Do I have to give up coffee completely?

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Replies

  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    I'm 44 and only started drinking coffee this year, I've been a tea drinker all my life. I find having 2-3 cups of coffee in the afternoon give me a pep and help get rid of the afternoon (unnecessary) munchies.
    My husband says i talk too much after a couple of cups :lol:
  • pianoplaya94
    pianoplaya94 Posts: 185 Member
    I totally understand the student life... coffee is my blood! One of the things I study in school is health science, and one of the things we learn is to read ALL of those types of articles extremely critically. More often then not they are exaggerated or just completely false. When you read these things, ask yourself: Who performed these studies? What were the results? What is the background of the researcher? Who funded the studies? Are they biased?. Coffee is one of those things where articles (that have little scientific foundation) are published all the time claiming opposite results. I've heard coffee helps prevent cancer, I heard that it causes cancer, I've heard that you live longer if you drink one a day, I heard that you die sooner if you drink 2 a day... it's ridiculous! Don't listen to them. It probably isn't the best if you put a cup of sugar in your coffee, but coffee is natural and fine to drink. Did you know that humans are exposed to "background" radiation on a daily basis? Radiation has been shown to cause cancer. Honestly, I'd say that has a higher chance of resulting in cancer than coffee does :p
  • nosebag1212
    nosebag1212 Posts: 621 Member
    Absolute nonsense, I drink black coffee during my fasting window, it's a god send and great for appetite suppression, coffee is full of antioxidants too.
  • CipherZero
    CipherZero Posts: 1,418 Member
    In a word, no.
  • alienws1998
    alienws1998 Posts: 88 Member
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    @alienws1998 Well then you'll be happy to know that you can drink even more coffee guilt free, because one cup of black coffee is around 2 calories, not 50 :smiley:

  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
    If I had to stop drinking coffee, I don't think my coworkers would allow me in the door at work anymore...heh..
    I think the problem is more about adding a bunch of high calorie stuff to your coffee, instead of drinking it the way it comes out of the pot...
  • alienws1998
    alienws1998 Posts: 88 Member
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day

    4-6 Monsters/RockStars (the low carb ones that only have 2-6 carbs per can) plus 3 or 4 cups of coffee
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,321 Member
    tumsbums wrote: »
    Hi there! I am a 23 year old student who really loves a coffee. However - recently I have seen a lot of articles on why caffeine is bad for you. :'(

    These articles state things along the lines of "Just one cup can increase stress and unhealthy belly fat", "It causes cancers", "it can cause brain damage by overstimulating the body" etc.

    I try not to get too scared by these statements, but I must admit they are worrying me, :/ and I really don't want to cut coffee out my life! I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on this subject?: Do I really have to go without it from now on?

    Just to add a little more info - I don't really think I am addicted to caffeine. I don't have a coffee everyday, and I never make it at home. I have it about 4 times a week when I visit a coffee shop with friends. I am a huge fan of a cappuccino or a yummy gingerbread latte now and then!

    Any help on this would be much appreciated - thanks! X :)

    Stop reading those sort of articles. Virtually never are they accurate.
  • Alyssa_Is_LosingIt
    Alyssa_Is_LosingIt Posts: 4,696 Member
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    50 calories a cup? I drink over 20 Oz of coffee in the mornings which on its own is less than 10 calories.
  • Golbat
    Golbat Posts: 276 Member
    I don't drink expensive sugary coffee drinks anymore, but I do have coffee.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Last I heard, coffee is actually good for you.

    So whatever, eh.
  • mitch16
    mitch16 Posts: 2,113 Member
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day

    4-6 Monsters/RockStars (the low carb ones that only have 2-6 carbs per can) plus 3 or 4 cups of coffee

    Yeah--you might want to talk to a doctor about that--you can actually overdose on caffeine and it can kill you.
  • bwhitty67
    bwhitty67 Posts: 162 Member
    77h9ojwlver2.jpg
    So warm and tasty!
  • alienws1998
    alienws1998 Posts: 88 Member
    After reading some of the responses I went back and double checked, you guys are right about the black coffee, I thought it had 50 calories it does not. It's the tablespoon of heavy whipping cream that has the 50 calories, not the coffee. This app is calling the black coffee 0 calories. So to the OP, 0 calories, 0 carbs. ..drink all you want. Again just watch what you add to it, that's what adds in calories and carbs. Caffeine is an ingredient in most diet pills, and has been known to help with headaches (it's an ingredient in a lot of over the counter pain relief) so of course be smart and pay attention to your body, if you're heart start fluttering, ears start popping for no reason, etc you could have too much caffeine, just be smart.
  • jkal1979
    jkal1979 Posts: 1,896 Member
    It's not the coffee you need to be mindful of but what you add into it. The calories can add up pretty quick, especially when you start looking at something like the gingerbread latte you enjoy. When I started logging I found that my favorite drink from the coffee shop was over 500 calories. Since I was having those several times a week it was easy to see why I was gaining weight.

