Coffee is probably the one thing that you absolutely cannot live without. If you feel like this then you’re certainly not alone – millions of Americans are addicted to this delicious beverage.
Not only does your morning cup give you the energy to face the rest of your day, but it’s actually also full of surprising health benefits. However, due to the caffeine content and the risks associated with consuming high quantities of caffeine, you should try to keep your consumption to a minimum.
Benefits of Coffee Weight Loss
Coffee is naturally low in calories, which makes it an acceptable drink to consume if you’re on a diet; but be careful if you’re not drinking it black, because adding sugar, milk or any other flavorings immediately makes it more fattening.
Coffee is also a diuretic, which means that it will make you urinate more often, and if you drink too much this could result in dehydration. So ideally you should drink one glass of water for every cup that you consume in order to ensure that you stay properly hydrated.
Coffee help Burn Fat
Black coffee is naturally low in calories, with an 8-ounce cup containing only 2 calories and 0 grams of fat. The Caffeine found in coffee is actually a natural fat burner, which works by speeding up your metabolism and stimulating your central nervous system.
There is, after all, a good reason that in most fat-burning creams and supplements, Caffeine is the main acting ingredient.
So don’t hesitate to incorporate coffee into your diet if you’re trying to lose weight – but as with most things in life, moderation is key, and be very careful with whatever ‘extras’ you add as they can add lots of unnecessary calories to your intake.
Coffee is Loaded With Nutrients and Antioxidants
Packed full of antioxidants, coffee can help reduce your risk of heart disease by reducing inflammation in your body. At the moment, Americans get the most antioxidants from regular consumption of coffee, compared to both fruits and vegetables combined.
Antioxidants can also help prevent several types of cancers, such as liver, breast and colon cancer, making coffee a great ally in staying healthy.
Coffee also contains a surprising amount of vitamins; specifically, one cup contains 3 percent of your recommended daily intake of potassium and manganese, 11 percent of your vitamin B2, 6 percent of your vitamin B5 and 2 percent of B1 and B3 vitamins. So the more cups you drink, the closer you are to reaching your daily vitamin intake goals.
Coffee May Reduce Diabetes Risk
Studies have shown that people who drink coffee on a regular basis can benefit from a 23 – 67 percent reduction in the risk of contracting type II diabetes. Furthermore, every additional cup you drink lowers your risk by another 7 percent.
Or more simply stated, the more coffee you drink, the less chance you have of becoming a diabetic. This is thanks to both the high antioxidant content of coffee, but also to coffee’s ability to reduce high blood glucose levels.
Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Coffee
Coffee also has the power to protect you from certain age-related degenerative diseases, like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Coffee drinkers actually have a 60 percent less chance of developing these two diseases, so make sure you drink up while you’re still young!