A cup of coffee is one of life's simple pleasures. It's a morning ritual for many thanks to its star ingredient, caffeine. Even the smell of a fresh brew can be enough wake someone up from a groggy haze.
Unsurprisingly, coffee is one of the most popular beverages in the United States. More than two-thirds of Americans report drinking coffee — last year, coffee consumption reached a 20-year high, according to report from the .
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Coffee has been shown to have a number of health benefits. Aside from increasing alertness, drinking coffee may support heart health, boost metabolism, and reduce the risk of chronic diseases. This is largely because is rich in bioactive substances, including antioxidants that fight inflammation.
“We’ve known throughout the years that coffee is good for us, a (few) cups a day can really help with all-cause mortality and cardiovascular health,” 온라인카지노사이트 News senior medical correspondent Dr. John Torres told .
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Now, there's an increasing amount of evidence to suggest that timing plays an important role when it comes to reaping coffee's health benefits. So, when is the best time of day to drink coffee?
When is the best time of day to drink coffee?
Ultimately, the best time of day to drink coffee will depend on the individual and their schedule. However, for the average person who works standard business hours, there is an ideal window in the morning, experts say.
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“The best time to drink coffee is the mid to late morning, usually around 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.,” Dr. Raj Dasgupta, a board-certified sleep medicine doctor and chief medical advisor of Sleepopolis, tells TODAY.com. People should aim to drink coffee about an hour to three hours after waking up, he adds.
Want to make your coffee habit even more beneficial? The seems to be hot-brewed, filtered coffee made from light roast beans without added cream or sugar.
"Mid-morning coffee is better from a physiological standpoint," Julia Zumpano, registered dietitian with the Cleveland Clinic’s Center for Human Nutrition, tells TODAY.com. Here's why:
Benefits of drinking coffee in the mid-morning
If you're a coffee drinker, there are several benefits to consuming it in the morning, the experts say.
Alertness and mood
Caffeine is a nervous system stimulant, so it speeds everything up in the body and brain. "It provides more alertness, more awareness, and a little more energy," says Zumpano.
Drinking coffee from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. can give you a boost to you get through the mid-morning slump. The caffeine can improve cognitive function as you start the day, and enhance exercise performance before a morning workout, Zumpano adds.
Coffee can also boost your mood because caffeine stimulates dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and motivation, TODAY.com previously reported.
It’s safe for adults to consume up to 400 milligrams of caffeine per day, Zumpano notes. Decaffeinated coffee still contains a small amount, Dasgupta adds.
Heart health
A morning cup of coffee may have physical health benefits, too. A new study suggests that drinking coffee before noon is linked to a lower chance of heart disease and dying compared with drinking coffee in the afternoon or evening.
In the study, published in the in February, researchers investigated the patterns of coffee drinking timing and associations with mortality among 42,000 adults in the U.S. between 1999 and 2018.
The findings suggest people who drink coffee — caffeinated or decaffeinated — between 4 a.m. to 12 p.m. were 16% less likely to die from any cause compared to people who didn’t drink coffee, and 31% less likely to develop heart disease.
However, these same benefits were not observed among all-day coffee drinkers. “If you drink coffee in the afternoon, it’s not going to hurt you but you don’t get those benefits,” said Torres.
Cortisol levels
Drinking coffee between 9:30-11:30 a.m., or about one to three hours, after waking up is also better for cortisol levels, the experts note.
"That’s when your natural cortisol levels start to dip after peaking shortly after waking," says Dasgupta. Cortisol, also known as the stress hormone, rises when we wake up to make us feel more alert.
"It peaks 30 to 60 minutes after you wake, and then it starts to gradually decline as the day goes on, so it's ideal to have coffee on the declining end," says Zumpano. Depending on the person, it could take up to four hours for cortisol to dip, she adds.
"Caffeine can raise cortisol, and that effect is more pronounced in people who are sensitive to caffeine or who are under chronic stress," says Gasupta. "Over time, though, habitual drinkers may see a smaller cortisol spike because the body adjusts," he adds.
Inflammation
Many of coffee's benefits come from its , which can help fight inflammation, improve insulin sensitivity, and lower the risk of , TODAY.com previously reported.
The new study suggests some pro-inflammatory markers in the body have circadian rhythms, which means they are highest in the morning. “Therefore, the anti-inflammatory effect of coffee consumption concentrated in the morning may be more beneficial,” the researchers in wrote in .
“In the morning, because of our circadian rhythms, we absorb the antioxidants a lot better than we do in the afternoon,” said Torres.
Sleep interference
Drinking coffee in the mid-morning is less likely to disrupt sleep, which is crucial for overall health, Torres explained.
Since caffeine is a stimulant, it can make it harder to fall asleep. "It takes roughly five to six hours for your body to eliminate half of the caffeine you consume, which means half of it is still circulating in your system hours after consumption," says Dasgupta.
Caffeine blocks adenosine, a brain chemical that helps promote sleep, says Dasgupta. "Normally, adenosine builds up in the brain while awake leading to sleepiness. If you drink coffee too late, it can delay your ability to fall asleep, reduce total sleep time, and cut into deep sleep and REM sleep," Dasgupta adds.
is linked to many health problems, including memory loss, heart disease and high blood pressure.
Some people metabolize caffeine faster or slower depending on their genetics, age, liver function and other factors, says Dasgupta — which is why it's important to be aware of your caffeine tolerance.
How long should you wait to drink coffee after waking up?
The experts recommend drinking coffee at least one hour waking up, if possible. "If you drink coffee right after getting up, you’re stacking caffeine on top of already high cortisol, which can increase jitteriness and reduce caffeine’s perceived effect," says Dasgupta.
Ideally, you should drink coffee with or after breakfast. "Consuming it with food can really help ... so you’re allowing your natural cortisol, then food, to provide the initial energy, and then you add in the caffeine," she adds.
While it is safe to drink coffee on an empty stomach, this can cause side effects for some people. It can increase stomach acid, which can lead to acid reflux or discomfort, says Zumpano.
Caffeine can increase stomach motility. “It moves things through your gut quicker, so another side effect is having to go to the bathroom after you drink coffee,” says Zumpano. Caffeine is also a diuretic, which means it can increase urine production, she adds.
If coffee makes you go, try to drink it at a time when you have access to a bathroom.
How late is too late to drink coffee?
"A good rule is to cut off caffeine at least six to eight hours before you go to bed. So if you’re aiming to sleep at 10 p.m., you probably shouldn’t have coffee past 2 p.m.," says Dasgupta. Alternatively, consider switching to decaf later in the day.
People who are more sensitive to caffeine may need to stop drinking coffee earlier. If you have trouble falling asleep, consider your caffeine intake and talk to your doctor, Dasgupta notes.
"Caffeine isn’t a sleep replacement. If you’re relying on it to power through fatigue, it’s worth looking at your sleep habits, stress load or diet," says Dasgupta.
If you love coffee, you can enjoy your morning cup of joe along with the health benefits — but if you don’t already drink coffee, there’s no need to start drinking it for the health benefits, the experts say.
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