Does Drinking Coffee Make You Dehydrated? Is Coffee Bad For You?
Come on, Joe, let us know!
Coffee is the devil’s brew, they say. Drink tea instead, or some such hogwash.
See the two hand-painted ceramic mugs above? My wife and I were fortunate to enjoy rich, locally-grown coffee from a plantation near Huatulco, Mexico.
We sat across from a park at La Crucecita and watched the people. The location was a treat. The coffee made it even better.
We drink coffee every day. But I've been told that I should quit drinking so much of it.
“Tim! Drinking coffee is bad for you. Coffee makes you lose liquid because you pee too much. It turns you into a dangerously dehydrated human raisin. All of that caffeine opens the gates to hell and summons the Cenobites! Don’t drink so much coffee, Tim! Yer gonna die!”
But where did this idea come from? I guess that some joykillers didn’t like coffee, and they started a propaganda campaign to turn the world against the brown-tinted water of life.
Side note: Are you one of those who get jittery after drinking coffee? Do you take it black or add a bunch of extra products to it, like sugar or non-dairy “creamer?” And if so, are you sure the jitters are just from the coffee, or all the additives? Things to think about.
A Daily Coffee Habit
All around the world, people start their day drinking water tinted brown with special plant juice.
I have a cup of Joe on the go right now in my favorite mug. I drink six or so cups before noon each day.
“I like coffee because it gives me the illusion that I might be awake.” — Lewis Black
I’ve been warned that my coffee habit will dehydrate my body and ruin my health. That caffeine is destroying my insides, rewiring my soul for jittery sadness and eventual enslavement by the Underdark.
Maybe you’ve heard similar threats.
You might worry about wrecking your body by peeing out all of your fluids. Maybe your caffeine levels are astronomical and dangerous. You could end up living in a van, down by the river, if you don’t smarten up and cut the Joe.
Will the health police take away your birthday because you drink too much coffee?
Coffee is Mostly Water
Water is the main ingredient of coffee at almost 99%. Soluble plant matter from the grounds tints the water brown with its special plant juice.
An average cup of Joe contains up to 90 mg of caffeine. There are also substances like 2-Ethylphenol, quinic acid, antioxidants, and more. This combination of chemicals gives you the flavor and caffeine jolt that coffee addicts are looking for.
Coffee might keep you healthy. The polyphenols can help stave off heart disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. You can get these polyphenols from many veggie and fruit sources, including black, green, and herbal teas.
“I put instant coffee in a microwave oven and almost went back in time.” — Steven Wright
What’s a Safe Level of Caffeine?
The FDA recommends less than 400 mg of caffeine a day. They tell us that toxic effects occur at levels of 1200 mg a day or more.
If you drink 4 cups of coffee, each containing around 90 mg of caffeine, you are only getting 360 mg. This is well below the government's recommendations.
Compare it with the massive dose a person gets from several energy drinks. They can pack up to 200 mg each, depending on the serving size. I know people who have 4 or more energy drinks a day, so they might be getting close to the toxic level.
Does Coffee Make You Dehydrated?
This is the naysayer’s biggest concern: That coffee makes you pee too much. And we definitely want to stay hydrated.
Coffee is a mild diuretic. Your body flushes out some water and sodium after drinking it. You WILL lose a bit of water.
But guess what!
The amount lost is lower than the amount going in. Some experts say that there’s a net gain of fluids equivalent to 50% of your coffee volume.
In other words, drink 1 cup of coffee, and your body keeps up to half a cup it didn’t have before.
Coffee is hydrating.
Take a look at this study, where they found “no evidence of dehydration with moderate daily coffee intake” :
“These data suggest that coffee, when consumed in moderation by caffeine habituated males provides similar hydrating qualities to water.” — Sophie C Killer , Andrew K Blannin , Asker E Jeukendrup
If you are a caffeine-habituated male, you are probably hydrated by coffee. We can extrapolate that all human beings with a similar digestive tract, including human kidneys, bloodstream, etc., should get some hydration from coffee. This means you.
Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D. backs this up at The Mayo Clinic. She said, “While caffeinated drinks may have a mild diuretic effect — meaning that they may cause the need to urinate — they don’t appear to increase the risk of dehydration.”
Common sense tells you this. Do you really think you lose more than a full cup of fluid every time you down a cup of coffee?
You know you don’t.
If coffee could dehydrate you so badly, going on a coffee bender Monday morning after an all-weekend party binge would put you in the emergency room with a case of dying.
Warning: Coffee is a hydrating drink meant for adults. There are no studies available on dosing your kids with it. But anecdotal evidence suggests coffee has strange effects on toddlers, so be careful! Experts recommend hydrating your children with other beverages instead.
Adding Junk to Your Coffee Could Still Make It Unhealthy
So, having a couple of cups of Joe won’t overload you with caffeine, and you won’t get dehydrated. Hold the phone, though. We aren’t out of the coffee plantation yet!
Do you put a bunch of junk in that cup, like sugar and cream and booze? Then maybe you’re loading up on stuff you really shouldn’t.
Around 35% of North Americans drink their coffee black. That means the rest of you are crudding it up with all kinds of pollution.
“When I wake up in the morning, I just can’t get started until I’ve had that first, piping hot pot of coffee.
“Oh, I’ve tried other enemas.” — Emo Philips
You are asking your body to deal with a lot if you add sugar, dairy, whipped topping, or booze to every cup you throw down the hatch. Those mugs of coffee with cream and sugar can add up to weight gain fast.
And what is all that sugar doing to your body? In this article about how protein cuts cravings, I mentioned that every time you ingest carbohydrates (sugar), your body gives you a shot of insulin. If you’re overweight or have a body type that tends to pack on pounds, that’s the signal for you to store fat.
Sugar = Insulin = Fat Storage
Skinny people, you aren’t off the hook. Insulin will put on visceral fat as well. You can’t see it, so you think you’re in the clear, but you’re not!
“Visceral fat is fat that wraps around your abdominal organs deep inside your body. You can’t always feel it or see it. In fact, you may have a pretty flat tummy and still have visceral fat. That’s sometimes called TOFI, or "thin outside fat inside." — WebMD.com
So. each sugary drink will make you fatter. No ifs, and, or buts.
Forget about the negative health effects of coffee. Worry about that white sugar devil and leave my buddy Joe alone.
One cup of coffee is under around 90 mg of caffeine. The FDA recommends less than 400 mg/ day.
Studies show that coffee can be hydrating.
The real health-ruining culprit is the junk you put in it!
Your friend Joe helps you get through Monday and all the other days ending with Y.
I’m not going to worry about my coffee habit. If anyone gives you a hard time about your Joe, send them my way! We can meet for a hot beverage and talk it out.
I drink both coffee and tea - I haven't had a problem except perhaps for the teeth - it discolors the teeth
Here's the thing. I enjoy coffee and drink up to three cups prior to noon. But without equal or more amounts of water, my lady bits get all jittery (and that isn't necessarily a good thing), I feel dehydrated, and my digestive system gets disrupted... So, my habit is water first, then coffee. If I want another coffee (and I always do if it's prior to noon), then I drink a tall glass of water with lemon first. The only drawback to doubling up on coffee and water? You gotta stay close to the loo. :) So, if you know you're gonna get stuck in traffic, the water/coffee combo will have to wait. Just sayin'.