I love my coffee. I love starting the day getting my coffee ready with my Jura Coffee maker (after my liter of water and alkalize!). The euphoric high it gives me to start the work day is my kryptonite. YET! Drinking black coffee is something I now completely avoid as it can be detrimental to my adrenal health.
Part of the reason coffee (and caffeine) makes us feel so energized is because it induces cortisol release in the body. Cortisol is our primary stress hormone and is also known as a glucocorticoid. Thus, not only does cortisol make us anxious it can also elevate our blood sugar levels.
When this occurs, we feel the following:
- Anxiety
- Sugar cravings
- An energy slump mid-afternoon
- Impaired sleep
- Lower HRV - indicating the body is more stressed
- Higher resting heart rate - also indicating a stressed body
With these continued cortisol spikes, eventually caffeine could be exacerbating our fatigue rather than combatting it.
Caffeine is interesting because everyone has varying responses. We all respond to caffeine a little differently based on the amount of caffeine receptors distributed in the brain. This is dependent on genetics, caffeine intake, and lifestyle factors. The more adenosine receptors you have in the brain, the less jittery and anxious caffeine will make you feel. This is why some individuals can drink black coffee all day and sleep soundly while others have one cup of black coffee in the morning and their entire day and night’s sleep are ruined.
I aim to blunt caffeine’s negative effects by implementing one or more the following:
- Add a form of fat: MCT oil, full fat coconut milk, or almond milk
- Add a scoop of collagen
- Consume with food
Abiding by one or more of the above will help neutralize the cortisol spike caused by caffeine so you still gain its energizing effects without having as severe of a blood sugar spike and resultant anxiety.
