For many of us, coffee has become a vital part of our everyday lives. From the morning cup to get us going, to that laid-back lunch with friends or evening catch-up, coffee has become a symbol for people and communities coming together. The evolution of coffee shops has followed the drink’s path and, nowadays, these establishments are some of the most successful businesses around! However, the drink’s humble beginnings should not be forgotten.
Ever since its inception, coffee has been popular not just because of what it represents but also for the benefits it can provide. While some of these have been overstated or mythicised over millennia, its widely proven that drinking coffee can be good for you. In this article, we take a look at the specific health benefits coffee can provide us.
Drinking Coffee Can Improve Performance
One of the most recognised effects of drinking coffee is what most people experience as a sudden jolt of energy. Seen in a range of drink and food items, caffeine temporarily blocks the chemicals in our bodies that produce the feeling of tiredness whilst also stimulating parts of the nervous system. The outcome of this is the production of adrenaline, the “fight or flight” hormone that prepares our bodies for physical activity.
This increased adrenaline in our blood can provide a sudden boost to athletic performance. Many athletes, particularly from South America, are known to drink coffee before major sporting events. It is believed that performance can improve by around 10% by drinking coffee beforehand, although the type of coffee will vary these results.
Drinking Coffee Can Help You to Lose Weight
This super drink doesn’t just help with physical energy – its contents can also help us to lose weight thanks to the inclusion of magnesium and potassium. Espresso, in particular, contains a high amount of magnesium, which is a vital component of our bones and is critical in many of our bodily functions.
Magnesium also plays a key role in the production and performance of insulin in the body, which helps to turn sugars and fats into energy for the body to use. Therefore, regular coffee drinking can improve your body’s ability to burn fat naturally. Meanwhile, it can also help reduce the likelihood of developing type two diabetes.
Reduced Risk of Disease and Cancer
Coffee’s ability to improve our body’s health has long been debated in medical circles. However, it is widely accepted that drinking a few cups of coffee a day can provide some positive benefits when it comes to reducing our risk of illness. The primary reason for this is believed to be the large number of antioxidants found in coffee. Explained simply, oxidation is a natural chemical reaction in the body that can lead to cell damage, something which antioxidants can inhibit.
Due to this, there is a range of illnesses that coffee is believed to help protect against. The primary beneficiary is the liver, with a decrease in the likelihood of liver disease seen in coffee drinkers. Drinking coffee regularly can also reduce the chance of contracting a range of cancers in areas, such as in the skin.
Coffee Can Improve Brain Performance
Perhaps the most popular benefit of coffee drinking – besides the chance to relax and enjoy some time with our friends or loved ones – is how it can make our brains feel much livelier! Again, this is down to the drink’s caffeine, which affects parts of the brain associated with memory and reflexes.
Predominantly, the result is similar to the physical one mentioned above. Drinking coffee can provide a temporary improvement to short-term memory and also improve your reflexes and general cognitive capabilities. Long-term, some studies have found that regular coffee drinkers are less likely to develop illnesses such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.
We are now at a point where it is hard to deny the health benefits of coffee. Packed with ingredients that are great for your body, regular coffee as part of a healthy and balanced diet can be great for you! These benefits are just one of the many reasons why coffee shops continue to become the number one location on Britain’s high streets.
If you are interested in opening your own coffee shop and sharing these benefits with your community or region, why not take a look at the exciting coffee shop franchise UK opportunities we have available? Alternatively, check out our recent article covering ten of the most interesting facts about coffee.
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