Do you wake up and bee line to the coffee pot before you feel like you're really awake? Or are you at risk for falling asleep at your desk if you miss your afternoon latte? If so you are one of the many people who is "in a relationship" with coffee. And guess what, that's not necessarily a bad thing! Coffee has many benefits that can actually improve your health and prevent disease. But don't rush to the nearest Starbucks just yet because there are some health risks associated with coffee that you should also be aware of. The good news is if you are thinking about reducing your coffee intake or eliminating it completely from your diet I have some helpful tips for you to do just that, so read on!
Let's start with the good news. In addition to giving you an energy boost ,coffee can actually help prevent many diseases including Type 2 Diabetes, heart disease, Parkinson's and some forms of cancer. In addition it's been shown to help with asthma symptoms for some people and prevent gallstones
After reading all the benefits I bet you're wondering why coffee isn't always the most popular kid on the block. Let's explore some of the problems with coffee and why you may want to cut back.
1. Increases Blood Pressure
For most people this increase in blood pressure probably won't be a problem, however If you have high blood pressure coffee can elevate it to dangerous levels.
2. Adrenal exhaustion
Coffee and caffeine are stimulating your adrenal glands, and overtime this can stress the adrenal glands and cause them to burn out or not function at their optimal level.
3. Sleep Disturbances
Caffeine stays in your body for up to 6 hours, so if you are drinking coffee later in the day you may find that you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, or you may not have a restful sleep.
4. GI/Stomach Issues
Coffee increased gastric motility, which can bother people with conditions such as IBS, Colitis and Chron's Disease.
5. Nutritional Deficiencies
Coffee can impact the absorption of some nutrients including iron, vitamin C and potassium To maximize absorption of these important nutrients don't drink coffee with your meals or eliminate it completely from your diet.
6. Increases stress and irritability
Coffee is found to exasperate stress in many people. If you find yourself frazzled on a regular basis, or if you're looking to reduce stress in your life, you may want to think about cutting back on the java.
7. Dehydrating
Coffee is dehydrating, so make sure you are drinking extra water when you drink coffee.
8. Aging
Regular coffee intake may speed up the aging process by accelerating the declination of certain hormones associated with aging.
9. Concerns During Pregnancy
Greater than 200 mg of caffeine during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, pre-term labor and slowed fetal growth and development
OK, so what do you do if you want to cut back on coffee?
I recommend NOT going "cold turkey" to avoid some of the unwanted symptoms of like headaches that can be associated with a rapid coffee detox. Follow these simple tips for an easy transition to a coffee free life!
1. Determine how much total coffee you're consuming per day. That means adding up your morning and afternoon cups (and everything else in between!) to determine how many ounces of coffee you're guzzling each day.
2. Cut back on your total coffee intake by 25% ever 3 days until you are down to about 4-6 ounces/day (then move on to step 3).
Example: Let's say I'm drinking a 12 ounce coffee in the morning and a 12 ounce coffee in the afternoon, I'm drinking 24 total ounces/day.
Days 1-3 - Reduce consumption by 25% to 18 ounces per day
Days 4-6 - Reduce by another 25 % to 13-14 ounces per day
Days 7-9 Reduce by 25% again to about 10 ounces per day
Days 10-12 - Another 25% reduction to about 7-8 ounces per day
Days 13-15 - Another 25% reduction to about 5-6 ounces/day
Day 16 - move on to step 3
3. Replace coffee with one 8 oz. cup of green tea/day for 3 days.
4. Now you're ready to stop ALL coffee and green tea and replace it with a healthier alternative like decaf coffee, herbal tea or hot water with lemon (very cleansing) just to name a few.
If you're still looking for an energy boost in the morning try starting your day with a big glass of water with fresh squeezed lemon in it, and follow up with a fresh green juice. I bet you won't even miss the coffee!
