Hold Off On That Cup of Joe: Why You Shouldn’t Drink Coffee First Thing in the Morning

For many people having a cup of coffee first thing in the morning is something they can’t live without, so having a cup of coffee when you first wake up becomes an ingrained routine. Some feel like they can’t get their day started until they have a cup of joe and who can blame them? For enthusiasts, coffee tastes wonderful, helps wake you up, and can even benefit your health. Many feel like they cannot function until they’ve had their first cup of coffee, and coffee can come before anything else, even breakfast. However, despite the fact that coffee tastes heavenly when you wake up, there is a reason why you shouldn’t drink coffee first thing in the morning.

It turns out that drinking coffee shortly after waking up is counterproductive and is not the ideal time to have a cup of joe. Our cortisol levels are the highest first thing in the morning, and cortisol is a key component of a person’s natural hormonal cycle or circadian clock, which helps wake us up and wind us down in the morning and at night. Unfortunately, when you consume caffeinated coffee during the time when your cortisol production is high, your body will rely more on the caffeine and will produce less cortisol instead, upsetting your natural body clock. Ingesting coffee during peak cortisol-production will teach your body to produce less cortisol and can make you become reliant on coffee to keep you awake. This can create a vicious cycle and can contribute to developing a tolerance for coffee, which means you will need to drink more to feel the same effects and can become reliant on it.

“There’s a better time to brew your morning cup of joe” according to Dr. Salerno, “coffee’s health benefits are being increasingly realized and at the Salerno Center we have seen cortisol levels dropping in many patients. This is likely a cause since caffeine will diminish cortisol, so drink caffeine an hour after awakening!” Cortisol levels also rise during other times of the day, between 12 noon and 1 pm, as well as between 5:30 to 6:30 pm so make sure you enjoy your cup of coffee outside of these time windows.

When you wake up first thing in the morning, don’t immediately reach for a cup of coffee, instead wait an hour. Your health will thank you for it. Instead, if you are looking to limit your consumption of caffeine but still want to stay energized throughout the day, learn more about which energizing foods you can add into your daily diet.