As a coffee lover, you have no doubt wondered how many coffees you can drink a day. After all, you know that caffeine is an indispensable ally in getting through the day, even more so if it is particularly stressful.
We, who know about coffee, are the first to admit that there are days when sleepiness and fatigue take over. In those cases, drinking one cup of coffee after another appears to be the only possible way to survive.
That said, abusing caffeine is never a good idea, even if we realise that the temptation is often irresistible. Nonetheless, it is necessary to moderate oneself and, in this article, we explain why, while debunking some myths that would see coffee as a real enemy of health.
What is a safe quantity of caffeine
Notwithstanding the fact that it is not possible to establish a maximum amount of caffeine that is safe for everyone, doctors seem to agree that it would be best not to exceed 300 milligrams over a day – an amount that roughly corresponds to three cups of espresso.
The problem, however, is that asking how much coffee one can drink per day is only correct up to a point. This is because it is certainly not the drink itself that causes side effects, but rather the caffeine it contains. A subtlety, the latter, that implies a big difference, due to the simple fact that caffeine is not only present in coffee, but also in many other substances that we habitually consume and of which we must therefore take into account in our daily calculations. Just to give you some practical examples, you can reach the 300-milligram daily caffeine target by taking:
- 6 cups of tea;
- 10 cans of Coke;
- 8 cups of hot chocolate;
- 400 grams of extra dark chocolate.
Have you noticed something strange? You will no doubt have noticed that coffee does not feature at all in the list we have given you. Which means that you can paradoxically reach (and exceed!) your daily caffeine limit even without drinking coffee.
All you have to do is take any of the drinks/foods on the list, in the quantities indicated, or mix them together in the same day… and you’ve reached (and exceeded!) your caffeine limit. The question is: what are the consequences for your body then?
What are the effects of caffeine
As we have already mentioned, the effects of caffeine manifest themselves when you exceed the recommended daily dose of 300 milligrams. This figure, however, refers to an adult person with a healthy constitution who is already used to drinking coffee. If we also consider people who almost never drink coffee, people with illnesses and children, then the maximum permitted amount will inevitably be lowered.
In telling you this, however, we certainly don’t want to deprive you of your favourite drink! Precisely because we know about coffee, we are the first to recognise the indisputable benefits that caffeine brings to our organism. The moment we introduce this substance into our bodies, we immediately feel more alert, more active and more willing to face a stressful day.
Caffeine is also good for helping us to cope with sleep and tiredness: two sworn enemies that slow down our work and, in general, the activities we perform, adversely affecting our performance. This, of course, as long as we do not overdo it. If, in fact, the post-lunch nap is a luxury for the few (and certainly not necessary), a good night’s sleep is, on the other hand, of primary importance to allow us to live the day that follows it to the fullest.
It is precisely in this sense that it is necessary to avoid abusing caffeine which, taken in excessive doses, can cause dangerous insomnia, together with stomach acidity, oesophagitis, and gastro-oesophageal reflux: all conditions which, although not serious, are undoubtedly annoying and could force you to follow a diet not only free of coffee, but also of many notoriously good and tasty foods!
While these side effects of caffeine are well established, the alleged cardiac problems caused by coffee intake are a different matter, which, according to the latest research, do not exist at all.
Coffee is not an enemy of the heart
When we think of coffee, our thoughts instantly fly to caffeine, the main component of this beverage. The main one, however, certainly does not mean the only one. Coffee contains other important substances, some of which have been shown to have positive effects on the heart and the cardiovascular system in general.
Several studies carried out on people with heart disease, who had already had a heart attack, showed that drinking 2 to 4 cups of coffee a day did not make their condition any worse, and the credit for this result was not due to the caffeine, but to the substances contained within the coffee beans, particularly the polyphenols and antioxidant principles, which are worthy of protecting our heart and the work it does.
In addition to this, it should also be noted that regular consumption of coffee allows the body to develop tolerance to this beverage, thus preventing the onset of hypertension. This is also due to chlorogenic acid: another substance contained in coffee that helps to dampen its effects on blood pressure.
In conclusion, if until now you have been wondering how many coffees to drink a day because you were worried about your heart health, know that in this respect you are not running any kind of risk and that the benefits of this drink are much more extensive than you can imagine.
Coffee against chronic diseases
As if the benefits we have listed so far were not enough, it seems that coffee is also able to prevent the onset of certain chronic diseases. A 2012 study in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine showed that people who were used to drinking 2 to 5 cups of coffee a day were less likely to develop chronic diseases.
This finding was massively corroborated in the case of type 2 diabetes, the incidence of which was found to have fallen sharply due to several caffeine-induced concomitant factors, including reduced appetite, increased energy intake and better body weight management.
All this, of course, if we consider the caffeine contained in coffee and bitter tea, as adding sugar and other foods containing it would not have the same effects.
But diabetes is certainly not the only disease that has a positive correlation with coffee. Numerous studies have shown that the habitual consumption of this beverage can ward off some particularly serious forms of cancer, primarily liver and cervical cancer, but also skin, breast and prostate cancer.
It goes without saying, of course, that this is still ongoing research, the results of which have not been definitively confirmed, but, more importantly, they do not presume to substitute coffee for the normal drugs prescribed by doctors. In fact, remember that, given all its countless benefits, you should always consider coffee as a pleasant ally to face your days with more energy and certainly not as a medicine.
Conclusion
If you have read this far, you will have officially convinced yourself that although exceeding 300-milligrams of caffeine per day is not a particularly wise choice, it is not a lethal danger either. Consumed in the right quantities, in fact, coffee provides you with numerous benefits, while at the same time representing a veritable ‘nirvana’ for the taste buds, especially if it is prepared properly.
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