Is your daily fix of coffee good for you? At IdeasUnlimited, we encourage a cup or two a day to enhance performance levels and for its health benefits.
For decades both coffee evangelists and the anti-coffee lobby have argued the pros and cons of drinking coffee due to is psychoactive effects, commonly attributed to one of its ingredients — caffeine. While both sides agree to a cautionary restriction on coffee intake, it is difficult to conclusively determine which side has more supporting evidence.
At IdeasUnlimited, as a global remote workforce recruiter and a call center support provider with 24/7 coverage, we have both employees who find it difficult to wake up in the morning and those who have to stay alert at later hours of the night. It was thus imperative for us to compare the pros and cons of drinking coffee—the globally recognized elixir for alertness.
1. Elevates Physical Performance Levels
Coffee increases your adrenaline levels, enhancing physical performance levels. According to a study relating caffeine ingestion to exercise performance, coffee enhanced exercise performance by 12.3%, especially in endurance exercises, in which the time to exhaustion was much longer.
2. Powerful Mental Kick-Start
A cup of coffee a day keeps you alert and instantly rejuvenates you.
3. Long-term Benefits for the Brain and Liver
Preliminary studies suggest that the antioxidants in coffee may reduce the chances of contracting Alzheimer’s or Dementia. There is also evidence to corroborate claims that coffee activates DNA-repairing proteins, preventing the growth of cancerous brain cells and thus preventing the incidence of glioma. Coffee intake has also been associated with fewer cases of cirrhosis and other liver diseases. A study of 2260 cases of liver disease and more than 200,000 non-cases concluded decisively that consuming two cups of coffee a day reduced the possibility of liver cancer by 43% by preventing liver inflammation and inhibiting the growth of cancerous cells.
4. Reduced Risk of Diabetes
Coffee drinkers face a lower risk of contracting Type-2 Diabetes since its two antioxidants—cholorogenic acid and quinides—increase insulin-sensitivity, regulating blood sugar levels. This reduces the craving for sugary treats, helps one stick to a low-sugar diet, and may even result in weight-loss.
5. Lower Risk of Stroke
Drinking a cup of coffee may modestly lower the risk of a stroke as well as other heart diseases.
1. Causes Irritability and Jitters
Sensitivity to caffeine may cause irritability and anxiety since caffeine speeds up nerve cell activity and makes you artificially alert. Having a cup of coffee a day will simply condition your nerve cells such that they cannot attain the minimum level of alertness without your daily caffeine fix. So, if you don’t get your daily coffee cup, you’ll be liable to be very lethargic or get a splitting headache.
2. May Cause Insomnia
Caffeine takes an average of six hours to clear your system, so it will keep your alert if you have a cup close to your bedtime. Studies show that this effect worsens with age.
3. Increases LDL (‘Bad’) Cholesterol
Coffee made with a French press or in the Turkish style may increase LDL cholesterol in your blood due to a compound called cafestol. Filtered coffees are free of this compound.
4. Caution for Pregnant or Nursing Women
According to the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, a cup of two of coffee a day does not significantly increase the chances of a miscarriage or pre-term birth but its inhibition of the fetus’ growth has not been conclusively refuted. Also, if nursing mothers notice irritability or restlessness, they should reduce their intake of coffee since caffeine may be transferred to babies through the mother’s milk.
Considering both the pros and cons of drinking coffee, we at IdeasUnlimited encourage our employees to drink a cup or two of coffee a day and not more, to maintain alertness without having to deal with the adverse effects. IdeasUnlimited is a global support services provider specializing in call center support, multilingual support, ecommerce and backend support, operations support, and virtual assistant support.