Whether you prepare your coffee at home or make a run to a coffee shop, you know how much a caffeinated cup of Joe can help you focus. You may also know that drinking coffee has other health benefits based on early studies. These studies show that drinking coffee may lower your risk of liver disease, including liver cancer, and, possibly, Parkinson’s disease and type 2 diabetes.
Being the top source of antioxidants in the American diet, coffee offers more than hydration. It helps fight oxidative stress that damages cells and tissues. You’re probably familiar with dark roast coffee and light roast coffee, but there’s new coffee on the scene – white coffee.
What is White Coffee?
Like other types of coffee, white coffee is made from standard coffee beans. It’s not the bean that sets it apart from dark, medium, and light roast. It’s the way it’s roasted. When you sip a cup of dark-roast coffee, you may notice it has a bitter flavor, one that some people enjoy and others find off-putting.
Roasting the beans until they’re dark makes the resulting brew bitterer. In contrast, lighter roast coffee has a lighter, slightly sweet flavor without bitter undertones. Why? Because it’s roasted for a shorter time. Traditional roasting temperatures for coffee beans is 370 to 540 degrees F. But beans are destined to be white coffee at 325 degrees F. Plus, the whole roasting process is short, only 5 to 10 minutes, enough to turn the beans light brown. The shorter roasting time and lower temperature means white coffee has a fuller flavor and less acidity.
The Benefits of White Coffee
Like all coffee, white coffee has potential health benefits. In some cases, it may have advantages over coffee roasted longer. Let’s look at some of the health benefits of coffee, including white coffee.
Cognitive Benefits
One characteristic of white coffee that sets it apart is it has a higher caffeine content than darker roast coffee. That’s a drawback if you suffer with anxiety or get jitters when you down a cup of Joe. However, caffeine benefits cognitive function by improving focus, attention, and even reaction time, so you might be a little more motivated when you drink it. There’s also evidence that a higher caffeine content boosts the mood of people who are depressed.
How much caffeine is in a cup of white coffee? It depends on whether you make white coffee with Robusta (lower quality beans) or Arabica (higher quality) Robusta beans contain more caffeine than their higher quality cousins. Some sources claim that white coffee has up to 50% more caffeine while others say it’s only about 6% higher. So, the amount may vary, but white coffee tends to be higher in caffeine.
Reduced Risk of Certain Diseases
According to studies, sipping coffee in moderation (2-4 cups daily) may lower the risk of health issues related to aging, like Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, liver disease, and type 2 diabetes. These benefits would hold for white coffee too. But to get them, it’s safest to enjoy it without added sugar or artificial sweeteners. It may be easier to do that with white coffee, as it lacks the bitterness of darker brews.
Better Heart Health
At one time, scientists and healthcare providers warned people that drinking coffee is harmful to heart health. However, more recent studies suggest that opposite. Sipping 3-5 cups of coffee daily is linked with a lower risk of heart failure and stroke. The reason? One theory is that the antioxidant content of coffee helps fight inflammation that damages the arterial wall.
Just as white coffee has more caffeine, it also has more antioxidants, including chlorogenic acid, cafestol, trigonelline, melanoidins, and quinine. But don’t overdo it and make those portion sizes extra-large. Too much could trigger irregular heart rhythms, especially if you have a preexisting heart condition. Talk to your doctor before drinking coffee if that’s the case.
Weight Management
While no single food or beverage will have a major impact on body weight, the caffeine in white coffee gives your metabolism a subtle boost. Since it has more caffeine than dark roast, the metabolic boost may be more pronounced with white coffee. Plus, the antioxidant and inflammation reducing chemicals in white coffee may help with weight control. Some people also find that coffee reduces appetite. Take advantage of it, as long as you don’t combine a cup of white coffee with a sugary pastry!
A More Diverse Gut Microbiome
The polyphenols in coffee have antioxidant benefits but there’s also growing evidence that they are prebiotics too. Prebiotics help support and foster a more diverse gut microbiome with more beneficial gut bacteria. One study found that coffee drinkers had higher levels of gut-friendly bacteria called Bifidobacteria. Plus, the bacteria in your gut can ferment some of the polyphenols in white coffee, creating short-chain fatty acids that benefit your gut. But be aware that drinking coffee, including white coffee, can increase acid production. Talk to your doctor before drinking coffee if you have a history of acid reflux or gastric ulcer.
Reduced Risk of Certain Cancers
There’s growing evidence that polyphenol antioxidants in white coffee (and other coffee high in antioxidants) may lower the risk of some types of cancer. For example, some studies correlate drinking coffee with lower rates of endometrial (uterus) cancer, liver cancer, melanoma, oral cancer, and oral/pharyngeal cancer. This is an area that needs further studies.
Conclusion
So, there you have it! Like other coffee, white coffee has potential health benefits. It may be a better choice over darker roast coffee due to its higher polyphenol antioxidant levels. But keep in mind that its higher caffeine content means it’s more likely to hype you up. So, adjust your intake accordingly. Also, watch out for what you add to it! Heavy cream and sugar add calories and may reduce some of its health benefits.
References
- “9 Reasons Why (the Right Amount of) Coffee Is Good for You.” https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/9-reasons-why-the-right-amount-of-coffee-is-good-for-you.
- Poole R, Kennedy OJ, Roderick P, Fallowfield JA, Hayes PC, Parkes J. Coffee consumption and health: umbrella review of meta-analyses of multiple health outcomes. BMJ. 2017 Nov 22;359:j5024. doi: 10.1136/bmj.j5024. Erratum in: BMJ. 2018 Jan 12;360:k194. doi: 10.1136/bmj.k194. PMID: 29167102; PMCID: PMC5696634.
- “Health Benefits of Coffee | RUSH – Rush University System for Health.” https://www.rush.edu/news/health-benefits-coffee.
- “Is coffee good or bad for your health? – Harvard T.H. Chan School of ….” https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/hsph-in-the-news/is-coffee-good-or-bad-for-your-health/.
- “Coffee and Antioxidants: Everything You Need to Know – Healthline.” 20 Feb. 2019, https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/coffee-worlds-biggest-source-of-antioxidants.
- Martini D, Del Bo’ C, Tassotti M, Riso P, Del Rio D, Brighenti F, Porrini M. Coffee Consumption and Oxidative Stress: A Review of Human Intervention Studies. Molecules. 2016 Jul 28;21(8):979. doi: 10.3390/molecules21080979. PMID: 27483219; PMCID: PMC6274123.
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