The paleo diet emphasizes consuming whole, unprocessed foods that our Paleolithic ancestors might have eaten. A frequently asked question within this dietary framework is whether coffee, a morning ritual for many, aligns with paleo principles. This article explores the compatibility of coffee with the paleo diet, considering its benefits, potential drawbacks, and how to consume it in a paleo-friendly manner.
Understanding Coffee’s Paleo Status
Coffee is derived from the seeds of the Coffea plant. Contrary to being a legume, the coffee bean is the seed inside the fruit of the coffee tree, also known as the coffee berry or "coffee cherry." This tropical tree or shrub originates in Africa and is part of the Rubiaceae family. These seeds are roasted to produce the familiar coffee beans. While our ancestors didn’t have access to coffee, the paleo diet isn’t solely about historical accuracy; it’s about choosing foods that support health and well-being.
To make coffee, the seeds of the coffee plant are ground, roasted, and then percolated. Once brewed, it can be consumed in a variety of ways. Coffee beans have been prepared, brewed, chewed, roasted, ground, and made into beverages for centuries. It is likely that these beans were around in the time of hunter-gatherers, although it is unlikely that ancient man was pausing every morning for a kick-start of caffeine. Ancient civilizations may have used coffee for the same reasons it is used today - the stimulating, energy-boosting properties it confers on the drinker.
The Case for Coffee in Your Paleo Plan
In its purest form, coffee is a calorie-free beverage without sugar or additives, making it a suitable choice for many on a paleo plan. Coffee is packed with antioxidants and has been linked to various health benefits, including improved mental focus and potential protective effects against certain diseases.
Drinking coffee has been linked to health improvements, from reducing the risk of certain cancers and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s to alleviating certain types of depression or depressive episodes. Coffee is much more than simply a drink to get your day started or a warm beverage enjoyed with a friend.
Read also: The Ultimate Smoothie Guide
Studies show that coffee can actually increase energy levels and make you feel less tired. Caffeine stimulates the nervous system, sending signals to the fat cells to break down fat and increase adrenaline levels in the blood. Caffeine stimulates the breakdown of body fat, which is then released into the bloodstream as free fatty acids to be utilized as fuel.
Considerations for Coffee Consumption
It’s essential to consider how coffee is consumed. Traditional paleo guidelines would exclude dairy milk and refined sugars, often found in popular coffee beverages. Instead, alternatives like almond or coconut milk and natural sweeteners like stevia or honey are preferred. If you like sweeteners or sugar in your coffee, go for honey, coconut sugar, maple syrup, or stevia.
Paleo Coffee Alternatives
If coffee isn’t right for you, there are other paleo-friendly beverages to consider. Herbal teas, bone broth, and even chicory root coffee are excellent alternatives that align with paleo principles. Green tea is a great alternative to coffee. It contains potent antioxidants that can protect against degenerative diseases and can reduce the risk of stroke and coronary heart diseases. Green tea also contains a moderate level of caffeine. In fact, one cup of green tea contains about a third of the caffeine found in one cup of coffee!
For chocolate lovers, try a homemade hot chocolate made with real cacao powder. Similar to green tea, cacao is full of antioxidants that can slow down age-related illnesses. Plus, you’ll still get a bit of caffeine, though the amount is so small that it has little stimulating effects on the nervous system.
The Dark Side of Coffee
Coffee has been harshly denigrated for its addictive properties, adrenal-draining potential, and ability to dysregulate hormones. The half-life of caffeine is 6 hours, meaning it takes 6 hours for the body to eliminate half of the coffee effect. Caffeine provides both an immediate and a long-term boost. It is this long-term boost that is a cause for concern due to the half-life of caffeine. This finding may offset the benefit of the fat-burning process that the coffee may offer.
Read also: Stay Hydrated on Keto
Coffee stimulates a hormone called cholecystokinin, which triggers the release of bile (from the gallbladder) and pancreatic enzymes. This can create an increase in acidity in the stomach. In excessive doses, this increased acidity over a long period of time results in an overly acidic solution leaving the stomach, which is irritating to the lining of the small intestine and can cause damage to the very thin epithelial tissue of our digestive system.
Regular coffee and caffeine consumption can result in dependency. A detailed review suggests that although caffeine triggers certain brain chemicals in similar ways to narcotics, it does not cause classic addiction. Coffee may, however, lead to psychological or physical dependency, especially at high dosages.
