Coffee.  Americans just can’t seem to get enough of it.  Recent is showing that is a very good thing for public health.  Coffee consumption soared to a  two-decade high post COVID, according to consumer polling released by the National Coffee Association.  A whopping 66 percent of Americans drink coffee each day, more than any other beverage including tap water.  That’s up 14 percent since January of 2021 and the largest increase the NCA has found since it began tracking data.   For many of these coffee lovers, they’ll take it black, thank you, and science is finding that’s even better for their overall health.

Black coffee, when consumed daily, has been proven to provide serious health benefits to those who consume it.  Up to three cups a day can protect your heart and help prevent stroke.  Those ages 65 to 84 who drank black coffee regularly had a lower rate of cognitive decline.  Black coffee can also help reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, help you achieve your fitness goals, and combat depression.

All of this is great news for Roasted Whisk, but we’re not surprised.

We can’t imagine anything more satisfying than the simple beauty of a freshly brewed cup of black java.  All of these health benefits make us love it even more.  In this post, we’ll look at each in more depth. Perhaps it will change your coffee consumption habits?

How black coffee consumption protects your heart and helps prevent strokes.

Analysis from a major study recently published by the AHA Journal Circulation tracked self-reported dietary data from the original Framington Heart Study, which began in 1948.  Compared with those who didn’t drink coffee, the analysis found the risk of heart failure over time to be between five and 12 percent lower for each cup of coffee consumed each day.  The risk of heart failure remained the same for drinking no coffee or one cup per day in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study. But when people drank two or more cups of black coffee a day the risk decreased by about 30%, the analysis found.  This analysis did not extend to decaffeinated coffee, as it doesn’t contain the caffeine component the heart seems to thrive on in moderate amounts.

A couple of cups of black coffee each day may lower your risk of type 2 diabetes.

According to a study by the Harvard School of Public Health, researchers found that people who increased their intake of black coffee each day by more than one cup over a four-year period had an 11 percent lower risk for type 2 diabetes. Conversely, those who decreased their coffee consumption by more than a cup each day increased their risk by 17 percent.  Caffeine in black coffee “energized” those studies to lead less sedentary lifestyles, which in turn, lowered their risk for type 2 diabetes.

Can drinking black coffee before a workout help you burn fat?

For many of us, any extra stimulation we can muster for a trip to the gym is welcome.  But coffee may be just the push we all need.  The caffeine in black coffee is a natural stimulant, and moderate consumption of this stimulant increase alertness, cognitive function, and weight loss.  Recent analysis of studies by the FDA also suggest that black coffee can increase exercise performance by enhancing anaerobic power, aerobic endurance, and muscle endurance and strength.  Data also showed that this positive effect was more pronounced during aerobic exercise than during anaerobic sessions such as high-intensity interval training.

Feeling blue?  Black coffee might provide relief.

Dr. Alan Leviton of Harvard University, a leading researcher in neurology, recently conducted a comprehensive review and found that evidence showed that coffee drinkers are significantly less likely to be depressed than people who do not drink coffee.  This, too, is no surprise to us who find great joy in daily cups of our favorite, proprietary coffee blends.  Coffee’s positive impact on mental health may be related to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, as well as its ability to block receptors in people’s brains from binding with a chemical that causes fatigue and depressed mood.

Coffee is showing incredible potential to delay cognitive decline and ward off Alzheimer’s Disease.

An Australian observational study of 227 cognitively normal participants aged 60 years and older at the start of the study more than a decade ago has found that daily intake of black coffee was associated with a slower decline in attention, executive functions like planning and decision-making, and an overall composite score of cognitive functions.  Higher coffee intake was also shown to lower the likelihood that mild cognitive decline or Save Alzheimer’s would occur in that same ten-year period.  This is because high coffee intake slows the accumulation of amyloid in the brain by up to five percent.  The study was unable to ascertain which substance, whether it was caffeine, chlorogenic acids, polyphenols, cafestol, and other properties of black coffee actually prompted the most benefit, or whether they worked in concert to help keep mental decline at bay.

A word of caution.

Many studies on coffee are done only on drinking black coffee. However, adding dairy, sugars, flavors or nondairy creamers can add a lot calories, sugar and fat, which could negate coffee’s healthy benefits. An additional caveat: In most studies, a cup of coffee is only 8 ounces. But the standard “grande” cup at the coffee shop is 16 ounces.

The good news is coffee is good for you and Roasted Whisk is even better.