Many Indonesians Find It Difficult To Drink Coffee Without Sugar

However, drinking coffee is not always bad. Coffee also offers healthy perks. Here’s what you need to know.

1. You should not drink coffee after 2:00 pm
Drinking coffee in the afternoon or evening can affect the quality of sleep. Alternatively, choose decaffeinated coffee.

2. Avoid sugary coffee
Coffee contains useful nutrients that can be beneficial for health. However, it can be harmful when drinking coffee with too much sugar in it. A high amount of fructose can cause serious diseases such as diabetes and obesity.

3. Choose organic coffee
Coffee quality varies, depending on how it is processed and how coffee beans are grown. The use of synthetic pesticides and other chemicals can be harmful to humans. Choose coffee that is free from pesticides.

4. Limit your coffee intake
Excessive caffeine intake may cause some side effects. People should drink between four and six cups of coffee per day.

Also read: Grab Reduces 5 Percent of Workforce Due to Coronavirus Pandemic

5. Add some cinnamon
Cinnamon can lower blood glucose, cholesterol, and triglycerides. Don’t put too much though as cinnamon may cause adverse side effects.

6. Avoid low-fat and artificial creamers
Low-fat creamer tends to be highly processed and may contain questionable ingredients. It is better to use cow’s milk that contains vitamin K, which can be beneficial for bone health.

7. Add some cocoa to your coffee
Cocoa not only makes your coffee taste better but it also contains antioxidants that can reduce the risk of heart diseases.

8. Use a paper filter when brewing coffee
Brewed coffee contains cafestol that can raise cholesterol levels in the blood. Using a paper filter can effectively lower the amount of cafestol.

The best time to drink coffee

Drinking coffee should follow a circadian rhythm. This is a 24-hour cycle that regulates sleeping time and eating time, and control cortisol (stress hormone). Everyone has their circadian rhythm.

Cortisol enables energy reserves to convert into glucose. Thus, it increases alertness or concentration. However, when there is no cortisol, people will feel drowsy and find it difficult to concentrate.

According to Inc.com, Neuroscientist Steven L. Miller, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, said that drinking coffee when the body is releasing cortisol can multiply stress.

The best time to drink coffee is when cortisol levels are low as it will smooth out your mood and energy level. For the average person who rises around 6:00 am, the best time to drink caffeinated coffee is between 9:30 am and 11:30 am. Meanwhile, cortisol levels peak at 8:00 am to 9:00 am, noon to 1:00 pm, and 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm.

As Indonesia is blessed with so many options of the rich taste of coffee and drinking coffee has become a part of a tradition, coffee lovers in the country should have a better understanding of the healthiest way to drink coffee.

Source: Kompas.com