Paleo or not, there’s more to consider when it comes to coffee. It is also a matter of health and whether it’s doing you more harm than good, reason being, coffee has an addictive nature, gut-irritating properties, and elicits negative effects on sleep patterns. With that said, make sure your health and sleep are on track first before taking part in the coffee ritual.
Decaf Coffee: A Paleo Compromise?
Decaf coffee often comes into the conversation as a potential paleo-friendly option. However, the chemical process used to decaffeinate coffee beans can be at odds with the paleo emphasis on natural foods. If you opt for decaf, look for brands that use the Swiss Water Process, a natural method of decaffeination.
Furthermore, if you enjoy coffee, but it doesn’t agree with you, don’t feel like you have to give it up completely. Try decaffeinated or cold-brewed coffee. Decaf does not contain the caffeine that regular coffee does, however it is still present in trace amounts. Cold-brewed coffee can be made regular or decaf, and is much less acidic than traditionally brewed coffee (aka, easier on the gut).
Read also: Benefits of Oatmeal Drinks for Dieting
Technically, removing the caffeine from the plant is usually done through chemical processing that we consider too far from a natural, mechanical process. Also, be aware that the caffeine in decaf coffee is never fully removed. Each cup contains about 0-13.9 mg, while a regular cup of coffee contains approximately 95 mg of caffeine. However, if you’re a slow metabolizer of caffeine, or you’re sensitive to how it makes you feel, pay attention to that.
There are reasons decaf coffee beans aren't always great: it's expensive to decaffeinate coffee, so roasters in the past have bought cheap coffee beans to put in those blends. And because decaf is ordered less than coffees with caffeine, it's harder for even motivated baristas to keep it tasting great. But with the right sourcing of beans, roasting, and decaffeination, more and more delicious decafs are appearing every day, so you can find tasty coffee without caffeine.
Listening to Your Body
The impact of caffeine can vary from person to person. Some may experience negative effects such as jitteriness or disrupted sleep patterns, indicating a sensitivity to caffeine. For those individuals, reducing intake or opting for lower-caffeine alternatives like green tea might be advisable.
The rate of caffeine metabolism is quite variable from person to person, and as a result, so too is the effect it has on any individual. For most healthy adults, caffeine consumption is relatively safe. However, caffeine consumption can be harmful for some and may lead to impairments in cardiovascular function, sleep disruption, and substance use.
If you have symptoms of insomnia, jitteriness, upset stomach, headaches, or anxiety after drinking coffee, there’s a good chance you may be a slow metabolizer. The rate that you metabolize caffeine is genetic and cannot be changed. If the morning is the only time you can drink coffee because any other time will keep you up at night, you are likely a slow metabolizer.
One of the easiest ways to tell if you’re a fast or slow metabolizer is by noticing how coffee impacts your sleep. For most of us, if we drink coffee first thing in the morning, it won’t affect our sleep. The true test would be to drink coffee later in the day.
A word of caution - titrate off Coffee SLOWLY if you are dependent upon it - reduce by ½-1 cup per day.
Ways to Add Variety and Flavor
Here are some great ways to add variety, flavor, and a bit of fun to your morning brew, all without compromising any of the Paleo, real food values:
- Pumpkin Spice: Add pureed canned pumpkin (about 1 tablespoon per cup of coffee) with dashes of cinnamon, nutmeg, or pumpkin spice and coconut milk. Blend.
- Nutty Coffee: Add a few teaspoons of your favorite nut butter plus a little coconut oil and blend with coffee until nice and smooth.
- Holiday Spice: Add a teaspoon of your favorite spice or spice combo to jazz up your morning brew.
- Iced Coffee: Chill or add ice to your favorite brew and you can still keep it paleo.
- Mocha: Combine 12 oz of brewed coffee, 1 tablespoon of coconut milk, 1 tablespoon of coconut cream, 2 teaspoons of maple syrup, 1 teaspoon of raw honey, and anywhere from 2 teaspoons to a tablespoon of raw cacao. Enjoy!
- Bulletproof/Butter Coffee: Blend your morning coffee with a little grass-fed butter and MCT oil. For those who do not tolerate dairy, substitute grass-fed ghee.
- Cappuccino: Although I do not advocate having sweet treats daily, it is nice to be able to incorporate a few fun dessert-type beverages to help you stay on plan.
The Verdict
For most, coffee can be part of a paleo meal plan, especially when consumed black or with paleo-friendly additives. It’s about personal tolerance and how your body responds to caffeine. As with any dietary choice, moderation is key, and listening to your body’s signals is paramount.
