Is Coffee Bad For Me?

It’s no secret that I adore coffee. Like whoever I date in the future would be really lucky if I look at them the way I look at coffee. 😉

If you read my post on joy, you’ll know that coffee is one of the simple things that just makes me happy. There’s something about the feeling of holding a hot cuppa in the morning as you enjoy just a few blissful moments of total peace before the craziness of the day sets in. Or sipping your iced latte as you stroll through the city, feeling somehow way cooler than if you’d been walking empty-handed.

My love for coffee started the summer between my freshman and sophomore years of high school, when I did a summer program at NYU and so spent most of my time in Greenwich Village, which in addition to being one of the coolest parts of NYC is also home to an abundance of some of the best coffee shops. Prior to that summer, my only coffee experience was Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts, and suffice it to say that the drinks I would get at those places were the furthest they could get from being coffee without having to change their names. I remember looking at those drinks as a monthly treat, equating coffee with the sugar-laden monstrosities I would get from Starbucks or Dunkin. How little I knew then…

That summer before sophomore year was actually when I first discovered La Colombe, which to this day remains one of my all-time favorite coffee spots (and I am SO thankful they have a couple locations in DC now as well!). I remember being so uncertain about what to get; this place didn’t seem to serve caramel macchiatos and frappuccinos. So I copied the girl in front of me and got an iced coffee with a splash of milk. Dubiously, I carried the coffee to Washington Square Park with me where I liked to eat my lunch and people watch. And then I took the first sip.

You know that scene in Ratatouille where Remy’s brother is eating the cheese and grapes together and all the flavors are creating fireworks in his mind, and he just can’t handle it? That’s pretty much how that sip felt. Stars aligned. I felt reborn. How had I been missing this all my life? How could I have wasted so much time drinking those beverages that were really an insult to this liquid gold’s name?

And so I decided to change my once a month habit to once a week. I think I chose Wednesday because it was the middle of the week and felt like a good time to give myself a treat. I think I partly limited it to just that one time because I was sure I would go way overboard if I allowed myself to have more, and partly because I enjoyed the self-discipline aspect of creating rules.

But midway through summer, I couldn’t stand it and changed the rule to 3 times a week because all of a sudden, I discovered all these other fantastic coffee spots around NYC, and there just wasn’t time to waste if I wanted to try them all before the end of summer.

After that first special summer, my love for coffee continued to grow and evolve. Somehow I continued to stick to the 3-a-week rule (self-discipline has never been a weakness of mine), and I continued to be more and more snobby with my coffee options. I pretty much totally eliminated any large corporate coffee chains and stuck mostly to small artisanal cafes. I kept it simple most of the time, discovering that I actually loved black coffee when done well, and iced coffee with just a splash of milk (like that very first time at La Colombe).

And then I came to college. We are quite spoiled to have pretty good coffee at several locations on campus, and DC is home to quite a few artisanal coffee shops that I made it a point to try. Freshman year wasn’t too bad; I stuck mostly to campus, and was too hesitant to venture too far out of Georgetown. But sophomore year? Let’s just say the 3-a-week rule had a good run, but it is a distant memory now.

I talked in this post about how that rule was one of the many arbitrary ones that I set for myself just to remain disciplined, but sometime this past year, I sort of realized that life is too frickin’ short to not allow yourself the simple pleasures. And if coffee is something that so easily makes me happy, and is not actively harming me, then why the hell not introduce some more joy into my life?

I always thought that if I took away the rule, I would lose all control and drink coffee all the time. Like 5 cups a day. But something pretty interesting happened. Something that I’ve already noticed is a pattern in my life.

Once I allowed myself to have all the coffee I possibly wanted, with the caveat that it be good quality, I found that I didn’t want it every day. I think the most in a week I ever had it was six times, but on the seventh day, it just didn’t sound appealing. So I didn’t have it.

Now the reason this discovery was so mind-blowing for me is it is right in line with the whole intuitive eating philosophy. Stop putting any foods off-limits, and they loosen their tremendous hold on you. Yes, you may drink more coffee for the first couple weeks than you allowed yourself before, as you test this new-found freedom, but eventually, your consumption will level off when you realize that coffee is not going anywhere. Just like the cupcake, the nachos, and the pizza are all available whenever and can therefore be taken off the pedestal you previously had them on, so too does coffee become just…coffee…when you allow yourself to have as much of it as you want.

The wellness world is sometimes like a middle schooler who is constantly trying new looks and identities and is always insisting that this new thing is really truly the true version. It’s no secret that foods go in and out of fashion faster than high-wasted shorts. One second gluten is the devil; the next, butter is the Freddy Krueger of health. We should eat more protein; protein is causing kidney failure. I mean, COME ON. It’s enough to make anyone throw their hands in the air and just renounce all healthy eating forever.

Coffee has gone through both its fair share of flack and idolatry. I’ve read copious articles saying coffee can prevent heart attacks and cancer, can help with weight loss, and is great to have once a day. And then I’ve read articles saying coffee causes anxiety, indigestion, and weight gain. Who to believe?

The truth is, no one is correct. And no one is wrong. I’m sure you’re not surprised to hear me say this, but it all comes down to the individual. The reason there are so many opinions out there is that every single person writes about their own individual experience. One person has been drinking coffee every single day since the womb and is the healthiest human alive. Another can barely drink a quarter cup without running to the bathroom for an hour. One uses coffee to ease anxiety; another has a panic attack from even a sip. Each and every one of these experiences is valid.

Coffee is neither healthy nor unhealthy. I am talking now about actual pure coffee, not the sugary monstrosities that often masquerade as coffee. Those probably aren’t the best for you, but if they make you happy, please don’t stop enjoying them in moderation!

I strongly believe that enjoying foods and drinks you truly love and that bring you pleasure will make you much healthier than eating foods that bring you zero pleasure and that you are only eating because your meal plan said so. Food is fuel but it is so much more than that. It is connection and pleasure and joy. Studies show that eating a french fry while happy does not affect your body the same way eating it while anxious does. The mind-gut connection is proven and undeniable.

If drinking coffee stresses you out because you feel like you are corrupting the cells in your body, then don’t drink it. It’s not worth it. All the stress and anxiety are, indeed, corrupting your cells.

My rule of thumb is that I mostly drink coffee just for pleasure and the taste. I enjoy the experience of drinking it and very rarely use it as a stimulant or to wake me up. Relying on it that way is where you can enter a dangerous field.

But if coffee brings you joy, if you do not rely on it constantly as a stimulant but instead enjoy the flavor and experience, then please, keep drinking. And for god’s sake, don’t limit yourself. Trust me, your body will warn you when you’re having too much.

Linking up with Amanda

 

Where do you stand on coffee?