3 myths about coffee that even you used to believe, until now…

The Dutch drink on average around two cups of coffee a day, which equates to roughly seven kilos of coffee beans a year. That puts them in the top three of coffee drinkers in the world, after Norway and Finland. The popularity of coffee comes hand in hand with conflicting advice and findings, for example from health coaches. So today we’re busting three stubborn myths about coffee.

1. Drinking coffee dehydrates you = nonsense.

Caffeine is a diuretic, you need to pee a little more often as a result, and so it has a dehydrating effect. At least, it would, if the main ingredient of coffee weren’t water.

The amount of water in coffee counts towards the daily recommended water intake people should be drinking. A study on caffeine intake shows that a normal amount of caffeine doesn’t cause dehydration. The bottom line is that the water in coffee is enough to make up for the extra water leaving your body. Three cups of coffee a day hydrates as much as three glasses of water a day, according to another study.

The diuretic effect of caffeine isn’t as strong as many people think, and on top of that, you quickly build up a tolerance to it.

2. Drinking coffee sobers you up = nonsense

Coffee has no sobering effect. Many people think it does because drinking it makes you feel more awake and aware, which makes the drunken ‘feeling’ lighter, but in reality you’re still just as drunk. That means you can make worse decisions about your own wellbeing, for example thinking you’re capable of driving a vehicle, while you actually aren’t.

3. Espresso has more caffeine than a normal cup of coffee = nonsense.

Yes, you read that right, a normal cup of coffee contains more caffeine. A normal cup of coffee has around 100 mg of caffeine, while an espresso often has around 75 mg per cup, depending on the coffee beans used, the brewing method, and the amount of coffee and water.

In general, espresso coffee has more caffeine per litre, but it’s served in smaller quantities. If you’re drinking coffee for the caffeine kick, you’re better off making a normal cup of coffee. On top of that, espresso coffee is often more darkly roasted, which gives a punchier flavour that people often associate with a higher caffeine content. That’s untrue; a longer roast actually results in less caffeine.