Can Coffee Help Us Lose Weight?

You may have heard on more than one occasion that coffee helps you lose weight. Indeed, so-called miracle remedies often appear in slimming diets. However, far from helping us improve our line, some can endanger our health. We tell you the truth about coffee and losing weight.

The idea that coffee helps you lose weight has aspects that are true and others that are not at all and that, without a doubt, you should know. This stimulating drink is ideal to include in a varied and balanced diet.

However, do not make the mistake of drinking several cups a day in the hope of losing fat. On the contrary, this will not be healthy at all.

Keep in mind that, to lose weight without putting your health at risk or suffering in the process, it is best to plan a balanced diet with a nutritionist. Also, you should get regular physical exercise and get proper rest.

Is it true that coffee can take away my hunger?

There are many of us who could not live without coffee, without a steaming and intoxicating morning cup. It is a drink with an ancient tradition, with numerous benefits: 

• It is an excellent psychoactive, capable of improving many of our brain functions.
• In addition, coffee is has micronutrients such as vitamin B2, B5, magnesium, potassium, and niacin (although in moderate amounts).
• Helps optimize liver health and functions.
• It contributes to protect us from numerous heart diseases, although it also has certain side effects, studies say.

Research on coffee and decreased appetite

One of the most widespread beliefs is that coffee is ideal to combat hunger, perfect to drink between meals and thus avoid that we end up biting something. Is this true? Not at all. We explain it to you:

• In a study carried out in Australia for the journal Apettite  , a group of 100 people was followed over a year to conclude that coffee did not affect appetite at all. The only one that managed to reduce the sensation of appetite for an hour and a half was “decaffeinated coffee”. However, it was observed that people who usually take this variety tend to drink more than three cups a day. In this way, other unhealthy side effects end up.

• The simple act of eating an apple between meals offers a much higher satiety than a cup of decaffeinated coffee. While the latter takes away our hunger for an hour and a half, a green apple does it for three hours. In addition, it is much healthier.

• The main effect that coffee has is to stimulate the central nervous system, so that it puts us on alert and activates us. However, it does not at all reduce the feeling of hunger.

• There is another curious aspect that is worth knowing: not all people metabolize coffee in the same way.  Depending on the case, certain neurotransmitters capable of “waking up” some and “sleeping” others are activated. For this reason, some people do well to drink coffee to reduce headaches. On the contrary, for others, it acts as a trigger. So, the best thing to do is for you to decide whether drinking coffee helps you or not.

Aspects in which coffee “can” help you lose weight

In no case should we limit ourselves to drinking more than three cups of coffee a day with the idea of ​​losing weight. Do not think that drinking “decaffeinated coffee” is an excuse to increase your daily consumption. As you already know, drinking caffeine in excess can cause anything from insomnia to anxiety disorders or irritability. Therefore, always take it in moderation.

We now indicate to you in which aspects coffee can help us lose weight:

• Coffee contains thermogenics, which help us activate the metabolism and, in turn, raise body temperature. If we have a proper diet and an active life, coffee can be an ideal complement to promote the loss of body fat.
• Although this depends on each organism, it is said that the most suitable time to take it is in the morning. Thus, it gives us energy and a suitable mental state to start the day with optimism. All of this can “help” us to lose weight day by day.

• In addition to coffee, there are other beverages that also have these thermogenic substances, such as  red tea, green tea, maca or guarana. You can also take them in the morning.

• It is not advisable to exceed the daily consumption of coffee. Indeed, there may come a time when it can generate more dangers than benefits.

If you want to lose weight in a healthy way, green coffee could be a good alternative. It is very rich in antioxidants and positive for weight loss diets, although further studies are still needed in this regard.

Remember that to lose weight it is not appropriate to include too much sugar, cream or whole milk. It’s best to have caffeine without too many “extra calories.” Again, consult a nutritionist to take the appropriate and safe steps.