Paleo Diet Basics
The paleo diet includes whole, unprocessed foods like vegetables, nuts, seeds, and meat. It may benefit your overall health and reduce your risk for some health conditions, including obesity. The paleo diet is designed to resemble what human hunter-gatherer ancestors ate thousands of years ago. Although it’s impossible to know exactly what human ancestors ate in different parts of the world, researchers believe their diets consisted of whole foods.
By following a diet of whole foods and leading physically active lives, hunter-gatherers presumably had much lower rates of lifestyle diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. This diet may lead to significant weight loss (without calorie counting) and major improvements in health.
Anthropologists also speculate that the paleo diet influenced anatomic and physiologic changes in humans, including increased brain size and reduced gastrointestinal tract size (1).
Paleolithic humans thrived on various diets, depending on what was available at the time and where in the world they lived. Some ate a low carb diet high in animal foods, while others followed a high carb diet with lots of plants (1). Some even ate insects, but fortunately, this delicacy is not included in today’s modern interpretation of the paleo diet.
The paleo diet plan includes (2):
- unprocessed meats
- fish
- eggs
- vegetables
- fruits
- nuts
- seeds
- herbs
- spices
- nutritious fats and oils
Foods to avoid typically include (2):
- processed foods
- added sugar
- soft drinks
- artificial sweeteners
Foods to limit include (2):
- grains
- most dairy products
- legumes
However, it’s important to consider the above as general guidelines, not something written in stone. You can adapt all of this to your own personal needs and preferences. The basic concept of the paleo diet is to eat whole foods and avoid processed foods.
Foods to avoid on the paleo diet include:
- Sugar and high-fructose corn syrup: soft drinks, fruit juices, table sugar, candy, pastries, ice cream, and many others
- Grains: bread, pasta, wheat, cereal, spelt, rye, barley, etc.
- Legumes: beans, lentils, and many more
- Dairy: most dairy, especially low fat dairy (some versions of paleo do include full-fat dairy like butter and cheese)
- Some vegetable oils: soybean oil, sunflower oil, cottonseed oil, corn oil, grapeseed oil, safflower oil, and others
- Artificial sweeteners: aspartame, sucralose, cyclamates, saccharin, acesulfame potassium (use natural sweeteners instead)
- Highly processed foods: everything labeled “diet” or “low fat” or that has many additives, including artificial meal replacements
A simple guideline for the paleo diet is, if it looks like it was made in a factory, avoid it. To avoid these ingredients, you must read ingredient lists and nutrition labels, even on foods labeled as “health foods.”
Foods to eat on the paleo diet include a variety of whole, unprocessed foods:
- Meat: Beef, lamb, chicken, turkey, pork, and others
- Fish and seafood: salmon, trout, haddock, shrimp, shellfish, etc (choose wild-caught if you can)
- Eggs: may be free-range, pastured, or omega-3 enriched
- Vegetables: broccoli, kale, peppers, onions, carrots, tomatoes, etc.
- Fruits: apples, bananas, oranges, pears, avocados, strawberries, blueberries, and more.
- Tubers: potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams, turnips, etc.
- Nuts and seeds: almonds, macadamia nuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and more
- Healthy fats and oils: extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, and others
- Salt and spices: sea salt, garlic, turmeric, rosemary, etc.
Many people prefer grass-fed meats, pastured eggs, and organic produce while following a paleo diet. However, this is not required.
Modified Paleo Diets
There are now several different versions of the paleo diet. Some allow more modern foods, such as grass-fed butter and gluten-free grains like rice. Today, many people think of paleo as a template to base your diet on, not necessarily a strict set of rules you must follow. You can also use the paleo diet as a starting point, adding in a few other healthy foods like grass-fed butter and gluten-free grains.
Sensible Indulgences
While following a paleo diet, the below foods and beverages below are perfectly fine in small amounts:
- Wine: Quality red wine is not only part of the paleo diet, but it is high in antioxidants, polyphenols, and beneficial nutrients (3, 4).
- Dark chocolate: Dark chocolate is very high in antioxidants and important minerals like magnesium and iron. Choose a product with 70% or higher cocoa content (3, 5, 6).
What to Drink on the Paleo Diet
When it comes to hydration, water should be your go-to beverage. The following drinks aren’t strictly paleo but are typically accepted as beverages you can consume as part of the diet (3):
- Tea: Tea, especially green tea, is very healthy and loaded with antioxidants and various beneficial compounds (7).
- Coffee: Coffee is very high in antioxidants as well. Studies show that it has many health benefits (8).
