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The Science of Drinking Coffee

By Kate Gardner

My morning ritual starts like this: Make coffee. Everything else can wait those few short minutes while I spoon in the coffee grounds, start the coffee maker, and get my favorite mug out of the cabinet. Drinking coffee first thing in the morning is absolutely a habit, but science suggests that it may be the wrong habit! According to Till Daling in his article "There's Only One Way to Drink Coffee!" at Medium.com, most of us are working against our bodies and science when we drink coffee right after waking up.

Cortisol

Cortisol is a hormone produced by our hypothalamus. While it is involved in several functions, one main role it plays is to help us wake up. According to Daling, cortisol levels in our body jump by 50 percent right after waking. You could say that cortisol is our self-made coffee, helping us become more awake and alert. In most people, cortisol peaks from about 8-9 a.m., noon-1 p.m., and 5:30-6:30 p.m. 

Caffeine-Cortisol Combo

It might make sense that combining caffeine and cortisol would boost your wakefulness into overdrive, but this isn't the case. Caffeine and cortisol don't mix well for two reasons. First, when you drink more caffeine, your body may get the message to make less cortisol. This could mean that your body is getting less of its natural wake-up hormone. Second, drinking caffeine when cortisol spikes may lead to a greater tolerance for caffeine, resulting in the need for more and more to get the same effects. 

Perfect Timing

Daling suggests that we skip knocking back a cup of coffee right after we wake up. Instead, aim for the windows between the cortisol peaks: between 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Timing your cup of coffee in this way may help your body do a better job of waking itself up during natural cortisol peaks and give your coffee a greater chance to give you the boost you're looking for when you need it the most. 

For me, making coffee first thing in the morning is as much about ritual as it is about waking up. But, armed with this information, it may pay to start a new ritual. 

To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Coppell, Tex. 

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