Butter coffee, also known as Bulletproof coffee or keto coffee, is a beverage consisting of coffee, butter, and sometimes oil. While the idea of adding butter to your coffee might seem strange, it has gained popularity, particularly among followers of the ketogenic diet and those seeking a high-fat, low-carb breakfast replacement. This article delves into the potential benefits and risks of butter coffee, helping you decide if it's a worthwhile addition to your routine.
What is Butter Coffee?
Butter coffee is a concoction made by blending coffee with unsalted, grass-fed butter or ghee and medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil. Dave Asprey, the founder of Bulletproof, popularized this recipe in 2011, promoting it as a breakfast replacement. The popularity of both the recipe and Asprey's associated wellness products quickly grew.
Ingredients
While recipes can vary, the basic ingredients for butter coffee include:
- Coffee: Provides antioxidants and caffeine.
- MCT Oil: A rapidly digested oil usually made from coconut or palm kernel oil.
- Grass-fed Unsalted Butter or Ghee: Adds healthy fats and flavor.
Nutritional Information
A typical cup of butter coffee may contain:
- Calories: 230-500, depending on the recipe
- Fat: High in saturated fats
- Other Nutrients: May contain omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids
History of Butter Coffee
Although many believe that butter coffee is a modern concoction, this high-fat beverage has been consumed throughout history. Many cultures and communities, including the Sherpas of the Himalayas and the Gurage of Ethiopia, have been drinking butter coffee and butter tea for centuries. Some people living in high-altitude regions add butter to their coffee or tea for much-needed energy, as living and working in high-altitude areas increases their calorie needs. Additionally, people in the Himalayan regions of Nepal and India, as well as certain areas in China, commonly drink tea made with yak butter. In Tibet, butter tea, or po cha, is a traditional beverage consumed daily.
Read also: The Hoxsey Diet
Purported Benefits of Butter Coffee
Proponents of butter coffee claim it offers various benefits, including:
- Increased energy levels
- Weight loss
- Boosted mental clarity
- Reduced hunger
Let's examine these claims and the science behind them.
May Boost Energy
Caffeine, a stimulant found in coffee, can boost energy levels. Fans of butter coffee say caffeine isn’t the only reason that this brew provides a wide-awake start to the day. MCT oil can increase your energy levels, which may make it a powerful partner to the caffeine in coffee. Typically, your body stores dietary fats in its adipose tissue, the fat around and inside of your muscles. But MCT travels directly to your liver, where it’s processed into powerful energy particles called ketone bodies. Because medium-chain triglycerides are digested much quicker than other types of fats, they may lead to quicker bursts of energy. Butter and ghee also contain omega-3 and omega-6 fats that may slow down how quickly your body metabolizes caffeine. Butter coffee drinkers say this helps your body hold onto energy longer and avoid the crash that comes when the stimulant wears off.
May Help You Feel Full, But It Lacks Nutrients
MCT oil is thought to promote the release of hormones that tell your brain that your stomach is full, which can reduce your appetite and lead you to eat less (which may lead to weight loss). Medium-chain triglycerides may increase your satiety more than the long-chain triglycerides found in polyunsaturated fats like nuts, seeds and some other oils. And the butter in the coffee is very slowly digested, potentially causing you to feel fuller longer.
However, butter, oil and coffee, even when combined together, do not meet the standards of a well-balanced breakfast. It’s important to have more nutrients, like protein and fiber, to help keep you fuller longer and to avoid any energy crashes.
Read also: Walnut Keto Guide
May Improve Your Workouts, But So Can Healthier Foods
Grass-fed butter and ghee are high in omega-3 fatty acids, which are known to help battle inflammation and reduce joint pain. But you’re better off getting your omega-3s elsewhere. Grass-fed butter does contain some healthy omega-3s, but you can get more bang for your buck by consuming other sources of omega-3s, like salmon, walnuts and chia seeds. Some studies show that MCT oil may reduce your lactic acid levels, which is associated with being able to exercise harder and for longer. But more research is needed on how and whether MCT oil can affect workouts.
