For most of us, the most popular psychoactive substance in the world is caffeine. The caffeine in coffee is what lifts us from grogginess in the morning, brightens our work breaks, chases away slumps in the late afternoon, and holds us awake at night.
We love coffee for the way caffeine makes us feel, but the rich fragrance and delicious taste really come from the phytochemicals (natural plant compounds). Caffeine itself is tasteless and odorless, and the bulk of coffee's health advantages often extend to decaf.
Antioxidants from a Cup of Coffee
In a cup of coffee, caffeine, fiber, vitamins, and minerals all add to your health, but maybe the most substantial contribution comes from the many distinct organic compounds present in coffee. Many work in your system as antioxidants, quenching the dangerous free radicals continually created by your body as part of its natural metabolism.
Free radicals are a significant cause of inflammation and certain chronic health disorders, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, neurological disability, and other complications, are the primary cause of inflammation. In reality, coffee consumption was associated with a decreased risk of total mortality (3-4 percent lower mortality with 1 cup/day), especially cardiovascular mortality, according to the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. This brings coffee, including blueberries and kale, ahead of other superfoods with high antioxidant content.
Benefits to the Brain
In 2015, scientists from the Women's Health Initiative Memory Study investigated the association between coffee use of caffeine and the likelihood of cognitive decline or dementia in people aged 65 and older. They observed that about 25 percent less likely to experience dementia or cognitive decline were women who drank the most caffeinated coffee (the equivalent of more than two cups a day) compared to people who drank the least (less than one cup a day).
Clearly, a couple of cups of coffee each day help shield older women from memory loss and other challenges that aging can bring.
Microbiome Benefits
A balanced gut microbiota, the large population of bacteria and other microorganisms contained mainly in your colon, is essential to providing a wide variety of bacteria. For proper digestion and a good immune system, you need a balanced microbiome, but it affects nearly every other part of your health as well. In general, relative to non-coffee drinkers, coffee drinkers tend to have more variety in their gut microbes, and the more coffee you drink, the more complex your microbiota is.
A 2019 study in the American Journal of Gastroenterology reveals that heavy coffee drinkers have higher levels of gut bacteria that are anti-inflammatory and lower levels of bacteria that are actually toxic. A fascinating part of the research is that, regardless of how balanced their diet in general was, the strong coffee drinkers had better gut microbiomes.
