There are many myths and contradicting information going around about coffee and caffeine. This article aims to bring together a range of research results and advise women on approaching coffee consumption. Before we dig into the effects of coffee on women's health, we'll dig into its main component and how it affects the human body. Enter caffeine. Caffeine is a stimulant found in many things that we may consume daily, such as chocolate and coffee. It stimulates the brain and the central nervous system and creates a feeling of alertness. It's defined as a psychoactive drug, but it's completely legal and incredibly widely consumed, with around 80-90% of adults thought to drink at least one caffeinated beverage a day. In What Foods and Drinks Can You Find Caffeine?Caffeine is a natural compound found in many plants. The most well-known sources are cocoa beans, kola nuts, tea leaves and coffee beans. You'll find it in more drinks and food than you'd think. Coffee and tea are just the most famous examples, but chocolate and many soft drinks will also contain some. The amount of caffeine varies in the end product, though, with different strengths (measured in milligrams) of caffeine per millilitres of liquid. For example: In warm drinks:
In cold drinks:
Despite the name, there's even between 3-12mg of caffeine in decaf coffee! Foods containing caffeine include milk chocolate (1-15mg) and dark chocolate (5-35mg). The higher proportion of caffeine in darker chocolate is because it retains more of its natural cacao. Many medicinal products also include caffeine, including pain meds, cold and flu tablets, and antihistamines for allergies. It's also widespread (and often the only active ingredient) in weight loss supplements like "fat burners" and pre-workout shake mixtures. 4 Benefits of Caffeine There are many reasons people drink coffee and other caffeinated drinks, or some that don't like the taste choose caffeine pills during exam periods. We'll start with the most obvious benefit and list a few others you may not have heard before. 1. Fatigue, Mood and Cognition As a stimulant, the main benefit of caffeine is to reduce fatigue. But caffeine can improve mood and boost cognition. People that use caffeine to boost brain function are using their morning coffee to block the effect of the molecule adenosine. This causes an increase in other molecules related to brain signalling, such as dopamine and noradrenaline, which heightens alertness, clear thinking, and elevates mood. Of course, most people won't know these details, experience a clearer mind and better performance at work or in learning activities after consuming coffee. 2. Weight Loss The caffeine in any weight loss supplement may claim to "boost metabolism" and "scorch unwanted fat", and, to some extent, it's true. Research has linked caffeine to temporary increases in metabolism by up to 11% and fat burning up to 13%. In real terms, consuming 300mg of caffeine daily could allow you an extra 79 calories burned daily. In the grand scheme of things, this isn't much but could be the difference of 1kg lost over the space of a year. If you don't like caffeine, it isn't worth forcing it for these results, and there are certainly more effective ways to achieve a weight loss goal. 3. Workout Performance In terms of training goals, consuming a small amount of caffeine before hitting the gym can be beneficial. Caffeine can help the stored glucose in the muscle tissue last a little longer, and that can give you a little bit more stamina during your sets. It can also improve the quality of muscle contraction, and, of course, the fatigue resistance will be enhanced by reducing how hard the exercise subjectively feels. That's also the main reason behind it being present in pre-workout drinks. 4. Health There's also some evidence that caffeine can improve some health markers, such as a reduced risk of around 16-18% of heart disease in people who consume about 100-400mg of caffeine daily. Research has shown that 2-4 cups of green tea each day can reduce the risk of strokes by around 14-20%, and it can offer some protection against diabetes. People drinking the most coffee had a 29% lower risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes. The risk dropped by 12-14% for every 200mg of caffeine (roughly 2 cups) consumed. These results even extend to decaf, suggesting a compound other than caffeine provides the benefits. So, is Coffee Great for Everybody? The answer is "not necessarily". There is such a thing as too much of a good thing. While caffeine consumption is generally safe, there are always individual differences to consider. Let's look at factors of health and how they're affected by coffee. 