2023-08-10 02:50:57
Can’t you start the day without coffee? But should you drink coffee on an empty stomach?
Pexels/George Milton
Published10. Aug 2023, 4:50 am
Myth or not: Coffee on an empty stomach – is that healthy or unhealthy?
Coffee in the morning but just no time for breakfast? A gastroenterologist reveals whether this is unhealthy – or absolutely okay.
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Who doesn’t know it: You want to start your morning, but you have to decide what you make time for today. A long shower or breakfast? You still have to prepare a few things for breakfast and you are so tired that the shower wins the inner conflict. Instead of a balanced breakfast, there is coffee on an empty stomach. Because you really can’t leave the house without it. But is that healthy?
There is good news: drinking coffee on an empty stomach isn’t inherently bad for your health. Your stomach can usually adjust to your coffee preference. However, drinking coffee on an empty stomach can make you feel unwell.
Caffeine stimulates acid production
An expert explains to the “Huffpost” how coffee behaves on an empty stomach. Coffee is a naturally acidic beverage. The gastroenterologist Dr. Supriya Rao explains that “caffeine stimulates the production of the hormone gastrin, which is responsible for producing stomach acid”. While this compound helps kickstart the digestive process, it also makes the stomach acidic.
Coffee on an empty stomach can cause hyperacidity.
Pexels/Viktoria Alipatova
The expert makes it clear: “Coffee has a pH of around 5, while our stomach acid has a pH of around 2, making the latter more acidic.” Our stomach, when healthy, should be able to handle the acidity added by drinking coffee.
May cause discomfort
However, this differs from coffee lover to coffee lover. How come? “Everything you eat causes the production of stomach acid, but coffee produces more of it,” explains the gastroenterologist. And further: “So if you feel bloated or have upper abdominal pain and nausea after drinking coffee on an empty stomach, you know that you have problems with it.”
But if coffee is essential so early in the morning, you can trick your stomach. A small snack will help. “Food gives you a little buffer in terms of acidity,” explains the expert, emphasizing that the food balances out the acidity of the coffee by absorbing some of the liquid.
Drinking coffee on an empty stomach is not harmful to your health, but it can cause heartburn.
Pexels/Valeriya Kobzar
Sounds like drinking coffee on an empty stomach is safe – at least for the stomach. Because he has slime to protect himself. However, the situation is different with the esophagus. The expert says: “It’s more about the fact that the esophagus is not able to cope with this type of acid damage. Nothing dangerous will happen to you – it’s not like coffee causes ulcers – but you might just feel uncomfortable.”
This theory has been corroborated by a number of studies, including one published in the Library of Medicine has been published. According to this study, coffee can help relax the lower esophageal sphincter, which can lead to heartburn.
What do you drink when you don’t want to drink coffee?
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