A strong cup of black coffee at any time of the day is an energy booster for most adults. The mesmerizing aroma and unforgettable taste of coffee, along with its caffeine content, can give a rejuvenating feel to your body and mind.
Even though everyone loves to have black coffee in the morning to kick start their day, very few know about the kind of impact it cast on their body. Are you aware of what happens to your body when you drink black coffee? Do you know the benefits and side effects of drinking black coffee?
Here is the complete guide to black coffee. This article discusses everything you need to know about black coffee, including the potential advantages and disadvantages of drinking black coffee, the recipe for a perfect cup of black coffee that tastes great, black coffee benefits for weight loss, side effects, nutrition value, etc.
What is Black Coffee?
Black coffee is one of the famous hot beverages that have become a part of daily life in all corners of the world. It is the commonly brewed coffee using water and ground coffee beans without adding extra flavours, milk, cream, or sugar. Black coffee has an acquired taste. Although it has a slightly bitter taste without additives, coffee lovers don’t want to mask its flavour with other things.
How to Make a Perfect Cup of Black Coffee?
Everyone makes black coffee differently according to their coffee palette, so no one strictly follows any specific recipe. But there are a few methods to make sure that you make black coffee at home as good as a skilled barista.
A perfect cup of black coffee that tastes excellent needs only two ingredients: coffee beans and water. Making a delicious cup of black coffee is all in the details. You can either make your beverage by grinding the coffee beans on your own or using a coffee machine. To brew the freshest, most flavorful cup of black coffee, grinding your fresh coffee beans is the most preferred method suggested by coffee connoisseurs.
For making a great coffee, take about three tablespoons of coffee beans. Grind them finer because finer grounds brew much faster and extract more flavour than other sizes. But if your grounds are too small, they will be over-extracted. The over-extracted coffee tastes bitter and almost hollow.
The perfect grind size to make perfectly extracted black coffee should be similar to that of sea salt. Boil approximately 600 ml of water. Add a filter inside your coffee dripper. Place the dripper filled with ground coffee on the top of your cup. Gently pour boiled water over the coffee grounds until your cup is full. Your delectable cup of black coffee is ready; enjoy the whole experience of the best brew.
Most coffee enthusiasts prefer the above-mentioned pour-over method because it enhances intricate flavours compared to other brewing methods. This method also allows complete control over the brewing process, and you can customize the brew for your unique taste.
The flavour and strength of the coffee are determined by the selection of coffee type, its grind size, the amount of coffee, and other factors.
On the other hand, you can also simply brew exceptional black coffee using a coffee machine. Being the easiest and more convenient method, many people prefer making black coffee using the coffee maker.
Health Benefits of Black Coffee
If you are a true black coffee fanatic, you will be happy to discover the loads of healthy perks the beverage offers both for your body and mind. Most people drink coffee just to feel more energized due to the stimulating effects of caffeine on the brain. But drinking black coffee may be healthier for you than you thought. Here are some of the black coffee benefits in detail below:
1) It can help maintain cardiovascular health
One of the most significant black coffee benefits is that it is healthy for your heart. Even if the regular intake of coffee may cause a mild increase in blood pressure, its effect diminishes with time. A few studies claim that due to the abundance of antioxidants, coffee may support heart health by protecting against arterial damage caused by inflammation.
Some research on coffee has also indicated that drinking black coffee in moderation can reduce your risk of developing various cardiovascular diseases, including stroke and heart failure. In short, drinking one to two cups of black coffee every day makes your heart stronger.
Read more about cardiovascular exercises and weight loss.
2) It boosts your memory and may help protect against cognitive decline
Some studies found that caffeine content in black coffee has a positive effect on memory. It may enhance memory, both short-term and long-term memory, and seems to protect the brain against cognitive impairments.
Ageing could affect cognitive functions such as attention and memory, and aged people are more likely to develop memory-related diseases. Regular coffee consumption may help prevent cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, dementia, and other memory-related diseases.
Black coffee improves various aspects of brain function as the stimulant caffeine blocks the inhibitory neurotransmitter adenosine.
3) It may help curb the risk of developing certain types of cancer
Coffee appears to be protective against some forms of cancer, including oral cancer, prostate cancer, endometrial cancer, liver cancer, and colorectal cancer. In several studies, polyphenols, the antioxidant phytochemicals present in coffee, have shown anticarcinogenic properties. Black coffee is also great for reducing the inflammation that could be responsible for developing some tumors.
4) It is beneficial for your liver
Another potential advantage of black coffee is that it is good for your liver. Coffee not only reduces the risk of liver cancer, but studies have also demonstrated that regular consumption of black coffee may be linked to a lower incidence of hepatitis, fatty liver, and cirrhosis, especially alcoholic cirrhosis.
People who consume four cups of black coffee every day have a much lower risk of liver disease progression than non-coffee drinkers. This is because the contents in the black coffee appear to lower harmful liver enzymes in the blood such as AST, ALT, GGT, and ALP.
5) It aids you in keeping your stomach clean
Being a diuretic beverage, black coffee promotes the formation of urine by the kidney. The caffeine content in the coffee is responsible for its diuretic effect. By encouraging urination, it flushes out all the toxins and bacteria easily from the body through urine. This process cleanses your stomach and keeps you healthy.
Also, various studies have shown that the acids such as chlorogenic acid and N-alkanoyl-5-hydroxytryptamide present in black coffee help increase stomach acid production, which is essential to proper digestion.
