A trip to Starbucks is a popular morning ritual for some people. The lure of caffeine and sometimes a sugary muffin is too much for some to resist. In fact, some people say they can’t get going without their morning cup of coffee. Coffee is one of the most widely used stimulants and psychoactive drugs in the world. Caffeine helps coffee lovers recharge and prepare for the challenges of the day.
The brain is a complicated piece of machinery. There are millions of biochemical reactions governing its operations, some of which caffeine influences. There is evidence that caffeine can make people feel more energetic, focused, and creative. But a caffeine “buzz” may be more than just a passing energy boost for some people. Research shows coffee may reduce the risk of depression in women who frequently enjoy its steamy brew.
Caffeine and Depression: Is Coffee the Cure?
According to a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, women who sip two or more cups of caffeinated coffee each day are less likely to be depressed than those who drank a cup or less each day. There appears to be a dose-dependent effect; drinking more cups reduced the risk of depression even further. When there’s a dose-dependent relationship between two things, it further adds credibility to the findings.
This study was part of the Nurse’s Health Study and included almost 51,000 middle-aged and older women. Researchers questioned women about their coffee consumption and followed for 10 years for signs of depression. Only caffeinated coffee was linked with a lower risk of depression, suggesting that caffeine may be responsible for the mood-boosting benefits.
How Does Caffeine Lower the Risk of Depression?
Lead author Dr. Alberto Ascherio, a professor of epidemiology and nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health, admits researchers aren’t sure how caffeine reduces depression.
He believes caffeine may alter brain cell physiology in a way that improves mood. Caffeine also alters the level of key neurotransmitters in the brain involved in moods, such as serotonin and dopamine. Caffeine is a stimulant, which may partially explain why it’s a mood lifter. It also decreases fatigue and increases mental alertness.
Caffeine Isn’t for Everyone
Caffeine can lead to undesirable mood changes in some people. Doses above 300 milligrams trigger anxiety in some people, although there’s a lot of variation in how people respond to caffeine. A cup of brewed coffee contains 80 to 100 milligrams of caffeine. Even decaf coffee contains modest amounts of caffeine, between 5 and 15 milligrams per cup.
One reason caffeine may cause undesirable mood changes depends on how quickly coffee drinkers metabolize caffeine. Some people have a variant of the CYPA1A2 gene that breaks caffeine down. This mutation slows caffeine breakdown and causes it to stay longer in the bloodstream. If you’re a slow metabolizer, you’re more likely to experience side effects from caffeine, including anxiety.
Whether you experience anxiety after drinking a few cups of caffeinated coffee also depends on how tolerant you are to the effects of caffeine. If you drink coffee most days of the week, you build a tolerance to the stimulant effects of caffeine, and you don’t feel as jittery as when you aren’t a regular coffee drinker, but coffee also won’t lift your mood as much if you’re tolerant to its effects.
According to Mayo Clinic, up to 400 milligrams of caffeine per day is safe for most people, but that doesn’t mean lesser amounts won’t cause anxiety if you’re tolerant to the activating effects of caffeine.
Other Components in Coffee May Contribute to Its Mood-Boosting Benefits
Coffee contains hundreds of bioactive compounds that may contribute to its mood-boosting benefits. One of the most intriguing is chlorogenic acid, a compound with strong antioxidant activity. Most people don’t realize that coffee is the number one source of antioxidants in the American diet, and one of those antioxidants is chlorogenic acid. It’s unclear whether chlorogenic acid contributes to a lower risk of depression or not.
Another Health Benefit of Coffee
This study is another in a long line of research suggesting that drinking coffee has health benefits. Recent research shows it may reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, gallstones, uterine cancer, cirrhosis of the liver, prostate cancer, cancers of the mouth and throat, type 2 diabetes, and liver cancer. These are merely associations though. It’s unclear whether there’s a causal link between drinking coffee and a lower risk of health problems, or whether coffee drinkers have other common lifestyle habits that make them less susceptible to these health problems.
At one time, experts believed drinking coffee boosted the risk of heart disease, but more recent studies don’t support this. Still, too much caffeine may be risky for people with high blood pressure and pre-existing heart disease.
The Bottom Line
Sipping a few cups of coffee may have mental and physical health benefits. But don’t overdo it if you’re prone to anxiety – and go light on the sugar. Too many calorie-laden extras can quickly undo the benefits of this healthy brew.
References:
- Archives of Internal Medicine. Vol. 171. No. 17. September 26, 2011.
- Socała K, Szopa A, Serefko A, Poleszak E, Wlaź P. Neuroprotective Effects of Coffee Bioactive Compounds: A Review. Int J Mol Sci. 2020 Dec 24;22(1):107. doi: 10.3390/ijms22010107. PMID: 33374338; PMCID: PMC7795778.
- NPR Blog. “Caffeinated Women May Be Fighting Depression with Every Cup”
- Physorg.com. “Coffee is Number One Source of Antioxidants”
- “Can Coffee Lower Cancer Risk?.” https://www.cancer.org/latest-news/can-coffee-lower-cancer-risk.html.
- Mayo Clinic. “What Does the Research Say About Coffee and Health?”
- “Caffeine: How much is too much? – Mayo Clinic.” 06 Mar. 2020, https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/caffeine/art-20045678.
- “Liver disease: Study links drinking any coffee with lower risk.” 28 Jun. 2021, https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/drinking-any-coffee-reduces-the-risk-of-liver-disease-study-finds.
- Tenore GC, Daglia M, Orlando V, D’Urso E, Saadat SH, Novellino E, Nabavi SF, Nabavi SM. Coffee and Depression: A Short Review of Literature. Curr Pharm Des. 2015;21(34):5034-40. doi: 10.2174/1381612821666150825145112. PMID: 26303345.
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