When most bodybuilders drink coffee, all they think about is the fact that it contains caffeine. But in addition to caffeine, coffee also contains hundreds of other components, including chlorogenic acid, quinides, lignans, and trigonelline, which significantly improve insulin sensitivity or glucose levels.
In cross-sectional studies, coffee consumption has been associated with higher adiponectin concentrations (i.e., increased insulin sensitivity), lower concentrations of inflammatory markers, and lower levels of markers of liver damage.
Now, a Nutrition Journal study also indicates that men who consumed caffeinated coffee have more testosterone. In the study, subjects were assigned to caffeinated and decaffeinated groups. Participants consumed five 2g portions of instant coffee per day (caffeinated or decaffeinated Nestlé’s Taster’s Choice), which was mixed with approximately six ounces of boiling water and consumed with every meal as well as mid-morning and mid-afternoon.
After four weeks, results showed that only the caffeinated group experienced significant increases in total testosterone and decreases in both total and free estradiol. The researchers suggest that caffeine may act as an aromatase inhibitor that causes increased testosterone production.
So, the next time you reach for a cup of coffee, be sure to ask for leaded!!
REFERENCE: Wedick NM, Nutr J., 11(1):86, Oct 19, 2012.
