Studies have found that drinking coffee on an empty stomach is doing your body more harm than good. Stomach irritation, acid reflux and other side effects can ocur from consuming coffee on an empty stomach. Here’s why.
European scientists have studied why coffee causes stomachaches and heartburn. The culprit substances they identified are “caffeine, catechols and chemical substances called N-alkanoly-5-hydroxtryptamides that stimulate molecular mechanisms of stomach acid secretion in human stomach cells” according to their research results. Veronika Somoza with the University of Vienna in Austria and Thomas Hofman with the Technische Universitat Munchen in Germany say their finding “is going to help a lot of people who suffer from coffee sensitivity.”
The discovery of three irritants, not one, explains why up to 40 million people in the U.S. avoid coffee, especially on an empty stomach. While manufacturers make “stomach-friendly” coffees by processing raw coffee beans with steam or solvents designed to reduce the levels of irritants, Somoza said the processes used to make those versions ultimately reduces the amount of healthful and helpful substances in coffee, such as the protection against diabetes, heart disease and alleviation of constipation.
Because the stomach contains hydrochloric acid that helps digest food, when the stomach is empty, the acid can cause abdominal issues. When drinking a cup of coffee on an empty stomach, you’ve just dumped even more acid in there. Days, months or years of drinking coffee on an empty stomach can result in damage to the stomach and digestive tract, which can cause heartburn, stomach ulcers and irritable bowel syndrome.
Another study blames coffee for the cause of heartburn in many people after it stimulates gastrin release and gastric acid secretion. The study states that coffee “prolongs the adaptive relaxation of the stomach,” indicating that the beverage might slow gastric emptying, leading to constipation. Yet, other studies show that coffee actually increases motor activity of the bowels. Furthermore, the study explains that “coffee induces cholecystokinin release and gallbladder contraction, which may explain why patients with symptomatic gallstones often avoid drinking coffee.”
Having an empty stomach in the morning also decreases the brain’s ability to properly process serotonin, known as the happy hormone. When the brain cannot process this hormone properly, it can lead to anxiety and even depression. So drinking a cup of caffeinated coffee on an empty stomach can lead to more anxiety by boosting the body’s cortisol and adrenaline levels, leaving you feeling jittery.