Potential Drawbacks of the Paleo Diet
While there are many benefits to the paleo diet, there are also some drawbacks. For example, the paleo diet eliminates several food groups that are highly nutritious, including legumes, dairy, and gluten-containing grains. Legumes are rich in fiber, protein, and various micronutrients, including iron, zinc, and copper, while dairy products have essential nutrients like calcium, which is important for bone health (9, 10). Eliminating these food groups can put individuals following a paleo diet at risk of developing nutrient deficiencies. In addition, legumes are one of the primary protein sources in the vegan and vegetarian diet, which may make the paleo diet unrealistic for vegans and vegetarians (11).
The paleo diet includes foods high in fiber, like vegetables, fruits, and nuts. Since foods high in fiber can have a laxative effect, a person transitioning from a low fiber diet to a paleo diet could experience gastric distress, such as bloating, as a result (12, 13).
It’s important to recognize that there’s no one “right” way to eat for everyone, so while the paleo diet may work for people you know, it may not be best for you. You may want to talk with a doctor or nutritionist before starting a paleo diet.
Sample Paleo Menu
This sample menu contains a balanced amount of paleo-friendly foods. By all means, adjust this menu based on your own preferences.
- Monday
- Breakfast: eggs and vegetables fried in olive oil, one piece of fruit
- Lunch: chicken salad with olive oil, a handful of nuts
- Dinner: burgers (no bun) fried in butter, vegetables, salsa
- Tuesday
- Breakfast: bacon, eggs, one piece of fruit
- Lunch: leftover burgers from the night before
- Dinner: baked salmon with vegetables
- Wednesday
- Breakfast: leftover salmon and vegetables from the night before
- Lunch: sandwich in a lettuce leaf, with meat and fresh vegetables
- Dinner: ground beef stir-fry with vegetables, berries
- Thursday
- Breakfast: eggs, one piece of fruit
- Lunch: leftover stir-fry from the night before, a handful of nuts
- Dinner: fried pork, vegetables
- Friday
- Breakfast: eggs and vegetables fried in olive oil, one piece of fruit
- Lunch: chicken salad with olive oil, a handful of nuts
- Dinner: steak, vegetables, sweet potatoes
- Saturday
- Breakfast: bacon, eggs, one piece of fruit
- Lunch: leftover steak and vegetables from the night before
- Dinner: baked tilapia, vegetables, avocado
- Sunday
- Breakfast: leftover salmon and vegetables from the night before
- Lunch: sandwich in a lettuce leaf, with meat and fresh vegetables
- Dinner: grilled chicken wings, vegetables, salsa
Simple Paleo Snacks
If you get hungry between meals, there are plenty of paleo snacks that are simple and easily portable:
- Toasted almonds or mixed nuts
- Hard-boiled eggs
- Fresh fruits and vegetables, including baby carrots, celery sticks, and sliced apples
- Dairy-free chia pudding
Simple Paleo Shopping List
There is an incredible variety of foods you can eat on the paleo diet. This simple shopping list should give you an idea of how to get started:
- Meat: beef, lamb, pork, etc.
- Poultry: chicken, turkey, etc.
- Fish: salmon, trout, mackerel, etc.
- Eggs
- Fresh vegetables: greens, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, carrots, onions, etc.
- Frozen vegetables: broccoli, spinach, various vegetable mixes, etc.
- Fruits: apples, bananas, pears, oranges, avocado
- Berries: strawberries, blueberries, etc.
- Nuts: almonds, walnuts, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts
- Almond butter
- Olive oil
- Olives
- Sweet potatoes
- Condiments: sea salt, pepper, turmeric, garlic, parsley, etc.
How to Make Restaurant Meals Paleo
Here are some simple guidelines:
- Order a meat- or fish-based main dish.
- Get extra vegetables instead of bread or rice.
- Ask for your food to be cooked in olive oil or avocado oil.
Bulletproof Coffee Recipe
This recipe for bulletproof coffee makes spending half your paycheck on lattes much less tempting.
Ingredients:
- Coffee beans
- Ghee
- Coconut oil
Instructions:
- Grind your coffee beans and brew your coffee.
- Put the 8 oz. hot coffee, ghee, and coconut oil into an immersion blender cup or regular blender. At this point, you could also add a dash of cinnamon, cardamom, or sweetener of your choice.
- Blend on high for at least 30 seconds. This will ensure that the coconut oil and ghee to emulsify with the coffee. When it's fully blended, it'll look like a normal cup of coffee with cream and maybe even a little froth on the top.