    I still enjoy my daily black coffee but I cut back on the fun coffee drinks to twice a month.
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    edited September 2016
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day

    4-6 Monsters/RockStars (the low carb ones that only have 2-6 carbs per can) plus 3 or 4 cups of coffee

    Yeah you're over the 400 mg of caffeine, not a good place to be.
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    youngmomtaz wrote: »
    I am an odd duck as I only started to "make time" for coffee once in my 30s. I now have between 0-3 cups a day depending on if I feel like making it or not. My 12yo started loving coffee when he was 10. I limit him to 1-2 cups but it seems to focus his (undiagnosed) ADD tendencies, and it also seems to work with his asthma medications in a positive way.

    Funny story: I bought a used espresso machine and taught him how to use it. It makes fairly decent shots. I was really hoping he would use his newfound skills to bring me my first cup on Saturday mornings. Haha! I got home from work one day during summer vacay to find he had mowed, weedwacked, dusted, run the dishwasher, organized his brothers into some jobs, and was looking for more to do. We had to have a big talk about keeping his espresso practice making to the morning hours, and only one cup a day. He had had 3!

    Glad you had the discussion. Wouldn't have been too funny if he had ended up in the ER or morgue from too much caffeine.
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    daniip_la wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    youngmomtaz wrote: »
    I am an odd duck as I only started to "make time" for coffee once in my 30s. I now have between 0-3 cups a day depending on if I feel like making it or not. My 12yo started loving coffee when he was 10. I limit him to 1-2 cups but it seems to focus his (undiagnosed) ADD tendencies, and it also seems to work with his asthma medications in a positive way.

    Funny story: I bought a used espresso machine and taught him how to use it. It makes fairly decent shots. I was really hoping he would use his newfound skills to bring me my first cup on Saturday mornings. Haha! I got home from work one day during summer vacay to find he had mowed, weedwacked, dusted, run the dishwasher, organized his brothers into some jobs, and was looking for more to do. We had to have a big talk about keeping his espresso practice making to the morning hours, and only one cup a day. He had had 3!

    Glad you had the discussion. Wouldn't have been too funny if he had ended up in the ER or morgue from too much caffeine.
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day

    4-6 Monsters/RockStars (the low carb ones that only have 2-6 carbs per can) plus 3 or 4 cups of coffee

    Yeah you're over the 400 mg of caffeine, not a good place to be.
    mitch16 wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day

    4-6 Monsters/RockStars (the low carb ones that only have 2-6 carbs per can) plus 3 or 4 cups of coffee

    Yeah--you might want to talk to a doctor about that--you can actually overdose on caffeine and it can kill you.

    Where are you guys getting your numbers from? Because the LD50 for caffeine (the amount that would be considered lethal for 50% of adults), is 150 to 200mg of caffeine per kg of bodyweight. Which is upwards of 70 cups of coffee for a 70kg adult.

    Caffeine intoxication is considered ingesting more than 400mg of caffeine at a time. I don't think anyone here is saying they're drinking that much all at once.

    Mayo Clinic. 400 mg per day.

    http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/caffeine/art-20045678
  • daniip_la
    daniip_la Posts: 678 Member
    edited September 2016
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    daniip_la wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    youngmomtaz wrote: »
    I am an odd duck as I only started to "make time" for coffee once in my 30s. I now have between 0-3 cups a day depending on if I feel like making it or not. My 12yo started loving coffee when he was 10. I limit him to 1-2 cups but it seems to focus his (undiagnosed) ADD tendencies, and it also seems to work with his asthma medications in a positive way.

    Funny story: I bought a used espresso machine and taught him how to use it. It makes fairly decent shots. I was really hoping he would use his newfound skills to bring me my first cup on Saturday mornings. Haha! I got home from work one day during summer vacay to find he had mowed, weedwacked, dusted, run the dishwasher, organized his brothers into some jobs, and was looking for more to do. We had to have a big talk about keeping his espresso practice making to the morning hours, and only one cup a day. He had had 3!

