September 29 - Coffee Day

Many of us start the day with a fresh cup (or cups) of coffee. September 29 is Coffee Day. Years ago, some may have thought coffee was harmful. But, research has shown that overall, there is little evidence of health risk and some evidence of health benefits for adults consuming moderate amounts of coffee (3-4 cups/d providing 300-400 mg/d of caffeine).

Some people may be more sensitive to adverse effects of coffee, such as:

• Those that drink more than moderate amounts of coffee
• Those with borderline or high blood pressure
• Those who are sensitive to caffeine
• Women who are pregnant (should limit to no more than 2-3 cups daily)
• Older adults need to make sure they get plenty of vitamin D and calcium, because coffee can interfere with calcium absorption.
• Drinking coffee with meals that contain nonheme iron (non-animal sources of iron) can inhibit that iron absorption. Vitamin C can help offset that effect, as well as drinking coffee between meals.

Otherwise, drink up. Coffee has many health benefits. Preliminary studies have led to these possible benefits:

• Lowers risk for Type 2 diabetes
• Lowers risk for Parkinson's disease
• Protection against development of colorectal cancer
• Lowers risk for cirrhosis and liver cancer
• Reduces risk for all-cause mortality

A plain cup of brewed coffee only has between 2 and 5 calories.

Adding extras to our coffee can also add extra fat and calories. Here are some common coffee drinks and the amount of calories and/or fat.

• Iced coffee (without syrup or with sugar-free syrup) - 16 oz has 90 to 140 calories and may have anywhere from 0 to 5 grams of fat, depending on how it is made
• Hot chocolate with 2% milk - 16 oz has between 300 and 400 calories and 9 to 18 grams of fat
• Vanilla latte (with syrup and 2% milk) - 16 oz has between 250 and 300 calories and 6 to 8 grams of fat
• Sugar-free vanilla latte with nonfat milk - 16 oz has between 90 and 150 calories and no fat(saves quite a bit over the regular vanilla latte)
• Pumpkin spice latte (2% milk)- 16 oz has about 300 calories about 6 grams of fat (switching to nonfat milk saves you about 50 calories)
• Mocha - (2% milk) 16 oz has between 200 and 450 calories and 8 to 12 grams of fat, depending on what type (switching to nonfat milk saves you 50+ calories)
• Medium frappe or frappucino (coffee with ice cream) - 16 oz has 500+ calories and anywhere from 5 to 20 grams of fat, depending on what type and whipped cream will add over 100 additional calories.

Many of these drinks only have small amounts of coffee, so the benefits would be less than drinking a cup of brewed coffee. It's best to limit these drinks.

Cappuccino that you buy at a convenience store would be similar to the mocha amount, with possibly more if it's made with whole milk.

Information from:
Linus Pauling Institute, Oregon State University, Macronutrient webpage on coffee
Starbucks and McDonalds nutrition webpages