee also has health benefits for other organs, particularly the cardiovascular system and the digestive tract.

But black coffee also contains specific polyphenols, whose promising health effects are being closely examined by researchers.

Discover all its hidden benefits in our slideshow. And tips on how to consume it properly.

Drinking coffee in the morning or evening: what are the benefits?

From the 18th ^century onwards, coffee drinkers (mainly nobles and intellectuals) used this beverage to stay awake and treat their headaches. But they had also noticed that drinking too much of it made them nervous and prevented them from sleeping.

Doctors at the National Institute of Sleep and Vigilance remind us that caffeine delays falling asleep, can make sleep lighter and increase nighttime awakenings ^2. According to experts from the European Food Safety Authority, an intake of 100 mg of caffeine (15 cl of filter coffee) is enough to produce these effects.

Caffeine is eliminated from the body approximately after 6 hours. To fall asleep at 11 p.m., you would therefore need to drink your last coffee no later than 5 p.m. However, caffeine elimination varies from person to person, which explains why some people sleep "like a baby" after drinking coffee at the end of dinner.

What are the benefits of drinking coffee for bones?

Studies have suggested that coffee reduces calcium absorption. However, this effect appears to be very small with moderate coffee consumption. A Swedish study following 61,500 women for 20 years showed that, at the same age, women who drank more than four cups of coffee per day had a 2% lower bone mineral density compared to those who drank less than one cup. However, the risk of fracture did not appear to be related to the amount of coffee consumed.

Have a coffee to stay calm

Several studies suggest benefits of coffee on mental health, with a lower risk of depression among coffee drinkers. A recent study of 10,177 Koreans, aged 20 to 97, found that those who drank at least three cups of coffee a day had almost half the risk of developing depression.

Researchers have proposed several hypotheses to explain these results. Coffee consumption may stimulate the brain's production of feel-good neurotransmitters: serotonin and dopamine. Furthermore, certain polyphenols in coffee (chlorogenic acids) appear to have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.

The French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) points out, however, that excessive caffeine can cause anxiety, irritability, and nervousness. Nearly 30% of the French adult population exceeds the daily threshold considered a cause of anxiety, estimated at 200 mg of caffeine equivalent to 30 cl of filtered coffee.

 

Effects of coffee and cardiovascular diseases

According to EFSA, the European Food Safety Authority, there is a vast body of literature on this topic, with disparate results. A meta-analysis of 36 intervention studies indicates that in healthy adults, 3 to 5 cups of coffee per day reduce the risk of myocardial infarction by 12%, and 1 to 6 cups reduce the risk of stroke by 8 to 13%. Certain polyphenols in black coffee, with their antioxidant effects, may help protect arteries, thus contributing to cardiovascular health benefits.

These results should be interpreted with caution in people with heart disease, as caffeine temporarily increases heart rate and blood pressure. This concern was raised following deaths from cardiac arrest linked to the consumption of energy drinks.

People who know they have a heart condition (angina, heart failure, etc.) should limit their caffeine intake to 200 mg per day (30 cl of filtered coffee). Athletes, on the other hand, should not drink coffee (or any other caffeinated beverage) before training, especially since caffeine is a diuretic and promotes dehydration during exercise.

 

Coffee and intestinal transit

In some people, caffeine appears to stimulate colon motility. A trial conducted on healthy adults found that consuming a cup of coffee induced the need to defecate within 4 to 30 minutes for 29% of volunteers. A good cup of coffee, preferably strong, therefore offers benefits for intestinal health, particularly in cases of slow transit.

But caffeine also stimulates the production of gastric juices. In people suffering from gastroesophageal reflux, black coffee therefore increases the risk of heartburn (gastric juices being very acidic).

 

What are the benefits of coffee for the brain?

Several tests have proven that coffee consumption improves brain function: reaction time is reduced, alertness and attention are improved, and logical reasoning is enhanced. However, studies investigating a link between coffee consumption and protection against age-related cognitive decline often yield contradictory results.

American experts, who compiled studies published between 2000 and 2014, concluded that caffeine has a limited effect on the risk of cognitive decline, especially in men. However, they found that it likely contributes to the prevention of Alzheimer's disease (caffeine may mitigate the harmful effects of beta-amyloid protein) and certainly protects against Parkinson's disease, with the optimal dose appearing to be 3 cups per day.

 

What are the benefits of coffee for the body in cancer prevention?

More than 500 epidemiological studies have been conducted, examining the link between different levels of coffee consumption and the occurrence of cancer. Scientists believe that moderate consumption (a maximum of 3 cups per day) does not increase the risk of cancer.

Laboratory tests on mice have shown that caffeine destroys skin cells damaged by UVB radiation. It may protect against skin cancer.

Finally, coffee appears to block the growth of breast tumors. In women treated with tamoxifen (a hormonal treatment) followed by Link University and Skate University Hospital in Sweden, consuming 2 cups of coffee daily seemed to help prevent a recurrence of their breast cancer.

 

Coffee for weight loss

Caffeine, found in many weight-loss supplements, promotes the burning of fat reserves and stimulates metabolism (the body burns slightly more calories in the hours following its ingestion) . However, these effects are modest at reasonable doses of caffeine.

Strong coffee may also act as a natural appetite suppressant. One of the polyphenols in coffee, chlorogenic acid, also appears to have fat-burning properties. However, studies conducted on overweight or obese individuals (evaluating the effect of coffee on weight loss) are not yet conclusive enough to definitively confirm this.

