10 Health Benefits of Coffee

10 Health Benefits of Coffee

Coffee is among the top loved beverages around the world. Its global consumption is more than one billion cups each day according to data by the International Coffee Organization (ICO). An average coffee drinker takes more than two cups of coffee each day. While some people consume it because they like its aromatic scent, others use it as a social lubricant. Even better, evidence-based studies associate the drinking of coffee with health benefits.

Is coffee good for our health?

Sure. Whether you consider coffee as a once in a while treat or greet each morning with its aroma, there are many benefits you can expect. Coffee is not just used to make drinks, it is also an ingredient of foodstuffs. Perhaps coffee biscuits and candy will ring a bell. Because of this, experts have conducted heavy dietary studies about it over the decades to discover coffee health benefits. The results show that consuming coffee moderately (about four cups each day) may count for living a long life, and is capable of reducing your susceptibility to illnesses.

Some health benefits of coffee might come as a surprise to some people because it could prevent life-threatening diseases. Cardiovascular diseases, stroke, cirrhosis, gout, liver and uterine cancer, and Parkinson’s disease are some examples of health complications you could avoid by taking coffee regularly. The high antioxidant levels, caffeine, and other beneficial nutrients contents make this possible. Let us delve further and shed light on the individual benefits of consuming this beverage.

What are the benefits of drinking coffee?

1) Coffee for Weight Loss

Obesity and weight gain are a major health concern these days. People try many methods to burn calories, which fail because burning calories demands a lot of physical activity, and other alternative medical treatments to weight loss come with side effects. But by taking a cup of coffee, weight loss becomes less demanding and yet produces effortless results. Here is how it works: Your body cells often react to cold by using fat and sugar within to produce heat. The fats responsible are called brown adipose tissue (BAT). That is where coffee comes in. It stimulates these BAT fats, which in turn burns calories for heat generation.

The benefits of coffee weight loss here include less physical activity and also acts in all areas of the body wherever the brown adipose tissue is present. Compared to physical activity which calls for focused and technical exercising of various body parts, coffee seeks and acts on BAT fat reserves from the neck to the toes.

Do you know why most supplements designed for shedding weight contain caffeine? Caffeine and weight loss go hand in hand owing to its ability to increase metabolism by 11%. However, to enjoy weight-loss coffee benefits, no sugar or cream should be used in your beverage – the basic coffee brew is good enough for this purpose.

2) Coffee for Bolstering Energy Levels

Besides caffeine helping you shed weight, it may stimulate your body to increase its energy. How does it work? You first take in coffee and the caffeine part of it flows through the blood into your brain. This blocks the transmission of ‘lazy chemicals’ and causes more release of neurons that are responsible for bursts of energy. That explains why it is okay to take a cup of coffee in the morning before you face a tough day. The blood adrenaline levels increase may also serve great in between work sessions to improve concentration and productivity at the workplace. Those who work in intense physical involvement activities like the gym would benefit from a strong cup of coffee.

Enhanced energy also comes with enhanced brain function. Meaning, you’ll have a better memory and increased vigilance. Those who are trying to fight depression may take a cup of coffee to get a lively mood – one of the benefits of coffee thanks to the caffeine in it. You may also drink it as a preventive measure because it is proven to reduce the chances of individuals committing suicide by 53%.

3) Coffee for Protecting the Liver

The liver is the biggest internal organ, and therefore, very critical in the metabolism operations of the body. From aiding digestion to detoxification, the liver does a lot in the human body. So when chronic diseases like fatty liver, cirrhosis, liver cancer, or hepatitis strike, they can lead to morbidity and even worse, become life-threatening. Unfortunately, those who have liver conditions don’t get the diagnosis and treatment early enough.

But if you take four strong cups of coffee each day, you may have up to 80% chance of protecting yourself against liver conditions. Still, those who already have these issues could count on a cup of coffee as an alternative treatment alongside the doctor’s prescription. Since there is no specific proven compound in coffee good for liver, scientists are still trying to find out which component(s) might be helping in the prevention and treatment of liver problems. But as they do, ensure you greet your mornings with a cup of joe to prevent the silent killer liver diseases.

4) Coffee for Managing the Risks of Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and Dementia

Neurodegenerative conditions like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s are deadly. They attack the brain cells making it difficult to move body parts. And the bad thing is that they are not curable. So it is only reasonable to prevent and manage these conditions. The natural way to do this is by taking daily doses of black coffee. Black coffee benefits may be evident in individuals who take two eight-ounce cups of it every day. You have up to 60% prevention ability of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s risk because of the caffeine contents in the coffee.

A research in 2012 on people with dementia in Florida shows that drinking three cups of coffee every day could reduce the chances of one developing full-fledged dementia owing to the caffeine contents in it. Taking a coffee, therefore, can be useful to people with symptoms of dementia.

