5 reasons to quit coffee (and how to drink it if you can’t resist)

Many of my patients ask me if drinking coffee is as bad as they say, if they really should stop drinking it to be healthy, since they love it and it is one of their comfort food.

Personally, I only drink coffee when I travel, usually when I’m in Spain, and it’s more social than out of necessity. I will not deny that I love its flavor and aroma, but I can boast that now I take it for pleasure and not because I need to wake up or because I am looking for an “energy shot” to continue with my day.

since i stopped drinking coffee In the mornings, since I made the change to a cleaner diet, I wake up with a lot of vitality, and if I need help to continue with my tasks before finishing the day, I always have healthy alternatives available.

But first I want to explain my reasons for stopping drinking coffee on a regular basis:

1. Coffee is an extremely acidifying drink. in a lifestyle eat clean we want to pamper our body with foods that promote blood alkalinity and do not activate compensation mechanisms in the body such as decalcifying the bones and injecting calcium (alkalizing mineral) into our blood plasma.

2. Coffee can deprive us of nutrients. An abuse of coffee can cause a deficiency of group B vitamins, specifically B1, thiamine. This can make us feel tired, nervous and sore. In addition, consuming coffee on a regular basis can cause poor absorption of nutrients in the small intestine, which would lead to future deficiencies.

3. Coffee is one of the crops to which more pesticides are applied. The main exporters of coffee are South American countries, such as Colombia, where pesticides such as heptachlor, chlordane and dieldrin are used. These chemicals are toxins to our body.

4. Drinking coffee for a long time can take its toll on our liver, the main organ in charge of burning fat and purifying the body. The liver can be overburdened trying to clean out all the chemical residues from the coffee, along with all its caffeine. This prevents our blood from being properly cleaned and we can regenerate our tissues healthily.

5. Coffee stresses the adrenal glands. Are you one of those who can not get rid of dark circles? This may be related to overloading your adrenal glands. Coffee contains an acidic oil that irritates the stomach lining and promotes heartburn. This causes our body to secrete adrenaline, which in turn stimulates insulin secretion and can trigger hypoglycemia, leading to cravings for sweets, energy ups and downs, and mood swings.

Still, if you insist on drinking coffee, here are my recommendations:

Always drink organic coffee: do not contaminate your body with all the chemicals used in the cultivation of coffee. Don’t think decaf is better: Decaffeinated coffee is decaffeinated using a chemical called trichlorethylene, the same one used for dry cleaning and metal degreasing. If you like to drink your coffee with milk or sugar, use non-dairy milks and sweeteners like stevia, coconut nectar, or maple syrup. We do not want to further acidify the drink by adding dairy or sugar. Switch to teas: black tea, yerba mate or Matcha tea contain substances similar to caffeine or its derivatives but in smaller amounts, and are good substitutes in your transition. Do not drink more than 1 coffee a day. A cup of coffee is not going to hurt you, but it will always be better if you reduce it to a few times a week.