Benefits of Coffee: 10 Strong Reasons To Drink More

The benefits of coffee have been the topic of a lot of news reports lately. It’s not just black water with caffeine. A growing body of research has shown coffee has many incredible health benefits beyond the morning caffeine pick me up.

Is coffee good for you? Yes! Studies have shown that that drinking coffee every day can help lower your risk of many serious health conditions and even help you feel better.

In this article we will discuss the health benefits of coffee, cover how much coffee you should drink per day,  and then I even provided some coffee drink recipes that can help you discover new ways of enjoying your daily coffee in a healthy way.

So let’s get into it and see how coffee can positively affect your body and mind!

Health Benefits of Coffee

Here are some amazing reasons why you should drink more coffee:

1. Coffee Raises Your Metabolism and Helps You Perform Better Physically

Studies have shown that drinking coffee can actually raise your metabolism and help you burn fat at a faster rate, thus positively affecting your weight loss. Caffeine does this by stimulating your nervous system, causing it to send signals to your fat cells to break down body fat. (1)

It also has been shown to improve athletic performance and endurance during exercise. (2)

Just these two reasons alone are awesome enough to drink more coffee, especially before heading to the gym!

2. Coffee Is a Great Sources of Antioxidants and Essential Nutrients

Believe it or not, coffee has a lot of nutritional value. It contains a number of essential nutrients, including riboflavin (11% of the RDA), pantothenic acid (6% of the RDA), manganese (3% of the RDA), potassium (3% of the RDA), magnesium (2% of the RDA) and niacin (2% of the RDA) (3)

It’s also a HUGE source of antioxidants, and one of the top sources of antioxidants in the American diet. Antioxidants are substances that prevent or delay cell damage, and they can control how fast you age by fighting free radicals. (4)

Translation…. Coffee makes you pretty and healthy!

So the next time you look at your coffee, remember it’s not just black water, it’s a tasty source of antioxidants and nutrients.

3. Coffee Can Help Prevent Diabetes

Diabetes, an enormous health problem everywhere with over 400 million sufferers, affects about 8% of adults over the age of 18 affected worldwide. (5)

Studies show that people who drink coffee have a significantly lower risk of developing Type II diabetes. In one study, participants with a total daily consumption of at least three cups of coffee reduced the risk of type 2 diabetes by approximately 42%. (6)

If you’re concerned about diabetes, you may want to start including coffee in your diet on a regular basis to improve your chances of preventing it. But make sure to limit the sugar you add and see below for my tips on healthy(er) sweeteners below.

4. Coffee Can Make You Smarter

Coffee contains a chemical called caffeine… yes, I know you know that, but did you know that caffeine is central nervous system stimulant?! When you drink coffee, the caffeine travels to the brain where it is responsible for enhancing the firing of the neurons and increasing energy metabolism throughout your brain. (7)

The next time you need to study or take a test, try drinking a cup of coffee beforehand for a little extra mental edge.

5. May Help Prevent Liver Disease

If you drink alcohol on a regular basis, listen up!

Studies have shown that there is an ingredient in coffee that protects against a liver disease called cirrhosis. If you have never heard of cirrhosis before, it a condition where your liver tissue is damaged and replaced with scar tissue. It can develop several ways like from infections, obesity, and other conditions, but especially from drinking too much alcohol. Drinking coffee on a regular basis has been shown to be a natural detox to help protect against the onset of cirrhosis, especially alcoholic cirrhosis. (8)

So while I don’t advocate drinking too much alcohol, I can recommend drinking coffee regularly if you do as a cleansing body detox and to help give your liver a little extra protection.

6. Coffee May Help Protect Against Heart Disease and Stroke

There have been studies that show that moderate coffee drinking lowered the risk of coronary heart disease in women. (9)

Research has also shown that higher coffee consumption reduced the risks of cardiovascular disease and stroke. (10)

Obviously, drinking coffee isn’t going to completely eliminate your chances of developing heart disease or having a stroke (you need good diet, lifestyle habits, and good genes as well). But if just adding coffee to your diet helps lower your risks, why not try it?