It also depends on how you drink your coffee: black, with sugar, milk, or cream. A cup of coffee sweetened with a sugar cube (5g) provides 20 kcal. A cappuccino, latte, or Viennese coffee in a capsule or sachet provides 50 to 120 kcal. Finally, a very large (60cl) coffee with whipped cream, purchased from a specialty chain, contains 450 kcal!

 

Coffee as a remedy for type 2 diabetes or gout

A very recent study suggests that coffee consumption increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes^. This study contradicts numerous previous studies that claimed the opposite: that coffee protects against type 2 diabetes. Whom should we believe in this case?

However, studies finding a protective effect of caffeine in the case of type 2 diabetes indicate that one would have to drink between 4 and 6 cups of coffee daily, which is an excessive consumption for the majority of adults ^2-3.

Similarly, one would have to drink 4 to 5 cups of coffee daily to obtain a decrease in blood uric acid levels (gout attacks being triggered by an excess of uric acid in the body).

 

Drinking coffee during pregnancy: good or bad for your health?

This time, we're not talking about the mother's health, but the baby's. So be careful with your coffee consumption. Studies have shown a slowing of fetal growth in pregnant women who consume a lot of coffee: excess caffeine prevents the fetus from receiving adequate oxygen and nutrients. Furthermore, caffeine passes into the breast milk of breastfeeding women.

Experts agree to recommend that pregnant or breastfeeding women consume a maximum of 200 mg of caffeine per day (the equivalent of 30 cl of filter coffee) 

 

Is it good to drink coffee every day: how many cups to be healthy?

With all this information, how do you make sense of it all? To summarize, American and European experts estimate that healthy adults can ingest up to 400 mg of caffeine per day without risk to their health.

The recommendations of the European Food Safety Authority are a little more precise, since they take into account the weight of individuals: the maximum dose of caffeine without risk to health would be 5.7 mg per kilo of body weight per day.

Pregnant or breastfeeding women, people suffering from heart, kidney or liver disease or gastroesophageal reflux, should limit themselves to 200 mg of caffeine per day.

Finally, experts emphasize the notion of personal tolerance: if caffeine makes you particularly nervous or affects your sleep at small doses, you need to determine your own limit dose, probably closer to 200 mg than 400 mg.

 

How can I determine my caffeine intake?

Are you struggling to estimate your coffee consumption? Here's some information on the caffeine content of your beverages:

- 1 cup (15 cl) of filter coffee: 115 mg of caffeine

- 1 cup (15 cl) of instant coffee: 70 mg of caffeine

- 1 cup (5 cl) of espresso: 65 mg of caffeine

- 1 cup (15 cl) of decaffeinated coffee: 3 mg of caffeine

- 1 cup (15 cl) of tea: 40 mg of caffeine

- 1 cup (15 cl) of maté: 80 mg of caffeine

- 1 cup (15 cl) of hot chocolate: 10 mg of caffeine

- 1 can of cola (33 cl): 35 mg of caffeine

- 1 can of 25 cl "energy" drink: 80 mg of caffeine

Sources

1. Exhibition "Tea, coffee or chocolate? The rise of exotic drinks in the 17th century" , at the Cognac-Jay Museum in Paris

2  Website of the National Institute of Sleep and Vigilance

¹ Coffee and depression in Korea, the first Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey; Eur J Clin Nut. Dec 2014, RJ ​​Park & ​​al. ( online abstract )

^2. Opinion on the risk assessment related to the consumption of so-called energy drinks; Anses, September 6, 2013 ( online infographic )

¹ Scientific opinion on the safety of caffeine; Efsa Journal , May 27, 2015 ( online abstract )

¹ Is coffee a colonic stimulant? ; SS Rao & al. ; Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 1998 ( online abstract )

¹ Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee; Health.gov ( online reporting )

^{Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee; Health.gov ( online reports ) 2}

Liver cancer: our analysis of worldwide research on liver cancer; World Cancer Research Fund International ( compilation of studies online )

³ Mechanisms of caffeine-induced inhibition of UVB carcinogenesis; AH Conney & al. ; Front Onco. June 2013 ( online abstract )

⁴ Caffeine and caffeic acid inhibit growth and modify estrogen receptor and insulin-like growth factor in human breast cancer; AH Rosendahl & al. ; Clinical Cancer Research. April 2015 ( online abstract )

¹ Long-term coffee consumption in relation to fracture risk and bone mineral density in women; H. Hallström & al. ; Am J Epidemiol. July 2013 ( online abstract )

^1. Coffee increases prediabetes risk in susceptible young adults; HARVEST study presented on 2/11/2014 at the European Society of Cardiology congress ( abstract online )

² Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee; Health.gov ( online reporting )

³ Scientific opinion on the safety of caffeine; Efsa Journal , May 27, 2015 ( online abstract )

¹ Opinion on the risk assessment related to the consumption of so-called energy drinks; Anses, September 6, 2013 ( online infographic )

2. Exhibition " Tea, coffee or chocolate? The rise of exotic drinks in the 17th century ", at the Cognac-Jay Museum in Paris

¹ Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee; Health.gov ( online reporting )

² Scientific opinion on the safety of caffeine; Efsa Journal , May 27, 2015 ( online abstract )