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What’s the right amount of caffeine to ingest throughout the day without spiking our blood pressure or attacking a partner who doesn’t hold our door?
Anyone who has never been warned about the amount of coffee they consume in a day should raise their cup. Of course, too much caffeine can quickly turn the drinker over to the dark side and lead to anxiety, nervousness, trouble sleeping, aggression, tremors, or even tachycardia. But when used properly, the drink can provide real health benefits (or at least prevent us from typing keyboard keys on our foreheads during post-dinner digestion). So how much coffee can you drink without hyperventilating?
Official Recommendations
The recommendations came to us from the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) in 2015. The latter thus determined the maximum dose of caffeine that the adult population (including the elderly) can drink at one time and throughout the day. Verdict: “A healthy adult should not exceed 200 mg of caffeine at one time, and 400 throughout the day. That is, a cup, a glass and a half of coffee at once, four to five throughout the day. If we stick to this moderate consumption, all the scientific literature considers that there are no harmful effects on health,” says Astrid Nehlig, Emeritus Research Director of Inserm.
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Obviously, these recommendations apply to all sources of caffeine that we may consume, such as tea (although it contains less), sodas, energy drinks, etc.
Still according to the EFSA, pregnant and breastfeeding women should be content with 200 mg of caffeine per day. Excessive use can lead to miscarriage or problems with fetal development. “It is better to prefer a decaffeinated version of the drink, or use herbal teas instead. A baby doesn’t know how to metabolize caffeine, so it feels its effects directly,” comments nutritionist Laurence Plumey (1). Since caffeine passes into milk, mothers are also advised to avoid coffee after breastfeeding. “Of course, people prone to sleep disorders should also limit their consumption, as well as those prone to digestive disorders such as heartburn, gastritis or reflux,” adds the doctor.
Espresso VS filter coffee
Having said that, now the question remains, which coffee is it about? “Contrary to what many people think, espresso contains less caffeine than filter coffee. This mainly comes from the preparation process. Therefore, we can drink more espresso than filter coffee during the day,” adds Philippe Pouillard, teacher-researcher of Culinary Practice and Health at UniLaSalle Polytechnic Institute in Beauvais.
You can drink more espresso than filter coffee during the day
Professor Philippe Pouillart
The official recommendations are general, and it all obviously depends on each person’s genetic heritage. “People with so-called ‘slow’ metabolisms eliminate caffeine more slowly and will therefore drink less caffeine than ‘fast’ people,” Astrid Nehlig points out. This is also why some people can drink coffee after 5pm without any trouble falling asleep, while others can’t. “Caffeine binds to receptors in the brain and stops the effect of the sleep molecule,” explains the researcher.
Professor Philippe Pouillard reminds. “Coffee in moderate doses stimulates the central nervous system, drinkers have a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease. It also promotes alertness and reduces drowsiness.” In a previous article on the subject, Astrid Nehlig already emphasized the protective effect of the drink against cardiovascular diseases and noted that it “reduces the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease by 60%.”
(1) Dr. Laurence Plumey is specifically the author The Big Book of Food, Ed. Eyerolls, €23.90.
Source: Le Figaro
