Coffee: How Much Is Fine

Coffee has been blamed for a long list of problems and credited with a long list of benefits. For most healthy adults the answer sits in the middle: a moderate amount is fine, and what you put in the cup often matters more than the coffee itself.

How much is too much

The commonly used limit for healthy adults is up to about 400 milligrams of caffeine a day. During pregnancy the advice is to stay at or under about 200.

The harder part is knowing how much is in the cup. An 8 ounce cup of brewed coffee carries roughly 80 to 100 milligrams, and a shot of espresso about 65. A large coffee shop drink can be 300 milligrams or more by itself, so "three cups" can mean very different amounts depending on the size and the source.

Caffeine blocks adenosine, the chemical that builds up through the day and makes you sleepy. Its half life is roughly 5 hours, so about half of a 2 pm coffee is still in your system at 7 pm. That is why we suggest a cutoff in the early afternoon for most people, earlier for anyone whose sleep is light. Caffeine can shorten and lighten sleep even in people who fall asleep without trouble.

Who should drink less

• People with high blood pressure. Caffeine raises blood pressure a few points for a few hours. Regular drinkers partly adapt, but it is worth checking readings taken after coffee.
• People with anxiety or panic symptoms. Caffeine raises adrenaline and cortisol, and higher doses can bring on jitteriness, a racing heart or panic in sensitive people.
• Slow metabolizers. Some people clear caffeine much more slowly than others, partly because of genetics, so one cup lasts far longer in them.
• People with reflux or palpitations that track with their coffee.

For most others, observational studies consistently tie moderate coffee intake to the same or lower rates of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Those studies cannot prove cause, but they do not point to harm at moderate amounts.

What goes in the cup

A large flavored coffee drink with syrup, whole milk and whipped cream can carry 300 calories or more and as much sugar as a can of soda. Daily, that adds up quickly, and it is often the part people never count.

Brewing method matters too. Unfiltered coffee, such as French press or boiled coffee, keeps oils that raise LDL cholesterol. A paper filter catches most of them. For someone with a high ApoB who drinks several cups of unfiltered coffee a day, switching to filtered coffee is an easy change.

Black or with a splash of milk, filtered, and finished by early afternoon covers most of it. If you want the rest of your intake set from your own numbers, that's what a nutrition plan is for.

This article is educational and is not medical advice.

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