Does Coffee Cause Acne?
I know you’ve thought about it because almost all of my clients ask me “is coffee good or bad for me?”
Coffee and acne have an interesting connection, but this connection is not as directly related as you might think. Even if you don’t suffer from acne, but you have low energy, weight imbalances, hormone imbalances, and/or digestive issues, stay tuned because you are going to learn all you need to know about the benefits and negative effects of coffee.
As a functional nutritionist I focus on promoting the most nutrient dense foods in order to accelerate healing. Some people might do well with coffee, but the majority of people I see with chronic inflammation, weight gain, digestive complaints, low energy, and skin problems are challenged by coffee and need to eliminate it, sometimes permanently.
The Benefits of Coffee
Coffee is recognized to contain antioxidants and promotes motivation and focus. Some positive effects of the caffeine in coffee have been found in research to uplift mood by inhibiting the neurotransmitter adenosine, which allows dopamine and norepinephrine to rise. Coffee drinkers are also correlated with improved physical performance and studies on caffeine show it helps increase fat burning.
Coffee drinkers show positive correlations to lower risks of Type 2 diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases. Coffee also contains some essential B vitamins and small amounts of minerals.
The Side Effects of Coffee
Coffee is best compared to as a credit card. Every time you drink it, you go further and further into ‘energy debt’ and it makes it harder to replenish the natural energy production from the adrenals. The question is, “what type of coffee do you drink?”
Do you drink it black? Nitrobrew? Cold Brew? Espresso? Latte with sugar? Caramel frappuccino?
Brewed coffee contains 100-150 mg of caffeine, whereas green tea contains 36 mg. This is a significant difference of the stimulant caffeine. There are ways to drink coffee and reduce the amount of caffeine (espresso contains 80mg of caffeine) but even then, some individuals might be sensitive to the coffee bean itself. If this is the case, you can only know if you are sensitive if you cut coffee out completely in an elimination diet.
Coffee containing caffeine can cause dehydration, chronic constipation, electrolyte imbalances, fatigue, anxiety, insomnia, nausea, lack of appetite, irritation, and irregular heartbeats. Simply put, drinking coffee first thing in the morning starts your body on a roller coaster ride of stress, blood sugar highs and lows, and ups and downs in mood.
Even if you don’t feel jittery after drinking coffee, there are internal side effects. And sometimes there are external side effects such as acne. The spikes and dips in cortisol and blood sugar from drinking coffee contributes to insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is common in individuals who exhibit acne and weight gain. Most individuals who drink coffee often add sugar, which contributes to insulin resistance. An important first step in one’s health journey is to get rid of processed sugars and other nutrition and lifestyle behaviors that cause insulin resistance.
Does Caffeine Cause Acne?
Most of my clients ask, “well, is it the caffeine in the coffee or just coffee I’m sensitive to?” It could be both or either one!
Usually it is caffeine that gives people the most issues. Caffeine is technically a drug and can be addictive, create withdrawal symptoms, and is in highest amounts in coffee. Lowering caffeine can improve acne because how caffeine affects the stress response system, including cortisol. By lowering cortisol you can improve blood sugar balance, hormone balance and liver function by reducing caffeine intake. With less caffeine you will have less blood sugar crashes and less sugar cravings, so you won’t eat as much sugar. Higher sugar diets are linked to acne and you can read more here about why.
What are the Best Coffee Alternatives?
Swiss water organic decaf coffee or espresso
Dandelion root
Chicory root
RASA tea
Golden milk
Hot cacao
Roasted fig tea
Coffee enemas (YES! You heard right! Continue reading to find out why…)
Are Coffee Enemas Beneficial?
“So if caffeine is so bad for us, why should I put it up my butt?” This is a great question. One use of caffeine that is highly supportive to the detoxification system is to do a coffee enema. Not all of my clients embark on the enema adventure, but here are a few reasons that point to the benefits of coffee enema’s and why it might work better than drinking coffee.
How Coffee Enemas Work:
When coffee enters the colon, it bypasses the digestive process to allow coffee’s antioxidants to pass directly into the bloodstream. Rectal administration of ameliorative substances has been shown in research to improve effectiveness.
Specific coffee antioxidants such as kaweol and cafestol are shown in this study with rats to improve glutathione production, which is your body’s number one antioxidant and detox enzyme.
Dr. Max Gerson from the Gerson Institute says "Caffeine enemas cause dilation of bile ducts, which facilitates excretion of toxic cancer breakdown products by the liver and dialysis of toxic products from blood across the colonic wall." Though coffee enemas are specified to be helpful primarily for cancer, this type of detoxification support can be a preventive therapy and also be used for many individuals who are poor detoxifiers.
Key Benefits of Coffee Enemas:
Increased glutathione production
Increased bile flow and removal of toxins
Reduction of parasites and candida
Constipation relief
The truth is that you will find a lot of blogs that bash coffee enemas because there isn’t a lot of research on them. This might be changing due to their increased popularity! Let’s hope so.