Mental Clarity and Cognitive Function
Butter coffee is said to boost mental clarity and improve cognitive function. If you’re following a keto diet, your liver converts MCTs into ketones. These ketones are a key source of energy for your brain cells. Although the utilization of ketones by your brain has been shown to benefit some neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, there’s no evidence to suggest that MCTs as a source of ketones enhances mental clarity. Rather, there’s evidence to suggest that the caffeine in coffee is what’s responsible for the purported boost in mental focus and alertness experienced after drinking butter coffee.
Potential Risks and Considerations
While butter coffee has its proponents, it's essential to consider the potential risks:
- High in Calories and Saturated Fats: A plain, black cup of coffee has zero fat and fewer than five calories, but that changes as soon as you add butter and oil. Depending on how you prepare it, one cup of bulletproof coffee can range from 230 to 500 calories. Those numbers creep higher if you add protein powder, as some drinkers do. Butter, ghee and MCT oil are also high in saturated fats. Consuming too much saturated fat is associated with an increased risk of heart disease and may cause your LDL cholesterol (sometimes called “bad” cholesterol) levels to spike. Bulletproof coffee is very high in calories and saturated fats, so this drink isn’t necessarily safe to be consuming every day. While healthy fats and oils do have a place in our daily diets, you’re better off getting monosaturated and polyunsaturated fat through olive oil, avocados, nuts, seeds, fatty fish and plant oils.
- Nutrient Imbalance: Replacing a nutritious breakfast with butter coffee displaces many important nutrients. Butter coffee is not a balanced way to start your day. Given that all of the calories in the drink come from fat, you miss out on other healthy nutrients like protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals.
- Gastrointestinal Issues: The high amount of fat in butter coffee can also cause stomach discomfort and other gastrointestinal issues like bloating and diarrhea, especially if you’re not used to consuming high amounts of fat.
- Cholesterol Levels: Furthermore, butter coffee contains a significant amount of cholesterol. For those who are considered hyper-responders, it may be a good idea to forgo butter coffee.
Who Should Avoid Butter Coffee?
Butter coffee is often incorporated into the keto diet, an eating style that isn’t recommended for everyone. But even if you’re not going full keto, there are some people who shouldn’t hop on the bulletproof coffee bandwagon. Skip this drink if you have:
- Diabetes: When you stay full longer, you may be inclined not to eat at regular intervals, which isn’t necessarily a good thing when you have diabetes. It’s not the safest route for people with diabetes, who need to be consuming a consistent amount of carbohydrates throughout the day. (Also of note: If you have diabetes, it’s very important to talk with your doctor before going keto.)
- Gastrointestinal issues: MCTs may actually be beneficial for people with GI issues who are experiencing weight loss, since they’re a shorter chain length and are digested and absorbed much more efficiently. But some people who try butter coffee report experiencing unpleasant side effects like bloating, diarrhea and an upset stomach after drinking it.
- Heart problems: People with high cholesterol and other heart issues are often advised to scale back on butter, due to its high amounts of saturated fat. Bulletproof coffee is definitely not part of a low-cholesterol diet.
How to Make Butter Coffee
If you're curious to try butter coffee, here's a basic recipe:
Read also: Weight Loss with Low-FODMAP
- Brew about 1 cup (8-12 ounces or 237-355 ml) of coffee.
- Add 1-2 tablespoons of coconut oil or MCT oil.
- Add 1-2 tablespoons of unsalted butter, or choose ghee, a type of clarified butter lower in lactose, if you don’t eat regular butter.
- Mix all ingredients in a blender for 20-30 seconds until it resembles a foamy latte.
Alternatives to Butter Coffee
Instead of drinking butter coffee, you could reap the benefits of coffee, grass-fed butter, MCT oil, and coconut oil by adding these ingredients to your regular diet in other ways. For example, try topping your sweet potatoes with a dollop of grass-fed butter, sautéing greens in coconut oil, adding MCT oil to a smoothie, or enjoying a hot cup of good-quality coffee during your morning commute. Two scrambled eggs with spinach, along with half a cup (45 grams) of oatmeal with flaxseed and berries, is a more nutritious meal that will do more good for your energy and overall health than a serving of butter coffee.