Coffee is probably one of the favorite drinks for most people. Some people start their morning without a cup of coffee, a mood-booster. Coffee also has many benefits and is thought to prevent cancer and heart disease.
Coffee in a new avatar – bulletproof coffee has become an internet sensation. It is claimed that drinking this coffee in the morning and only eating between 2 pm and 9 pm will result in not only weight loss of a pound a day, but also improve mental and physical performance.
So, what is bulletproof coffee?
Bulletproof coffee is:
1 cup of freshly brewed hot coffee,
2 tablespoon of unsalted, grass-fed butter
1 tablespoon of MCT oil (medium chain triglyceride oil). Usually cold pressed coconut oil.
Just mix all ingredients in a blender until it’s smooth and emulsified.
This coffee trend was started by Silicon Valley investor/entrepreneur Dave Asprey who calls himself “The Bulletproof Executive”. He claims that this coffee turns your body into a fat-burning machine, which promises weight loss. He also insisted that it’s the secret formula for improving mental focus and brain power and to top it all, the coffee tastes delicious.
Some questions may pop in your mind:
- Why would I consume more saturated fat (which is found in butter and coconut oil)?
- Is it really rich in nutrients?
- What is MCT?
- Are there any side effect of this coffee?
Here is our take:
Why would I consume more saturated fat?
We have been told for years that saturated fat is directly responsible for heart disease. High-fat diets also contribute to elevated cholesterol—and we know that cholesterol is bad.
However, saturated fat doesn’t necessarily become the cause of cardiovascular disease. A research revealed that there is no significant evidence for concluding that dietary saturated fat is associated with an increased risk of coronary heart diseases or cardiovascular disease. Even cholesterol isn’t really that bad for our health; in fact, we need cholesterol to produce hormones and provide our brains with fuel.
Is it really rich in nutrients?
Bulletproof coffee doesn’t have any nutrients other than healthy fat from butter and coconut oil. The healthy fat can increase triglycerides and reduce HDL, which could lead to a lot of health challenges. The large amount of fat in bulletproof coffee elevates the ketone levels in the blood, which in turns provides you energy for at least 4 to 5 hours.
But just because it can keep you full, doesn’t mean bulletproof coffee can replace important meal time like breakfast. When you replace your regular meal with bulletproof coffee, it will significantly reduce your nutrient intake.
What is MCT?
Most of the fats in the food we consume are primarily composed of long chain triglycerides (LCT). But a few foods, like coconut and palm oil contain higher amount of medium chain triglycerides (MCT). MCT represent more rapidly accessible energy.
So does MCT really improve brain function as claimed?
Unfortunately, there is little research about MCT’s effect on brain function. There was a study where MCT oil was used to treat people with Type 1 Diabetes and another research that used it for Alzheimer’s patients. Both studies found that MCT oil helped to repair some cognitive function. But, we cannot take conclusion from subjects with significant cognitive impairment (Alzheimer’s patients) and pretend to know the impact on subjects with normal cognitive function.
Is there any side effect of this coffee?
Yes. If you literally replace your meals with bulletproof coffee, it will cause problems to your metabolism.
Coffee has been shown to reduce hunger signals. Many people eat a light meal following the bulletproof coffee because they don’t feel very hungry. Then they’ll eat normal meals. But if they’re not careful, they can unknowingly under-eat. It all will lead to nutrition deficiency.
By drinking bulletproof coffee, you’re consuming more saturated fat than ever before from a source that’s missing many other things found in real foods. Yes, saturated fat is essential for your body but you also need to control the daily intake of this drink.
Lastly, you may ask “so, is drinking bulletproof coffee recommended?”
It is better if you know the information of both the health benefit and the side effects of this drink. You can drink everyday in the morning to give you daily dose of mood booster—but if you start to feel a lack of motivation to be active, cold hands and feet, fatigue, metabolic decline, or increased level of cholesterol, you need to stop..
