Does caffeine help or hinder weight loss?

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  • GeekGirlRunning
    GeekGirlRunning Posts: 20
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    I like to get iced skinny vanilla lattes (110 In a venti size) and unsweetened green tea lemonade (90 calories in a TRENTA) from Starbucks. I actually credit those with a lot of my success so far.
  • mfpcopine
    mfpcopine Posts: 3,093 Member
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    I have been drinking diet coke to replace the coke I used to drink and was wondering about the effects of caffeine on weight loss.
    Can anybody offer some insight?

    A moderate amount of caffeine can boost metabolism and mental sharpness. I think the latter is relevant to weight loss because it's easier to resist temptations when you're alert and have energy.

    My Registered Dietitian told me to try to cut down on Diet Coke. I think she disliked the artificial sweetener. If you need caffeine in a cold drink, try iced tea, coffee, or one of those new Starbucks drinks made from unroasted coffee beans that don't taste like coffee.
  • smalltank
    smalltank Posts: 8
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    coffee is a stimulant..you go up..then go down..sometimes...it has NO sugar or carbs unless you add any..well...I sip my coffee and never get an effect..I quit being addicted over 2 yrs ago..everything in moderation helps one live a nice moderate life ;-)
  • rhonniema
    rhonniema Posts: 522 Member
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    Coffee makes me poop, so I'm going to go with yes.
  • onyxgirl17
    onyxgirl17 Posts: 1,721 Member
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    caffeine itself helps, if you add a bunch of cream and sugar to coffee well... not so much. (Speaking from experience ;) )
  • DesignGuy
    DesignGuy Posts: 457 Member
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    Not an expert but I drink a lot of coffee/tea (never soda) and I've lost 56 pounds, so if it's hindering, it's not doing a great job.
  • dfair1967
    dfair1967 Posts: 91
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    You talked about caffiene, without talking about diet coke. Diet Coke is the devil. You will lose ten lbs just by stopping that filthy habit. Effects of diet coke have been published a lot. Just Google it.
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    Caffeine is an appetite stimulant, so it may lead to more unnecessary eating and cravings. Also, withdrawal symptoms from caffeine can be mistaken for hunger.

    I don't think this is actually true.

    Caffeine can give you heart burn, which in my experience is an appetite suppressant :P

    Seriously though... it does effect the proton pumps in your stomach, making your stomach a bit more acidic, which can lead to heart burn in some people.
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    You talked about caffiene, without talking about diet coke. Diet Coke is the devil. You will lose ten lbs just by stopping that filthy habit. Effects of diet coke have been published a lot. Just Google it.

    If you think diet coke is bad google phenylalanine a substance in about everything from diet soda to most yogurts.

    And phenylalanine is in just about anything made out of protein too. It is, *gasp*, an amino acid.

    Seriously.

    I'm not lying. It's a building block for thousands of different proteins and is harmless to most people, except those who lack the enzymes to break phenylalanine down.

    Read this if you're worried: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/phenylalanine/AN01552/
  • AllTehBeers
    AllTehBeers Posts: 5,030 Member
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    You talked about caffiene, without talking about diet coke. Diet Coke is the devil. You will lose ten lbs just by stopping that filthy habit. Effects of diet coke have been published a lot. Just Google it.

    If you think diet coke is bad google phenylalanine a substance in about everything from diet soda to most yogurts.

    And phenylalanine is in just about anything made out of protein too. It is, *gasp*, an amino acid.

    Seriously.

    I'm not lying. It's a building block for thousands of different proteins and is harmless to most people, except those who lack the enzymes to break phenylalanine down.

    Read this if you're worried: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/phenylalanine/AN01552/

    This is wrong. There is no room for science and logic here. Anything I can't pronounce is bad. The end.
  • wharkavy
    wharkavy Posts: 1 Member
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    Actually, caffeine is an appetite suppressant.

    Per this month's issue of "Prevention Magazine":

    "If you wake up and head straight for the coffeepot, you might be inadvertently derailing your diet. Caffeine can temporarily suppress appetite, causing you to skip breakfast. That’s a problem if you goal is weight loss, since breakfast kick-starts your metabolish. 'People who skip the morning meal have a higher BMI, even though they eat fewer calories throughout the day,' says Angel Ginn, RD, of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Simple solution: Have your first cup of coffee after breakfast.

    And you might want to keep sipping throughout the day. Researchers found that women who drank 4 to 5 cups a day lived 16% longer. Both decaf and regular varieties of joe do the job. (Prevention Magazine 24)"
  • Musikelektronik
    Musikelektronik Posts: 739 Member
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    Actually, caffeine is an appetite suppressant.

    Per this month's issue of "Prevention Magazine":

    "If you wake up and head straight for the coffeepot, you might be inadvertently derailing your diet. Caffeine can temporarily suppress appetite, causing you to skip breakfast. That’s a problem if you goal is weight loss, since breakfast kick-starts your metabolish. 'People who skip the morning meal have a higher BMI, even though they eat fewer calories throughout the day,' says Angel Ginn, RD, of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Simple solution: Have your first cup of coffee after breakfast.

    And you might want to keep sipping throughout the day. Researchers found that women who drank 4 to 5 cups a day lived 16% longer. Both decaf and regular varieties of joe do the job. (Prevention Magazine 24)"

    But there's no doubt in my mind that somebody will read this and say, "See! I told you caffiene prevents you from losing weight!" :laugh:

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