Coffee is one of the world’s most popular beverages. Have you seen the long lines at Starbucks lately? In fact, people sip on billions of cups of this bitter liquid daily, relying on a morning cup of coffee to help wake them up and boost their energy levels. Research suggests that coffee has health benefits, from making you more awake and productive to lowering the risk of some types of liver disease. However, there’s debate about whether coffee can negatively impact heart health markers like LDL-cholesterol and blood triglycerides. Is there truth to this?
Coffee’s Effects on Blood Lipids
We hear a lot these days about LDL-cholesterol, a protein that carries cholesterol through your bloodstream. If your LDL-cholesterol is too high, you may be at higher risk of cardiovascular disease. A constellation of health issues that encompasses atherosclerotic heart disease and stroke.
Triglycerides are another type of fat in your blood. Having high triglyceride levels is linked to an increased risk of heart disease and stroke too. That’s why your doctor checks your blood triglyceride level when they do a lipid panel. Factors like diet, exercise, and whether you get high-quality sleep can affect how much triglycerides are in your blood.
Some research suggests that coffee could raise triglycerides, while other studies fail to show a rise in “trigs” among coffee drinkers. There’s also concern that drinking copious quantities of some types of coffee can elevate LDL-cholesterol, the “bad” form of cholesterol linked with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. Let’s take a closer look at the potential impact of coffee on triglyceride and LDL-cholesterol levels, as well as why there could be an association.
What Impact Does Drinking Coffee Have on Triglycerides?
It’s reassuring that coffee contains no cholesterol or triglycerides. Still, the way you prepare and consume it may affect the blood level of these fats. Coffee beans contain oils called diterpenes that may raise low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, also known as “bad” cholesterol.
The good news: filtered coffee methods like drip remove most of these oils, so you’re less likely to get a rise in triglycerides if that’s your preferred mode of preparation. However, downing a lot of diterpene oils over time may potentially raise LDL levels – the “bad” cholesterol that can build up in arteries. We’re talking about an increase of 5-15 mg/dL for some unlucky folks genetically prone to high cholesterol.
According to research, drinking more than four cups per day may raise triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol in some people, as it increases intake of diterpene oils. So, while coffee in moderation is fine for most healthy people, heavy intake could potentially impact heart health by raising “bad” cholesterol and triglycerides.
Choose Your Brewing Methods Wisely
To control your triglycerides, you’ll want to limit how much diterpenes you consume. This means drinking filtered coffee and limiting coffee made with like French press or boiled coffee that doesn’t separate out the grounds. These ways of preparing coffee leave more of those heart-unfriendly oils in your final cup. So, drinking them day in, day out for years could spell trouble for your cholesterol and triglycerides.
The good news is that paper-filtered methods like drip coffee capture most of these oils in the filter itself. So, if you use a coffee maker that filters or use a pour-over method of preparing your morning cup of Joe, it poses minor risk of raising your LDL-cholesterol or triglycerides, unless you drink coffee all day. Moderation and method can make all the difference if you’re watching your cholesterol levels.
What You Add to Your Coffee Can Affect Your Triglycerides
Coffee just doesn’t taste the same without a little something sweet, stirred in. But before you pour in the sugar, consider how add-ins can impact your triglycerides. Now, a spoonful of sugar may make the medicine go down, but it can also make your triglycerides go up. Easy solution? Stir in less sugar or skip it altogether. There are also natural sweetener alternatives, like Stevia and monk fruit, which won’t send your triglycerides through the roof or pack on unwanted pounds.
Stevia, the darling of the sweetener world, is extracted from a plant and contains zero calories. Monk fruit is also a star when you want something sweet but skip the sugar and calories. The research is ongoing, but so far these sweeteners are not linked directly to spiking triglycerides the way their caloric counterparts like sugar and high fructose corn syrup do.
And when you see “sugar-free” treats made with artificial sweeteners like aspartame or sucralose? Although they’re not known to affect blood triglycerides, there are studies suggesting they could cause metabolic issues by disrupting your gut microbiome, so it’s best to steer clear.
What about Adding Creamer to Your Coffee?
Adding creamers to your morning coffee can be a tasty treat, but the impact on your health depends on what you’re stirring into your cup!
If you’re a fan of the silky richness of half-and-half or heavy cream, just know that these dairy-based coffee whiteners have a decent amount of saturated fat and cholesterol. Over time, going overboard with creamers could nudge your LDL cholesterol levels in the wrong direction. On the other hand, non-dairy alternatives like soy, almond, or oat milk are lower in saturated fat.
However, not all non-dairy creamers are created equal! Some contain vegetable oils that may be hydrogenated – and those annoying trans fats are cholesterol troublemakers for sure. Others can have added sugars and fillers – not great news for your blood lipids or waistline.
Your best bets? Seek out non-dairy creamers made from simple, whole food ingredients like nuts and seeds. Or better yet, try going naked with just black coffee and no creamers. Your heart and your doctor will thank you!
Guidelines for Coffee Drinking
- Don’t consume more than 2-3 cups of unfiltered coffee per day if you’re trying to lower your LDL-cholesterol.
- Stick to filtered coffee and avoid non-filtered coffee, like Turkish coffee or coffee made in a French press.
- Avoid adding high-fat creamers and sweeteners to coffee.
- Check your LDL-cholesterol regularly, especially if you drink unfiltered coffee.
- Talk to your doctor about how coffee consumption affects your cholesterol levels.
Conclusion
In summary, coffee itself does not inherently contain cholesterol or triglycerides. However, the way you prepare and consume your coffee may. Compounds called diterpenes found in coffee beans could potentially raise LDL “bad” cholesterol especially if you’re genetically prone to high cholesterol. Talk to your physician about what the best approach to drinking coffee is for you.
References:
- “The effect of coffee consumption on serum lipids: a meta … – PubMed.” pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22713771/.
- “Coffee and Cholesterol: Is There a Link? – Healthline.” 30 May. 2023, healthline.com/health/high-cholesterol/coffee-link.
- “Triglycerides: Why do they matter? – Mayo Clinic.” mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/in-depth/triglycerides/art-20048186.
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