The Wonderful Benefits of Coffee: A Healthy Lifestyle

Coffee is more than a morning kickstart. It certainly isn't just the drink of choice for the overworked, as Hollywood likes to show it.

While films frame it as the drink of the sleep-deprived and tea takes center stage as the emblem of serenity, coffee silently champions our well-being.

This isn't an exaggeration; Westerners get more antioxidants from coffee than from fruit and vegetables combined!

That said, coffee can bring about adverse effects too. It all depends on your coffee consumption and habits.

Read on to find out the potential health benefits of coffee, how you can maximize them, and when to lower your caffeine intake.

And if you're in the mood for a cup of joe, check out our wide range of delicious beverages!

A Look Beyond Caffeine

Coffee's reputation often hinges on caffeine, but this beloved beverage has a cocktail of compounds that play big roles in our health. 

Here's what you get when you're drinking caffeinated coffee:

1. Caffeine: Enhances alertness and reduces the risk of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

2. Chlorogenic Acid: Powerful antioxidant; potential anti-diabetic effects.

3. Magnesium: Vital for energy production and bone health.

4. Potassium: Essential for cellular function and muscle contractions.

5. Niacin (Vitamin B3): Helps with nerve function and energy conversion.

Top 5 Health Benefits of Coffee

Here are the most notable health benefits that you get with moderate coffee consumption:

• Reduces Risk of Diabetes

Coffee contains chlorogenic acid, which can influence glucose metabolism. Regular consumption has been linked to improved insulin sensitivity and warding off diabetes in the long run.

• Improves Brain Health

Coffee supports our brains' health by lowering the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, dementia, or Parkinson's disease. That's because caffeine has neuro-protective effects that we believe combat inflammation in the brain.

• Improves Metabolism

That cup of joe does more than wake your groggy brain up—it kicks your metabolism into gear, giving your body more energy.

This also reflects on your appetite and eating habits around coffee time. Increased metabolism means that your body is burning stored fat, which lowers your appetite.

Of course, this isn't all great since a lot of people choose to drink coffee over having a solid meal, which is one of the worst things you can do to your gut.

• Improves Liver Functions

Raising a cup (of coffee, not alcohol, which your liver hates!) might be more apt than you think.
Regular coffee drinking is associated with a lower risk of chronic liver disease, including cirrhosis and liver cancer.

Thanks to its antioxidant properties, coffee helps combat oxidative stress in the liver. Compounds in coffee have protective qualities that seem to particularly benefit liver health.

• Improves Mental Health

This one might come as a surprise since this stimulant is associated with anxiety, but drinking coffee regularly seems to have subtle benefits for our mental well-being.

Habitual coffee drinkers have a reduced risk of depression and even a lowered risk of suicide. A study found a substantial connection between the amount of coffee someone drinks and how likely they are to be suicidal. 

Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system, which can increase the production of mood-regulating neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine.

How to Tap Into the Benefits of Coffee

There are plenty of considerations for consuming coffee regularly. It all comes down to your diet, existing health conditions, and habits.
So, if you want to reap the benefits of coffee while keeping the risks at bay, here are some core habits to get into:

• Get at least one cup a day: This might not be necessary per se, but most studies about the effects of coffee base their findings on drinking coffee daily. Won't hurt if it's also Fair Trade!

• Have a snack first: You'd be amazed at how little research there is in this regard, so you'll need to listen to your body and experiment. That said, coffee stimulates acid production, so you could develop heartburn if you drink it on an empty stomach.

• Space out your caffeine consumption: The mere idea of drinking a few cups of coffee back to back gives most people anxiety and for a good reason. Leave at least an hour after your first cup so your body has time to process it.

• Don't drink too much: The bad news is that you shouldn't drink more than 3 cups a day. The good news is that this generally doesn't apply to decaffeinated coffee.

Conclusion

Few things in our daily routine are as pleasant as that warm and crispy smell of a morning cup of joe. Coffee is deeply embedded in our culture, and rightfully so.

Not only is it energizing, but there are also amazing health benefits of coffee. 
Of course, that hinges on your consumption habits. Having 1-3 cups of coffee a day with a good diet and healthy sleep patterns is associated with a significantly lower risk of heart disease and better liver and brain health.

If you'd like to drink more coffee, ditch caffeinated coffee beans and go for the pleasantly light decaf. That way, you can enjoy much more coffee during the day without getting too jittery or messing up your digestive system.

If you're interested in finding coffee beans that have just the right amount of caffeine, check out our artisanal coffee! We'll help you choose the perfect blend and roast for you at any time.