For many people, a new day doesn’t feel like it’s truly started until they have their first cup of coffee. But if you have diabetes or are worried about getting it, you might wonder how coffee affects your health.
Diabetes is a health condition where the body has trouble keeping blood sugar levels in balance. It’s very common and affects millions of people around the world. Coffee is one of the most popular drinks and has been studied a lot to see how it connects to diabetes.
Some research shows that drinking coffee regularly might help prevent Type 2 diabetes. Coffee contains many natural compounds, such as antioxidants like chlorogenic acid and trigonelline. These substances may help your body respond better to insulin and process sugar more effectively. This can help lower the chance of developing diabetes.
Another benefit of coffee is that it’s full of antioxidants. Antioxidants help reduce inflammation, which is linked to many diseases, including Type 2 diabetes. By lowering inflammation, coffee may help protect you from getting diabetes in the first place.
However, if you already have diabetes, coffee can have some downsides. The caffeine in coffee might cause a short-term increase in blood sugar levels by affecting how your body uses insulin. This effect isn’t the same for everyone. Some people are more sensitive to caffeine than others, and drinking too much can make it harder to control blood sugar.
Caffeine can also cause problems like feeling jittery, trouble sleeping, or a faster heartbeat. For people with diabetes, these side effects might also affect their blood sugar and general health.
A number of studies have looked at the link between coffee and diabetes. One study in the Journal of Nutrition found that people who drank more than one extra cup of coffee each day for four years had an 11% lower chance of getting Type 2 diabetes. But another study in the journal Diabetologia showed that while coffee may help prevent diabetes in the long run, caffeine can make it harder to manage blood sugar in people who already have the disease.
In short, if you don’t have diabetes but are at risk, drinking coffee may help protect you. But if you already have diabetes, it’s important to watch how coffee affects your blood sugar and think about drinking less if needed.
Like many things in health and nutrition, balance is important. Drinking coffee in moderation, as part of a healthy diet, is usually fine. But it’s always a good idea to talk to your doctor about what’s best for your body, especially if you’re managing diabetes.
If you care about blood sugar, please read studies about why blood sugar is high in the morning, and how to cook sweet potatoes without increasing blood sugar.
For more information about brain health, please see recent studies about 9 unhealthy habits that damage your brain, and results showing this stuff in cannabis may protect aging brain, treat Alzheimer’s.
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