    Glad you had the discussion. Wouldn't have been too funny if he had ended up in the ER or morgue from too much caffeine.
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day

    4-6 Monsters/RockStars (the low carb ones that only have 2-6 carbs per can) plus 3 or 4 cups of coffee

    Yeah you're over the 400 mg of caffeine, not a good place to be.
    mitch16 wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day

    4-6 Monsters/RockStars (the low carb ones that only have 2-6 carbs per can) plus 3 or 4 cups of coffee

    Yeah--you might want to talk to a doctor about that--you can actually overdose on caffeine and it can kill you.

    Where are you guys getting your numbers from? Because the LD50 for caffeine (the amount that would be considered lethal for 50% of adults), is 150 to 200mg of caffeine per kg of bodyweight. Which is upwards of 70 cups of coffee for a 70kg adult.

    Caffeine intoxication is considered ingesting more than 400mg of caffeine at a time. I don't think anyone here is saying they're drinking that much all at once.

    Mayo Clinic. 400 mg per day.

    http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/caffeine/art-20045678

    That's a safe limit, and more power to you if you want to stay within it, but I didn't see any sources cited on their site. I found this one when I was looking up the LD50:

    http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/j.1552-4604.1967.tb00034.x/abstract

    ETA: I just saw where they cited their sources. I'm reading though some of them when I get a chance.

    ETA2: I've read the first three sources cited on that mayo clinic page. The first talks about how studies were done on people drinking 600 - 1000mg of caffeine per day, with no adverse health effects. In fact, that publication says that a review was published stating that routine daily consumption of up to 1000mg/day of caffeine posed no risks to human health. It was published in 2007, so a bit more recent than the one I posted. The other two of the top three references were an "expert opinion" from someone at the Mayo Clinic with no text to read, and a "natural database" website.

    So the Mayo Clinic page cited a published, peer-reviewed article that blatantly disproves what they're stating.
  • ouryve
    ouryve Posts: 572 Member
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    daniip_la wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    youngmomtaz wrote: »
    I am an odd duck as I only started to "make time" for coffee once in my 30s. I now have between 0-3 cups a day depending on if I feel like making it or not. My 12yo started loving coffee when he was 10. I limit him to 1-2 cups but it seems to focus his (undiagnosed) ADD tendencies, and it also seems to work with his asthma medications in a positive way.

    Funny story: I bought a used espresso machine and taught him how to use it. It makes fairly decent shots. I was really hoping he would use his newfound skills to bring me my first cup on Saturday mornings. Haha! I got home from work one day during summer vacay to find he had mowed, weedwacked, dusted, run the dishwasher, organized his brothers into some jobs, and was looking for more to do. We had to have a big talk about keeping his espresso practice making to the morning hours, and only one cup a day. He had had 3!

    Glad you had the discussion. Wouldn't have been too funny if he had ended up in the ER or morgue from too much caffeine.
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day

    4-6 Monsters/RockStars (the low carb ones that only have 2-6 carbs per can) plus 3 or 4 cups of coffee

    Yeah you're over the 400 mg of caffeine, not a good place to be.
    mitch16 wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    alienws1998 wrote: »
    I drink coffee (and energy) drinks in massive quantity, I've lost almost 20 pounds in 2 months. So no you do not have to give it up. As for the articles, quit reading them. Science and medicine changes all the time, look at eggs and butter? In the late 70s & early 80s, eggs and butter were looked at as evil. Black coffee is only like 50 calories a cup and no carbs, so watch the stuff you put in it (sugar, creamers etc) and you'll be fine. Hit me up if you want the bpc recipe I use, it tastes great and is better for you than commercial creamers or the overpriced crap you get at Starbucks.

    Hopefully not coffee and energy drinks in "massive quantities" reputable sources will tell you to limit caffeine to 400 mg a day

    4-6 Monsters/RockStars (the low carb ones that only have 2-6 carbs per can) plus 3 or 4 cups of coffee

    Yeah--you might want to talk to a doctor about that--you can actually overdose on caffeine and it can kill you.

    Where are you guys getting your numbers from? Because the LD50 for caffeine (the amount that would be considered lethal for 50% of adults), is 150 to 200mg of caffeine per kg of bodyweight. Which is upwards of 70 cups of coffee for a 70kg adult.

    Caffeine intoxication is considered ingesting more than 400mg of caffeine at a time. I don't think anyone here is saying they're drinking that much all at once.

    Mayo Clinic. 400 mg per day.

    http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/caffeine/art-20045678

    There's a vast gulf between an amount of coffee that might give you the jitters and a rotten night's sleep and a dose that is likely to be fatal in 50% of the population!

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