Did you know Americans consume 400 million cups of coffee every day? That’s an astounding number which demonstrates the popularity of this delicious and powerful drink. Most of us start our day with at least one cup of coffee.
But coffee doesn’t just taste good. It’s actually very healthy and rich in nutrients and antioxidants.
But coffee provides a whole host of other benefits too. Keep reading to discover the ten best health benefits of drinking coffee now.
1. Coffee Improves Energy Levels and Brain Function
We all love coffee for the energy boost it gives us. This occurs because of the presence of the stimulant caffeine. Caffeine enters your bloodstream and travels to your brain where it blocks an inhibitory neurotransmitter called adenosine.
As a result, the levels of other neurotransmitters, namely norepinephrine and dopamine, increase and more neurons begin to fire. This is why we have more energy and our mood is better after we drink coffee. Coffee also improves our memory and brain function as well.
2. Coffee Combats Some Cancers
Melanoma is the most common cause of skin cancer. You can help to prevent it by staying out of the sun as well as applying sunscreen. But interestingly enough, research shows that drinking four cups of coffee every day lowers your risk of melanoma by 20%.
Coffee also helps to fight prostate cancer, the second most common cancer for men. Just drinking one to three cups of coffee every day can reduce the risk of this lethal cancer by 30%.
For women, endometrial cancer is a leading cause of cancer affecting the reproductive organs. Fortunately, coffee can help to protect yourself against this type of cancer. Drinking four cups of coffee daily reduces your risk of cancer by 30% while consuming two cups of decaffeinated coffee a day lowers risk by 22%.
3. Coffee Reduces Your Risk of Type 2 Diabetes
Diabetes is at epidemic levels in the United States for a variety of reasons. One thing you can do to stave off diabetes is to drink more coffee.
In fact, men can cut their risk of type 2 diabetes by 50% by consuming at least six cups of regular caffeinated coffee every day. Women who drink the same amount reduce the risk of diabetes by 30%.
If you’re drinking that much coffee, it pays to make sure you are drinking the healthiest and purest coffee from wholesale coffee suppliers.
4. Coffee Fights Depression
As mentioned above, the caffeine in coffee causes your brain to fire off neurotransmitters that release feel-good hormones. As a result, your mood elevates and you feel better.
To that end, research indicates that regular coffee drinking can prevent mild to moderate depression. With every cup of caffeinated coffee you drink every day you lower your risk of depression by 8%.
So if anyone gives you a hard time about drinking too much coffee, tell them to back off you’re doing it for your health.
5. Coffee Is Good for Your Liver
Regular coffee consumption not only protects you from liver disease, but it can also undo liver damage from drinking alcohol.
More antioxidants are found in java than from any other food group. These antioxidants support your liver so it can efficiently detoxify the body. In this way, your liver protects you against many diseases.
So enjoy your morning cuppa joe and take comfort in the fact you’re helping your liver function.
6. Coffee Helps You Perform Better
Over the years, we’ve been conditioned to believe caffeine is not a good workout supplement because it dehydrates the body. Experts now believe, however, that the level of dehydration is not strong enough to prevent or diminish your workout.
What’s more, caffeine actually improves your physical performance. When you drink caffeine, your body raises its level of epinephrine in your blood. You may remember epinephrine as the “fight or flight” hormone which immediately prepares your body for intense activity.
In fact, caffeine works so well that the NCAA has banned its use in high volume for its college athletes.
And one study of cyclists proves caffeine improves performance better than carbs or water.
7. Coffee Burns Fat
Another way that coffee improves your performance is through lipolysis, the process by which your body breaks down the fat in fat cells. The fat releases into your blood as free fatty acids which are then used for fuel. Your metabolism increases and your physical performance improves.
Caffeine is an amazing psychoactive substance capable of burning fat and increasing your metabolism. No wonder it’s included in most commercial fat-burning supplements on the market today.
8. Coffee Reduces Your Risk for Parkinson’s Disease
Although Parkinson’s disease is currently incurable, new research finds that one compound found in coffee combines with caffeine to fight Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia. Researchers are excited to discover that coffee can help slow down the brain degeneration associated with these two diseases.
A daily cup of coffee can help stave off the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Just make sure you are drinking caffeinated coffee to achieve the desired results.
9. Coffee Helps to Prevent Gout
Gout is typically thought of as a disease for older men, although some women do get gout. Gout occurs when uric acid builds up in your blood, resulting in uric acid crystal deposits in your joints and the areas around them. The pain and swelling can be very intense.
You may be able to protect yourself against gout by drinking more coffee. To that end, a U.S./Canadian study of medical professionals found that drinking four or more cups of coffee each day lowers the risk of gout by 40%.
10. Coffee is an Excellent Source of Antioxidants
Drinking coffee does more than just provide a pick-me-up. It’s also the leading source of antioxidants in the United States. Although fruits have more antioxidants, most Americans get their antioxidants from coffee and they are easily digestible.
Free radicals are continuously attacking necessary molecules in our bodies such as protein and DNA. Antioxidants protect us against these radicals, which help to prevent many diseases brought on by oxidative stress.
Coffee contains a number of effective antioxidants like hydrocinnamic acids and polyphenols. These antioxidants may prevent serious health conditions, including cancer, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease.
Final Thoughts on the Health Benefits of Drinking Coffee
Clearly, the health benefits of drinking coffee are substantial. Coffee protects us against disease, improves our physical performance, raises our metabolism and much more.
You may have noticed that many of the benefits above require drinking three or more cups of coffee daily. That may be hard to do without getting the jitters. You also don’t want to get a caffeine overdose.
You will need to weigh the potential health benefits against the safety risks of drinking too much coffee. And of course, talk to your doctor before undergoing changes in your coffee drinking habits.
