Britain may be a country of tea drinkers but every day we eat 70 million cups of coffee. If the queue outside my local takeaway coffee shop is to be believed, the pandemic did little to quench their thirst.
For many, coffee is an essential morning snack. It can also give us a lot of energy back to life through the afternoon recession or give us energy for our children ‘s home school. In the meantime, walking and coffee with a friend has become increasingly popular, prompting a government source to say that the rule that allows two people from different families to meet for exercise “should be used as an excuse for people to go for coffee with friends “.
In addition to the energy powers it provides, coffee has several other health benefits. A few cups of coffee a day can reduce the risk of prostate cancer, according to a new study in the journal BMJ Open, which examined data from 16 individual studies on nearly 58,000 men. In other studies, coffee has been linked to fighting heart disease, cancer, depression, diabetes and even depression. It is also rich in antioxidants, including polyphenols, which reduce inflammation.
However, having too much of a good thing, and too much caffeine, as most of us may have experienced, can cause jittery, sneezing, rapid heartbeat or insomnia.
How many cups of coffee should you drink each day?
Despite the shocking news that 25 cups of coffee a day doesn’t “harm your heart”, it’s always wiser to follow the rule: there’s nothing more.
In May 2015, the European Food Safety Authority updated its guidance on recommended caffeine consumption and considered it safe for adults to consume up to 400mg of caffeine per day, which is the standard well equivalent to four cups of coffee.
The NHS supports this. On his website, he concludes that three or four cups of coffee a day is “unlikely to be harmful” unless you are pregnant or at risk of severe heartburn.
Here’s how to get the most out of those three (or four) cups …
Drink it black
Despite the popularity of creamy lattes and smooth whites, if not too sour to enjoy, black coffee can be more beneficial if you’re trying to lose weight. “When consumed without additives, black coffee can provide the energy you need without any calories,” explained Lewis Spencer, coffee expert at Coffee-Direct.co.uk. A cup of black coffee only averages five calories, but if you add milk and sugar, this can go up tenfold.
Black coffee is also rich in antioxidants and contains high levels of calcium, vitamin B2 and magnesium. That said, a 2010 study from Nestle found that milk does not affect these antioxidant levels.
Avoid artificial garlic
If you can’t think of black coffee in your stomach, be careful about what you add to your morning cup. “Most artificial coffee creamers are not made with cream. They get their rich and creamy properties from thick agents and emulsifiers, ”says Spencer.
He recommends that you avoid such predators. If you are ready to add something, he recommends whole milk or cream. “Whole milk is an excellent source of protein and is rich in nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D and potassium,” he explains.
Although skimmed and semi-skimmed milk has a higher calcium content than full-fat, studies have found that whole milk has major health benefits. For example, drinking high-fat milk may protect against strokes; researchers at the University of Texas found that one of the fatty acids in milk may help prevent severe strokes. Similarly, whole milk has been linked to a lower risk of diabetes of up to six percent.
Add a dash of cinnamon
“If you prefer sweet coffee, cinnamon is a healthier option than sugar,” says Spencer. One teaspoon of sugar contains about 20 calories, but cinnamon has a “natural sweet taste” with a fraction of the calories.
“It also eliminates cravings,” says Spencer, “meaning you feel satisfied for longer and have a smaller snack between meals.” It is also rich in nutrients such as iron, fiber and vitamin K.
Gradually reduce your sugar intake
If you can’t live without sugar in your coffee, you should try to limit what you get. Initially, make one teaspoon per cup but, over time, reduce the amount to just a teaspoon fraction and after a while you may stop using it completely.
“This method will make you aware of what you are eating,” says Spencer, “and will reduce the amount of sugar you add to your coffee. ”
Allow to cool
However you make your coffee, you should wait until it cools down a bit before taking a sip as this may protect against esophageal cancer, according to a study by the American Cancer Society.
This study looked at 50,000 people and found that those who drank three cups at 60C or higher had a 90 percent higher risk of developing esophageal cancer, compared to those who drank the drinks at lower temperatures. One possible explanation is that scalding the food pipe from eating hot drinks can damage the cells.
Similarly, the World Health Organization warned in 2016 that cancer drinks above 65C could carry a cancer risk.
The quickest way to cool down your coffee is to add cold milk, adding 10ml of cold milk to a hot rinse will allow it to cool to less than 65C within five minutes.
Switch to decaf
Thinking about decaffeinated coffee could fill your mind with horror. After all, without that energy what exactly is it?
However, you will only feel an energy boost with regular coffee because, before you had a cup, your body had withdrawal symptoms. The regular cup of coffee just feeds the slavery.
“Repeated consumption of caffeine, even as little as one cup of coffee per day, usually leads to the development of physical dependence,” said Dr. Jack James, a psychologist studying caffeine at Reykjavik University. , previously. The Telegraph.
“The effects of withdrawal include fatigue and lower mental performance. Thus, when normal caffeine users consume the drug after a period of rest (which may be a bit like overnight), fatigue and mental performance tend to improve. But these ‘improvements’ are simply reversing the effects of withdrawal. ”