1. Blood Pressure and CoffeeYou probably heard that coffee might not be great for blood pressure. Still, when looking at the evidence, the results are nothing short of confusing. A meta-analysis of cross-sectional studies in 2008 concluded that the evidence isn't strong to suggest a causation relationship between coffee consumption and hypertension. They also highlighted that coffee contains other substances like polyphenols, soluble fibre and potassium that might benefit cardiovascular health. Further investigation would be needed to clarify coffee's impact on human health. A small study reported in an article by Harvard Health Publishing, Harvard Medical School, concluded that coffee raises blood pressure temporarily in participants not used to drinking coffee but not in habitual coffee drinkers. Interestingly, they got the same result with decaffeinated coffee. Simultaneously, caffeine delivered to the body via IV had no such effect on blood pressure. This study concluded that coffee might well have blood pressure raising effects in people who don't usually drink coffee. Still, the cause is most likely some other compound in coffee, not the caffeine, and further research is needed. 2. Sleep and CoffeeAnother commonly heard warning about coffee is refraining from drinking it too close to bedtime for its disruptive effects on sleep. Bot, how long before should one stop drinking coffee? Is there something else you could include if you're a real coffee lover? Coffee & Health, the online portal from the Institute of Scientific Information on Coffee, published a report in 2021 on how coffee affects sleep in everyday lives. If you'd like to understand the ins and outs of the relationship between coffee consumption and your sleep quality, this PDF is only 8 pages long and packed with helpful information and advice. The main takeaway is that many factors will decide how your sleep will be affected by coffee consumption, including how long before bed you drink your last cup of coffee, how much you drink over the day and your usual coffee habits and individual susceptibilities. In other words, your genetics can affect how your body deals with coffee. 3. Bone Health and Coffee Once again, I used the Coffee & Health website to find some information on whether coffee consumption could have a detrimental effect on bone health which could be crucial for women's health, especially as they approach perimenopause and menopause when bone density would naturally start decreasing. The list of results is nothing but inconclusive. Even the editors add that the variability between these studies might be because of differences in the genetics, lifestyles and geography in the populations studied. Some studies that identified a correlation between coffee consumption and risk of fractures highlighted high coffee consumption or women as risk factors. 4. GERD and Coffee Gastroesophageal reflux disease is quite common, as it turns out, and it can cause heartburn, respiratory and digestive symptoms. I only know this because I had bouts of it last year, and I was advised to cut coffee and most caffeinated drinks and foods to help my body cope with it. It helped to an extent, so I decided to look at what the scientists say. Surprise! There is no conclusive evidence to suggest that coffee and caffeine have any relations to aggravating GERD symptoms. If this applies to you, maybe consider looking at other advice on managing those symptoms. I have to report that coffee makes it a lot worse if I have a stressful week, so I am sticking to decaf or herbal tea these days. How Much Coffee Should You Drink? Wrapping up all the information discussed above, I would suggest that the amount you should consume will be very individual. You can try to figure out your own body's optimum intake by monitoring symptoms. As long as you don't experience any side effects or unpleasant symptoms caused by coffee consumption, you'll be good. These symptoms can be palpitations soon after drinking a coffee, significantly elevated blood pressure, sleep problems, energy level issues through the day or anything else that stops when you cut back or cut coffee completely. If you're a woman approaching or beyond your 40s, those symptoms could be caused by many other factors. So, if you have concerns, get in touch with your GP. It might turn out that reducing your intake or eliminating it could solve the problem. Still, it's better to exclude other options than experimenting with your health. If you're not sure how to figure your intake and you experience no side effects, the European Food Safety Authority deems safe the following amount for adults:
Conclusion Some women never touch coffee, while others can't imagine life without it. It seems that there isn't a one-size-fits-all approach to coffee consumption, just like with many other aspects of female fitness. You probably agree with me that your health should be your priority, more so as you approach your 40s, right? It might mean that you need to change your coffee habits to better support your health and fitness goals, and that's OK. Luckily, there are plenty of options out there to get yourself a hot cuppa fix. According to research, to answer the original question in the title, YES, many women in their 40s and beyond can still safely consume caffeine. Does this help you? Feel free to get in touch if you have more questions on coffee or other matters regarding women's fitness. References:
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Eszter BorosI am a Personal Trainer and Fitness Coach with personal experience in body transformation. Archives
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