6) It is a potent source of antioxidants
Black coffee is the powerhouse of antioxidants, including polyphenols and hydrocinnamic acids, responsible for most of its health benefits. Antioxidants can fight cell damage and inflammation, reducing the risk of many chronic conditions, including arthritis, atherosclerosis, and many types of cancer. The following potent antioxidants can be found in black coffee.
- Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin): 11% of the daily intake level of the nutrient (Reference Daily Intake (RDI))
- Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid): 6% of the RDI
- Manganese and potassium: 3% of the RDI
- Magnesium and vitamin B3 (niacin): 2% of the RDI
Black Coffee for Weight Loss
There is a misconception that regular consumption of black coffee can speed up your weight loss journey. Drinking coffee for weight loss is not recommended, even though there is a purported weight-loss implication of coffee.
The presence of chlorogenic acid, the primary polyphenol in black coffee, has some effect on keeping down glucose absorption.
Other black coffee benefits for weight loss include the stimulation of the fat-burning process. The high caffeine content in black coffee boosts the metabolic rate and mobilises fats from your fat tissues.
Also, the diuretic property of this low-calorie drink helps to expel excess water from the body through frequent urination. This helps in reducing water weight, which leads to temporary weight loss.
Moreover, drinking a cup of black coffee can help improve the overall physical performance of your workout by breaking down the fats stored in the body and increasing adrenaline levels in the blood that helps the body handle physical exertion. Know more about your body fat percentage.
All these advantages of black coffee will benefit your weight loss journey only if you drink it without additives like sugar, cream, milk, or other added flavour.
Certain studies suggested consuming black coffee is very helpful for weight loss. It is a blunder to believe that consumption of black coffee will help you shed weight easily. Weight loss is achieved mainly through eating healthy food, proper exercising, and sleeping well. However, consumption of black coffee has some benefits to lose weight.
Side Effects of Black Coffee
For all of its health benefits, black coffee is something of a double-edged sword. Drinking too much coffee can also have some side effects. We already discussed the health benefits of black coffee and how it helps in speeding up the weight loss process. In the sections below, we cover the disadvantages of black coffee.
- Excessive intake of black coffee can elevate the level of the stress hormone called cortisol. While small to moderate amounts of caffeine can lift your mood and give you a boost, a high amount of caffeine leads to anxiety and stress. It may worsen symptoms in people with panic disorder and social anxiety disorder. Studies have reported that if the daily consumption of caffeine is 1,000 mg or more, it can result in symptoms like nervousness, jitteriness, etc., in most people. And it should be noted that stress causes weight gain.
- Consuming too much black coffee can cause insomnia and restlessness. Suppose you don’t control the amount of caffeine you’re taking in. In that case, it will lead to sleeping disorders like prolonged sleep latency, frequent nighttime awakenings, shorter total sleep time, reduced deep sleep time, and overall poor sleep quality. It is suggested for a good night’s sleep to avoid drinking coffee four to six hours before bedtime.
- The acids and caffeine content in black coffee can lead to acidity in your stomach if it is not consumed in moderation, which can cause abdominal cramping. Excess caffeine may stimulate your gastrointestinal tract and can lead to an upset stomach, nausea, and diarrhoea.
- Too much caffeine can inhibit the nutrient absorption of certain minerals from your daily diet, including iron, magnesium, calcium, and zinc. Try not to drink black coffee within one hour of taking iron-containing foods or supplements to ensure adequate absorption.
- Studies show that drinking more than one cup of black coffee during pregnancy may not be healthy for your baby. Too much caffeine during pregnancy has been connected to obstacles with a baby’s growth and development. Read more about the nutrition plan during pregnancy.
Nutritional Value of Black Coffee
Black coffee is a satisfying drink for people looking for a beverage that is low in calories, carbohydrates, and fat. It is entirely safe to drink 3 or 4 cups of black coffee daily without additives.
But, the addition of sugar, milk, cream, or other flavour additives to taste will increase the calorie and fat content and change the final nutritional value. Such a coffee drink can be a dietary concern.
Let us now check the nutrition value of black coffee.
Typically, one serving of black coffee contains:
- Fat: 0 grams
- Carbohydrates: 0 grams
- Calories: 2
- Protein: 0 grams
- Fibre: 0 grams
- Sugar: 0 grams
- Sodium: 0.005 grams
- Potassium: 0.116 grams
Summary
Black coffee is a highly refreshing drink that provides a spur of energy and a favourite staple beverage genuinely enjoyed by people worldwide. It has been both lauded and taunted for centuries.
Black coffee has a plethora of health benefits and also has some very minor weight loss properties. Moderate caffeine consumption might help boost memory, increase metabolism, lower the risk of getting type-2 diabetes, keep your heart and liver healthy and reduce the risk of developing certain types of cancer.
Several studies show that regular intake of black coffee may even boost longevity. Although black coffee offers a myriad of surprisingly healthy benefits, too much of its consumption can lead to few unpleasant side effects. These include increased stress and anxiety, acid reflux, low rate of mineral absorption, and disturbed sleep cycle. Even though the excessive intake of black coffee does result in these adverse effects, the moderate consumption of this beverage is healthy for you.
In this article, we showed you both the advantages and disadvantages of black coffee. The black coffee benefits appear to far outweigh the side effects. Drinking black coffee without exceeding the daily recommended intake can play a positive role in your healthy lifestyle. Have your black coffee, enjoy its health benefits but don’t forget everything beyond a limit is noxious.
FAQs on Black Coffee
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This Post Has 2 Comments
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really good