Nothing bring America together quite like coffee. 62 percent of Americans say they drink coffee every day. The average American drinks three cups over the course of the day.
Coffee is addictive, especially brands that contain caffeine. This leads many people to wonder about the health benefits of caffeine and coffee. They may surprise you.
How does coffee affect the brain? What can it do for people looking to lose weight or fight heart disease? Should you drink coffee?
Answer these questions and you can improve your health one cup of joe at a time. Here is your quick guide.
Energy and Cognitive Development
The most immediate benefit of drinking coffee is the energy that caffeine provides. Caffeine travels through the bloodstream into the brain. It blocks a neurotransmitter called adenosine that can create feelings of fatigue.
Other neurotransmitters then begin firing. The brain starts to work harder, allowing a person to feel more energized.
But the feeling is just the tip of the iceberg. Coffee contains hundreds of chemical compounds that facilitate brain function. Chlorogenic acids reduce blood pressure, slowing the aging process of brain cells.
A 2018 study looked into the cognitive health benefits of coffee. It found that both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee increased alertness. People responded to stimuli faster and felt fewer headaches.
Weight Loss
Look at any fat-burning supplement, and you will notice caffeine. Caffeine encourages cells to break down fats and produce more adrenaline.
Coffee can also fill a person’s stomach. This encourages them to eat more before and during a meal. Highly caffeinated coffee can keep someone from noticing hunger for a long period of time.
But it is important to drink coffee the right way. Adding excessive amounts of sugar and milk can cause a person to gain weight.
Heart Health
Adrenaline is the fight-or-flight hormone. The body prepares itself for a short burst of intense exertion like sprinting or climbing.
This causes the heart to pump faster, which can help it resist cholesterol build-up. Caffeine can work as a pre-workout supplement, allowing someone to exercise for longer.
You may have heard that coffee causes blood pressure rates to rise. That is true in certain individuals, but the rise is usually minor.
A 2021 meta-analysis analyzed rates of coronary heart disease, heart failure, and stroke. It found that drinking caffeinated coffee was associated with a lower risk of heart failure.
The Health Benefits of Coffee and Caffeine
Don’t let caffeine scare you. Caffeine gets the brain fired up, creating a surge of energy through the body. It decreases reaction times and mitigates the pain of headaches.
Caffeine prompts cells to break down fats, and coffee can fill the stomach. This can let a person lose some weight.
The adrenaline that coffee produces lets the heart pump faster. Someone can work out for longer periods of time, especially when they take caffeine before exercise.
You can drink coffee and take some caffeine on the side. Jet-Alert provides premium caffeine supplements. Browse our products today.
