Is Caffeine Hurting Your Health & Performance?

Let’s face it, many of us love our coffee; whether it’s the smell of freshly brewed, the taste, or just out of habit. More so, many turn to it for that morning energy or pick me up during the day.

You will often find caffeine in pre-workout supplements for increased energy and to help with endurance and focus.

Coffee has been, and continues to be studied to have health benefits for some. However, there are a few reasons why you may want to consider reducing your caffeine consumption.

Some of you can drink it with no problem, HOWEVER some people metabolize it differently and have a harder time breaking it down in the liver. Coffee can contribute to estrogen dominance which is too much estrogen in relation to progesterone or excessive estrogen in the body that you can’t metabolize. If you have cellulite & PMS you may have estrogen dominance. Estrogen dominance can also affect your thyroid by inhibiting T4 to T3 conversion. For those of you with known thyroid issues, coffee can impact the absorption of levothyroxine. If you do drink it, wait a couple of hours after taking your medication to have any coffee.

Caffeine can further disrupt sleep for menopausal women and contribute to hot flashes. It stimulates the nervous system, increasing agitation and nervousness. Too much caffeine can deplete the body of vitamin B6, which is crucial for the production of serotonin.

Caffeine can also increase your blood sugar levels (leading to sugar & carb cravings) and creates cortisol spikes which leads to more inflammation. Some signs of inflammation are skin problems, fatigue and body aches and pains. If you already have elevated cortisol levels from both physical and mental stress, caffeine can exacerbate this.

Finally, if you are working hard to increase your fitness, caffeine may interfere with your post workout recovery. It comes down to hormone management. When we workout, our cortisol levels naturally increase and stay elevated while glycogen levels slowly decline as your body uses up energy (glycogen is stored in your muscles).

We want to consume post workout fuel (let’s say a protein shake with carbs) to help replenish glycogen stores. Additionally, our androgen hormones are released to help repair and rebuild our muscle; at the same time cortisol levels should be declining. However, caffeine consumption (particularly post-workout) can keep cortisol levels elevated and may interfere with this post workout recovery process.

Everyone is different and has different tolerance levels. My goal is to help provide information so you can make the best choices for you.