An astounding 54% of Americans drink coffee every day and 65% of those people drink it at breakfast. Coffee does seem to be a drink that most people have in the morning or during the day, more because they know that having it later in the day can affect the quality of their sleep due to the caffeine. However, does caffeine benefit you in other ways apart from just helping you wake up and function well?
In the last ten years, we have seen coffee houses such as Starbucks appear in every shopping mall and high street all over the world. Coffee has become a somewhat fashionable drink that can be consumed on the go, in the office, at home or in the car. While we can make a coffee at home costing us a few cents, it seems coffee houses are charging an agreeable amount for all sorts of luxury drinks. Interestingly, Couponbox recently conducted a survey to discover the difference in Starbucks coffee prices all over the world for their most popular drinks of the Cappuccino, the Americano and the Latte. Bern in Switzerland was the most expensive with an average cost of $5.92 of the three drinks, while New York was $2.89 and London was $3.13. Warsaw was the cheapest place with the average being $2.68 for a coffee.
Despite the cost, coffee is thought of by most of us as a luxury drink, but it also has many benefits. Coffee is actually one of the few natural substances that aid fat burning. You only have to look at fat burning supplements to discover that one of the main active ingredients is the wonderful coffee bean. Studies show that consuming coffee when working out and keeping fit, will help burn fat faster. So how does coffee aid fat burning and how effective is it?
The Fat Burner
The caffeine in one cup of coffee is believed to boost calorie burning by 4% over a period of two and a half hours following a cup. Coffee helps to mobilize fats from the fat tissues by stimulating the nervous system, which passes on messages to the fat cells instructing them to disperse the fat. Caffeine also increases Epinephrine (also known as Adrenaline), a hormone which works through the blood to fat tissues signalling to break up the fat cells which are then released back into the blood.
Increases Metabolism
Caffeine also increases metabolism and the higher our metabolic rate is, the easier it is for us to burn fat and lose weight. When there is an increase in metabolic rate, our bodies burn fat faster and retain less fat from the food we eat. Research shows that caffeine can increase our metabolic rate by an average of 3-11%, however, the leaner you are, the more effective the caffeine increases the metabolic rate – so the more overweight you are, the less likely it is to help. It does seem that the long-term effects of drinking coffee to help burn fat, can reduce over time, so instead it should perhaps be used to help kick start healthy eating, physical fitness and dieting.
An Appetite Suppressant
Coffee is known to be an appetite suppressant, meaning it will help fill you up and reduce hunger pangs at certain times of the day. Research and studies seem to show that caffeine has a greater effect on reducing men’s appetites than women’s, making them want to eat less after drinking coffee. However, studies also show that it very much depends on the individual, their physical activities and their food consumption.
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