Could your cuppa joe be undoing your diet? Yes, and the effect is four times worse in children.
In his recently published book, The Decaf Diet, which is less a diet book than an in-depth study of humans’ relationship with caffeine, Eugene Wells sets up the argument that “regular caffeine consumption encourages overeating, making weight loss and lasting leanness very difficult to achieve.”
How? Caffeine contributes to insulin resistance by spiking insulin levels when ingested. It also breaks down muscle tissue, leading to a slower resting metabolism. And caffeine’s diuretic effects rid the body of important nutrients, the absence of which causes the brain to start sending hunger signals. Finally, caffeine raises cortisol levels, which also spikes insulin and causes weight gain around the belly.
Wells is careful to point out that these effects arise mostly from long-term habitual use of caffeine, and that it is not necessary for adults to eliminate caffeine altogether to avoid its harmful effects. But he warns that earlier and heavier use of caffeine in children and young adults may cause health problems that are much harder to reverse.
