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The joys of a morning cup of coffee cannot be denied, and on the whole coffee actually boasts a multitude of health benefits from weight loss to energy levels. However, the nutritional value of your coffee relies heavily on how you prepare your cup of joe in the morning. In order to craft the perfect coffee for weight loss, this is the one add-on that health experts recommend omitting.
In order to maximize the nutritional value of your morning coffee, health expert Lynell Ross suggests avoiding sugary flavored syrups. While they may be delicious and elevate your beverage to dessert status, an overload of sugar in the morning can be detrimental to your overall health and add unnecessary calories to an otherwise healthy drink. Ross explains, “The problem is, for each pump of syrup added you get 4 grams of sugar or the equivalent of one teaspoon.”
According to the American Heart Association, the suggested daily intake of sugar should not exceed 26g. When you start your morning off with an onslaught of sugar, you come close to reaching your daily intake goals before you’ve even eaten any food. When you order a sweet drink at a coffee shop, Ross breaks down the nutrition facts you should be prepared for. “A tall coffee contains 3 pumps or 12 grams of sugar, a grande has 16 grams, and a venti or large contains 20 grams of sugar, or 5 teaspoons of sugar,” she says.
Sugar, while adding wonderful flavor to your coffee, is highly addictive and can dramatically impact your body for the worse. Ross explains, “Adding too much sugar to your coffee adds unnecessary calories, while eating too much sugar daily is hard on our pancreas, which can lead to type 2 diabetes.” Sugar is fine to be eaten in moderation, but in large doses and especially first thing in the morning it can set back your weight loss goals.
How you start your day and which habits you enforce set the tone for your weight loss success. As a general rule, whole foods should be the priority in your diet, so when you overload your coffee with syrups in the morning, it enables your sweet tooth and makes it more difficult to make sustained healthy choices throughout your day. You can still enjoy a cup of coffee in the with coconut milk or low sugar creamers for some added sweetness, but the sooner you minimize your sugar intake, the sooner you’ll see the weight loss results you’ve been looking for.
