Coffee, friend or foe?
Coffee is one of the top metabolically supportive foods when used properly.
When used improperly, it can cause serious stress to your thyroid, adrenals and metabolism.
I find it fascinating that sugar, salt AND coffee stimulate cellular energy production- but I would guess that these are 3 things that many Americans try and completely avoid in their diets! Between this and the avoidance of carbs, (which I go over reasons here why you NEVER want to go on a low carb diet! Health Risks From Chronic Low Carb Dieting)
It is no wonder most people struggle losing weight or have such hormonal/metabolic imbalance.
Full disclosure: I have never been a coffee drinker. It wasn’t until I personally had a thyroid crisis years ago and became obsessed with all things thyroid that I discovered just how beneficial coffee can be. The more I read the science behind coffee, the more I found how it can be used to support thyroid function and restore healthy metabolism.
It also reminded me of my time living in France when we ended every meal with a coffee, even late at night. ( I chat about some of the French eating philosophy here: Holiday Weight Gain Prevention Tips)
If you’ve ever had coffee in France, you know it’s STRONG, and served with cream and sugar. Yet we never had issues sleeping!
Why was this?
One huge difference is that people simply aren’t properly preparing their coffee to be able to enjoy these benefits!
Think back to my example in France, we drank our coffee with cream and sugar, and at the end of a meal. Our coffee was NOT mass produced and naturally organic.
Many people drink their black coffee on an empty stomach, and rarely balance it with the proper macronutrients. Or they add fake sugars, plant based creamer (with a scary long ingredients list) or toxic commercial creamers to their mass-produced and heavily processed coffee grinds.
Also, most commercial coffee beans are often sprayed with pesticides when grown, and mold easily.
If coffee makes you feel stressed and jittery or if you experience blood sugar instability, insomnia, anxiety, it could be due to one of the reasons above.
It could also be that you have other underlying health issues contributing, such as poor liver function, poor diet, and nutritional deficiencies.
Tom Brimeyer is one of my absolute FAVORITE resources, and his protocol helped me quickly reverse my thyroid issues. He is a practitioner of functional medicine, health researcher, author and expert on thyroid and metabolism disorders, and he explains why you might feel bad while consuming coffee:
“... you’re either using it incorrectly or your liver’s store of glycogen is depleted because of poor dietary practices. It’s important to drink coffee with a complete meal, with milk or cream (carrageenan-free) to slow its absorption, and with adequate sugar to avoid potential stress effects.
The key is to use coffee to stimulate your thyroid and provide a bit of a boost. Some can handle only 2 tbsp. (30 ml) at a time. Others might be able to handle a cup. Tolerance will improve as your ability to regulate blood sugar improves. The amount of coffee you drink should never affect your sleep, even if taken at night.”
Please remember, even if you feel good drinking black coffee, or coffee on an empty stomach, that is due to adrenaline taking over while your body is in fight for flight mode. Long-term it will wreck your thyroid function, metabolism and adrenals.
Coffee (or high quality tea) is powerful because caffeine and the thyroid hormone induce similar actions in the body. Coffee is high in antioxidants, magnesium, certain B vitamins, and also helps to maintain production of thyroid hormone and other protective youth hormones.
It can also improve energy production and metabolism and helps protect you from five leading causes of death including heart disease, cancer, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, and diabetes.
As little as one cup of coffee per day can help protect your thyroid and can help you live a longer, happier, and healthier life.
So let’s recap!
If you want to turn your coffee is metabolism boosting and thyroid supporting - here are the rules.
Coffee MUST be tested to be free of toxins and mycotoxins
Coffee must be consumed with a meal
Coffee must be balanced with proper macronutrients (for coffee sweetener, choose between organic cane sugar, pure maple syrup, raw honey, or coconut sugar and NOT fake sugars or processed sugars like HFCS)
Here’s a balanced recipe that I use:
▪ Desired Amount of Coffee
▪2- 4 oz. of Raw cream or milk (NOT store bought fake or commercial creamers with chemical ingredients!)
▪ 1 tbsp. of Hydrolyzed Gelatin
▪ 1 tbsp. of the sugar listed above
(You can also make homemade marshmallows from gelatin and sugar and use that in your coffee instead!)
I also have quite a bit of info on why sugar is a CRUCIAL part of our diets. Like coffee, you can use sugar as a tool to help improve your thyroid function, boost your metabolism, and keep you satisfied—as long as you balance it properly with protein and fat. Some of that info can be found in the low-carb link above, and in some of the links below. I also plan on doing a post very soon with more of this info!
This brings me right back to my French families....
They all ate well rounded diets with grass fed butter, bread made from heritage grains, small batch cheeses, coffee, plenty of sea salt and desserts multiple times a week.
If you’re on a diet that excludes any of these food groups, I highly recommend reading some of the links I have posted to help you find your way back to true food freedom!
The Ultimate Guide to Coffee, Caffeine, and Your Thyroid
Coffee and Cancer: The Truth You Can’t Deny
3-Step Thyroid-Depression Protocol
3 Ways Coffee Can Heal Your Thyroid and Save Your Life