If there’s one topic of coffee research I don’t like to delve into, it’s coffee’s potential effects on fat loss. Diet culture and unrealistic body image standards have made this a fraught topic, and I hate approaching anything that feels like telling someone what to do with their own body. So before we go any further, let me start by saying that losing weight – even losing body fat – does not equate to being healthier. This may be the case in some cases, but not in all. Health is a matter between you and your doctor, not you and a scale or a mirror.
With all this said, if your goal is to lose fat, recent research suggests that coffee may aid. But the brewing method matters.
As reported Medical news todaya recent study by a team of Danish researchers examines how one coffee compound affects metabolic health. Last month, a study was published in the journal in which researchers sought to investigate how cafestol affects insulin sensitivity. During the 12-week study, 40 “fit people with increased waist circumference at risk of developing type 2 diabetes” were divided into two groups: those receiving cafestol and a control group. The cafestol group received 6 mg of the compound twice daily for the duration of the experiment, while the control group received a placebo.
The researchers found that although insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance did not improve, cafestol was associated with “significant reductions in body weight (2%) and visceral fat volume (5%).” Researchers say this alone may aid reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.
However, there is a catch. Although cafestol is a naturally occurring compound in coffee, how you prepare your coffee will have a huge impact on its levels. Unfiltered brewing methods – espresso, French press, Turkish coffee, etc. – have a much higher cafestol content compared to filter brewing.
Due to the very restricted nature of the study, further research is needed to establish a causal link between cafestol and fat loss, but the results offer some hopeful insight into future options for preventing type 2 diabetes. So if weight loss is your goal, don’t bench press. French press only! (But also bench press, because exercise is good for you.)