5) Coffee for Preventing Development of Cancerous Cells

Cancer is among the top killer diseases around the world with colorectal cancer holding the fourth position after liver cancer. This disease is named according to the place it affects, but all kinds of cancers involve the uncontrolled growth of body cells. Another reason you may drink coffee for health benefits is to protect against the liver and colorectal cancerous cells. Compared to a person who does not take coffee, you could have 40% protection against liver cancer and 15% against colorectal cancer. Also, some studies show taking coffee may prevent prostate and breast cancers thanks to the many antioxidants present in the drink.

6) Coffee for Better Digestion

How often do you go to the toilet? A normal person should take two to three hours after a meal. But some people report taking days before they can empty their bowels. If you struggle to go to the toilet, you need to try drinking coffee. Those who take it witness that shortly after drinking it, they want to go to empty their bowels. Experts say the coffee health benefit in this situation might be as a result of the caffeine content that activates intestinal contractions. Also, taking coffee leads to increased release of gastrin hormone which makes colon movements multiple times active. Besides the contractions in the colon, coffee contains chemicals that may stimulate stomach acid production, which speeds up the stomach and intestinal activity.

Drinking coffee could also come in handy if you experience discomfort after taking rich food or a heavy meal. But you should be aware that you might experience uncomfortable acid refluxes when you take it simultaneously with meals. Even if you can access dark roasted coffee, this problem would be a non-issue. But that does not say all about the coffee benefits the health for your digestive system without mentioning that it may help to keep away gallstones.

7) Coffee for Body Nutrients

Whether it’s the Yemeni coffee beans or Ethiopian coffee beans, the end product of a cup of coffee contains a plethora of nutrients. Taking in one cup of coffee may give you 3% of Manganese and Potassium, 11% of Vitamin B2, 6% of Vitamin B5, and 2% of Vitamin B3. Ergo, those who take several cups a day might end up consuming a significant amount of these nutrients per day, which is useful to the body.

If you include coffee in your daily diet, you might improve your antioxidant intake by a significant margin as well. Considering that the standard western diet lacks the needed amount of antioxidants, you need to include coffee in your menu. It is a fact that fruits and veggies combined don’t provide as many antioxidants as coffee does for most people.

8) Coffee for Preventing Type 2 Diabetes

When your body doesn’t break down glucose with the help of insulin, your blood sugar is elevated – which is the cause of type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes makes the lives of millions of people miserable around the world because it has no cure. It is often diagnosed in inactive and overweight adults. Unfortunately, you cannot do much about it (apart from maintaining its effects) which coffee may help with. Those who drink coffee may guard themselves against this disease by 50%.

9) Coffee for Lowering Stroke Risks

You must have heard that caffeine raises blood pressure. That is accurate but it only applies if you are not a regular user of coffee. For first-timers, the rise will be a small maximum of 4mm/Hg that eventually disappears with regular coffee intake. But as one of the coffee health risks, you should not take it for granted because the rise in pressure may persist in some individuals. Therefore, try and if the situation worsens, avoid using it to stay unharmed.

Even though some people won’t enjoy the benefits of taking caffeine products because of their body responses to it, you should understand that it does not cause heart disease. In fact, it is proven that females who take coffee, could have a 20% lower risk of getting heart-related illnesses like stroke. The reason this happens is that coffee contents help level sugar as well as soothe inflammation.

10) Coffee for Boosting Libido

Yes, coffee levels blood sugar in patients with type 2 diabetes and as a result impacts the production of adrenal gland hormones. However, this does not happen the same way in healthy individuals. A study done on female rats shows that there is an increase in sex rates because coffee boosts libido due to the stimulant caffeine contents. Similarly, if you’ve been having trouble to get things going when it comes to sex, coffee intake can help save the situation.

Reaction to caffeine happens differently to different people. And there is likeliness that it might dampen your sex drive if you become hyper anxious and your mind can’t settle on one thing. In such a situation, you need to try reducing the caffeine portions you take to see if it works for you. That is where decaffeinated coffee benefits come in because less caffeine means less energy.

Is coffee good for you?

Even though scientists have not settled on a figure describing how much coffee is too much, we should go with the suggestions from numerous study sources of four cups per day (given that one cup contains 75 mg that adds up to less than 400 mg). But there are millions of people who take more than that without exhibiting any side effects of coffee. You shouldn’t panic when you take more than the recommended measure.

Putting the amount of discussion aside, whether your cup comes from Brazilian coffee beans or anywhere else in the world, we’ve seen that coffee consumption can impact your life in many ways. A cup of joe might be the only thing you need to perform better at work, have a sharp mind, live a happier life, shed a few pounds of calories, keep away from illnesses, and have a great relationship with your partner in bed. You may also experience coffee benefits for skin if you directly apply a ground coffee bean on the skin for beauty purposes. The list goes on and on.

However, always remember to savor your cup of coffee in moderation. Don’t use it as medicine and an alternative to healthy living. Perform other healthy behaviors like exercising and eating well to get the most out of every cup you drink. And most importantly, welcome advice from your physician more. If they forbid you from consuming coffee, do as they say.

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