7. Caffeine May Lower Skin Cancer Risk

A study by the National Institute of Health found that higher coffee intake was associated with a modest decrease in risk of a certain type of skin cancer called melanoma. (11)

If you’re concerned about your risk of skin cancer, try adding a few cups of coffee to your diet to help lower your risks. And don’t forget your SPF while you’re at it!

8. Caffeine Can Help Protect You From Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is a type of disease that causes problems with your memory, thinking and behavior. Symptoms usually develop slowly and get worse over time, becoming severe enough to eventually interfere with daily tasks.

If you’ve ever know somebody with AD or dementia, you know how devastating this condition can be, not just on the sufferer but to those around them as well.

Research has found that drinking 3-5 cups per day while in your middle aged years was associated with a decreased risk of Alzheimer’s and dementia by about 65% in your later years. (12)

Did you get that?? A 65% reduction in your chances of developing dementia by drinking 3-5 cups of coffee a day! That is one of the most compelling arguments in favor of drinking coffee every day that’s I’ve even heard, especially if you’re in your 40’s and 50’s.

9. Coffee May Help Reduce Parkinson’s Disease Symptoms

Parkinson’s disease is a chronic disorder that involves the malfunction and death of certain nerve cells in the brain (neurons). It’s a progressive disease, meaning that symptoms get worse over time. The cause is unknown, and there is no cure.

Worldwide, nearly 7 million people are living with Parkinson’s disease.

Studies have shown that higher coffee and caffeine intake is associated with a significantly lower incidence of Parkinson’s Disease. (13)

This benefit, along with the reduction in AD and dementia, make coffee an important part of your strategy to get older without losing your mental strength and clarity.

10. Coffee May Lower Your Risk of Being Depressed

Depression is a chronic and serious mood disorder that affects twice as many women as men. It causes severe symptoms that affect how you think, feel, and deal with day to day activities like sleeping, eating, or working. Approximately 20% of women will be affected by depression during their lifetime.

Studies have found that increased coffee consumption decreased the risk of depression. (14)

It’s not entirely clear why this occurs, but it’s another great reason to drink coffee! So next time you’re “blue” treat yourself to a cup and if possible some nature and sunshine… which also helps reduce depression!

How Many Cups Of Coffee Should You Drink A Day?

Every one of these reasons tend to indicate that you should be drinking more than one cup of coffee a day for the best results.

According to research, it’s recommended that adults should consume 3-4 cups of coffee a day to realize the most health benefits. (15)

How Much Coffee Is Too Much?

If you happen to drink too much, there can be some short term side effects of coffee you may want to be aware of, such as:

• Anxiety or mild panic attacks
• Inability to relax
• Rapid heartbeat
• Unable to sleep
• Light headed or dizziness
• Stomach aches
• Shakiness
• Moodiness

If you encounter any of these side effects, you may want to consider reducing your daily consumption until the symptoms subside. If you can’t get them to go away after reducing your caffeine consumption, then you might want to consider cutting out coffee completely.

Coffee Drink Recipes

If you’re looking for some new ways to enjoy coffee, try these delicious coffee drink recipes from my blog.

• Almond Milk Latte
• Blended Mocha Cappuccino

These two drinks tend to be on the sweeter side, so they may be best as a dessert treat and not a substitution for a plain old cup of black coffee in the morning. But feel free to experiment with new ideas and ingredients to expand your coffee drink options.

Just make sure you are not adding loads of sugar as that will just negate the benefits. If you are looking for diabetic friendly sweeteners for your “Morning Joe” try honey, real maple syrup or raw Stevia, and try to add as little as possible so you develop a taste for less sugar.

I recommend using organic coffee when you can for the most healthy benefits without the risk of chemicals or toxins. And whenever possible try not to use tap water, you want good clean water that is not filled with fluoride as it changes chemistry when heated.

How to Make Perfect Coffee Video

Here’s a good how-to video for making a perfect cup of Joe.

Conclusion

After all this research, I’ve answered the question: Is coffee good for you? YES!

Drinking coffee every day is not just a treat, it’s actually healthy for you, too! With all the great reasons you can stop feeling guilty about indulging and celebrate the benefits of drinking coffee today!

So drink up and reap all the benefits of drinking coffee!

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