Lots of people canât start their day without the energy boost from a cup of coffee, but the upside is that our beloved brew does come with some health benefits. The beans are high in antioxidants, which can help support brain health, athletic performance and energy levels. Want to get even more perks from your cup? Try these for better taste and bonus health boosts.
- Properly store your beans- This one is more about the taste, but to keep your coffee beans as fresh as possible, keep them away from oxygen, moisture and light. That means an airtight, opaque container in the pantry or cabinet is probably the ideal place to store them.
- Buy dark-roasted, fresh coffee beans- To protect brain health, nutritional psychiatrist Uma Naidoo recommends dark-roasted beans over light or medium because they have the lowest levels of acrylamide, a chemical that forms when beans are roasted.
- Grind your coffee beans before each brew- Ground coffee loses flavor quickly, so buying beans whole and grinding your own freshly every day is the best way to optimize the flavor of your brew.
- Make it cold brew- It has about 65% less acidity than regular hot coffee, so registered dietitian Nour Zibdeh explains cold brew coffee can be easier on the gut and more tolerable for those with acid reflux.
- Try microdosing- Most of us down a couple full cups of coffee to start our morning, but integrative gastroenterologist Marvin Singh advises switching to caffeine microdosing instead. This means enjoying smaller amounts at a time, like having a cup of coffee in the morning, then switching to green tea the rest of the day. He says this helps eliminate that dreaded afternoon crash or unwanted jitters, while giving you little boosts throughout the day.
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