A nutritionist has revealed the exact time of day to stop drinking coffee to avoid caffeine ruining your quality of sleep.
Speaking on behalf of Coffee Friend, Nichola Ludlam-Raine, a nutritionist and author of How Not to Eat Ultra-Processed, explained that the optimum time to have your first coffee of the day is mid-to-late morning, around 9.30am to 11.30am.
“This is when cortisol levels start to dip,” explained the nutritionist. “Drinking coffee immediately upon waking may reduce its effectiveness, as cortisol [the alertness hormone] is naturally high in the early morning.”
As for when to have your final cup of the day – it’s important to know that caffeine can still have an effect on the body for around five to six hours after consuming it, which means that if you have a coffee at 3pm, you may still be wide-awake and alert at bedtime.
Ludlam-Raine explained: “Caffeine has a half-life of around five to six hours, meaning that even if you have a coffee at 3pm, half of the caffeine could still be in your system at 9pm. For those sensitive to caffeine, it’s best to avoid coffee after 2pm to 3pm to ensure it doesn’t interfere with sleep.”
Coffee can still provide a boost in the afternoon, but it’s recommended to avoid coffee too late in the day – especially if you’re sensitive to caffeine. Switching to decaf after lunch is a better option, but for those who are still caffeine sensitive, they should be cautious.
“Decaf coffee contains very small amounts of caffeine (typically two to five mg per cup compared to 70 to 150 mg in a regular coffee),” says Ludlam-Raine. “While it is unlikely to affect sleep for most people, those who are very caffeine-sensitive might still need to be cautious about drinking decaf close to bedtime.”
New research has recently backed up claims that coffee has significant health benefits. In January, research found a link between drinking a pre-lunch coffee and a significantly reduced risk of heart disease.
According to a decade-long study of 40,000 US adults by Tulane University in Louisiana, people who were specifically morning coffee drinkers were 31 per cent less likely to die of cardiovascular disease – and 16 per cent less likely to die earlier of any cause at all – than those who drank no coffee.
Ludlam-Raine explained that coffee is rich in antioxidants, supports brain health, boosts the metabolism and may reduce type 2 diabetes risk.
“Regular coffee drinkers appear to have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, potentially due to its effect on insulin sensitivity,” she says. “Coffee is also one of the biggest sources of antioxidants in the diet, helping to combat oxidative stress and inflammation.”
