Coffee and blood pressure

Many of us are used to drinking a cup or two of aromatic freshly brewed coffee in the morning. This unique drink wakes us up, gives us strength and energy, sets us up for a new day. For most people, a morning without a cup of coffee becomes somehow incomplete, unfinished. However, many coffee lovers are often worried about the numerous myths and taboos that hover around an ordinary cup of coffee: coffee and blood pressure, heart, blood vessels. Is coffee as scary as it is “painted”? How does coffee affect blood pressure and can hypertensive patients drink it? We will talk about all this in this topic.

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Does coffee raise or lower blood pressure?

The fact that caffeine increases blood pressure has been known for a long time: there have been many full-scale studies on this topic. For example, several years ago, specialists from the medical prevention department of the Madrid University of Health conducted an experiment to determine the exact indicators of increased blood pressure after drinking a cup of coffee. During the experiment, it was found that caffeine in the amount of 200-300 mg (2-3 cups of coffee) increases systolic blood pressure by 8.1 mm Hg, and diastolic blood pressure by 5.7 mm Hg. Increased blood pressure is observed during the first 60 minutes after drinking caffeine and can last for about 3 hours. The experiment was conducted on healthy people who do not suffer from hypertension, hypotension or cardiovascular pathologies.

However, almost all experts are unanimously convinced that in order to verify the "harmlessness" of caffeine, long-term studies are needed that will allow us to observe coffee consumption over several years and even decades. Only such studies will allow us to state with certainty the positive or negative impact of caffeine on blood pressure and the body as a whole.

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How does coffee affect blood pressure?

Italian specialists also conducted further studies. They selected 20 volunteers who had to drink a cup of espresso every morning. According to the results, a cup of espresso reduces coronary blood flow by about 20% for 60 minutes after drinking. If there are any problems with the heart to begin with, drinking just one cup of strong coffee can cause heart pain and peripheral circulation disorders. Of course, if the heart is completely healthy, a person may not feel any negative effects.

The same applies to the effect of coffee on blood pressure.

Coffee at low pressure is able to stabilize the indicators and bring low pressure back to normal. Another thing is that coffee causes some dependence, so a hypotonic person who drinks coffee in the morning to increase pressure may need more and more doses of the drink over time. And this can already affect the state of the cardiovascular system.

Coffee is the most harmful for high blood pressure. Why? The fact is that with hypertension there is already an increased load on the heart and blood vessels, and drinking coffee aggravates this condition. In addition, a small increase in pressure after drinking coffee can "spur" and start the mechanism of increasing pressure in the body, which will already significantly affect the indicators. The pressure regulation system in hypertensive patients is in a "shaken" state, and drinking a cup or two of aromatic drink can provoke a rise in pressure.

People with stable blood pressure may not be afraid of drinking coffee. Of course, within reasonable limits. Two or three cups of freshly brewed natural coffee a day will not hurt, but experts do not recommend drinking instant or surrogate coffee, as well as drinking more than 5 cups a day, as this can cause exhaustion of nerve cells and the appearance of a constant feeling of fatigue.

Does coffee raise blood pressure?

Coffee is one of the most popular drinks. Its main ingredient is caffeine, which is recognized as a natural stimulant. Caffeine can be found not only in coffee beans, but also in some nuts, fruits, and leafy parts of plants. However, a person still gets the main amount of this substance from tea or coffee, as well as from cola or chocolate.

The widespread consumption of coffee has become the reason for all sorts of studies that have been conducted to study the effect of coffee on blood pressure readings.

Coffee stimulates the central nervous system, so it is often consumed in cases of fatigue, lack of sleep, and to improve mental activity. However, high concentrations of caffeine in the bloodstream can lead to vascular spasms, which in turn will affect the increase in blood pressure.

The endogenous nucleoside adenosine is synthesized in the central nervous system, which is responsible for the normal process of falling asleep, healthy sleep, and decreased activity by the end of the day. If it were not for the action of adenosine, a person would be awake for many days in a row, and would subsequently simply collapse from exhaustion and depletion. This substance determines a person's need for rest and pushes the body to sleep and restore strength.

Caffeine has the ability to block the synthesis of adenosine, which, on the one hand, stimulates brain activity, but, on the other hand, is a factor in increasing blood pressure. In addition, caffeine stimulates the production of the hormone adrenaline by the adrenal glands, which also favors an increase in pressure.

Based on this, many scientists have concluded that regular coffee consumption can provoke a persistent increase in blood pressure even in people with initially normal blood pressure.

But such conclusions are not entirely true. According to the results of recent experiments, the degree of increase in blood pressure with regular consumption of the drink in a healthy person is very slow, but in a person prone to hypertension, this process occurs faster. Thus, if a person has a tendency to increase blood pressure, then coffee can contribute to this increase. However, some scientists stipulate that for the tendency to increase blood pressure to appear, one should drink more than 2 cups of coffee a day.

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Does coffee lower blood pressure?

Let's return to the results of studies conducted by world experts. We have already said that the degree of increase in blood pressure after drinking caffeine in healthy people is less pronounced than in hypertensive patients. But these indicators, as a rule, are not critical and do not last long. In addition, as a result of all the same studies, data were obtained that scientists still cannot clearly explain: in 15% of subjects suffering from regular increase in blood pressure, when drinking 2 cups of coffee per day, blood pressure indicators decreased.

How do experts explain this?

1. The relationship between coffee and blood pressure is actually much more complex than previously thought. It has been proven that constant and prolonged use of various doses of caffeine develops a certain degree of dependence (insensitivity) to coffee, which can reduce the degree of its influence on blood pressure. Some experiments suggest that people who do not drink coffee are less susceptible to the risk of developing hypertension. Other studies demonstrate the fact that those who drink coffee regularly, but in moderation, also have a reduced risk. Their body “gets used” to caffeine and stops reacting to it as a source of increased blood pressure.
2. The effect of coffee on blood pressure is individual and may depend on the presence or absence of diseases, the type of nervous system and genetic characteristics of the body. It is no secret that some genes in our body are responsible for the speed and degree of caffeine breakdown in the human body. For some, this process is fast, and for others, it is slow. For this reason, for some people, even one cup of coffee can cause an increase in blood pressure, while for others, a much larger volume of the drink will be harmless.

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Why does coffee increase blood pressure?

Experimental studies measuring the activity of electrical impulses in the brain have shown that drinking 200-300 ml of coffee has a significant effect on the level of brain activity, moving it from a calm state to a highly active one. Because of this property, caffeine is often called a "psychotropic" drug.

Coffee affects brain function by inhibiting the production of adenosine, which, among other things, helps transmit nerve impulses along nerve fibers. As a result, there is no trace left of adenosine's calming ability: neurons are quickly and long-term excited, being stimulated to the point of exhaustion.

Simultaneously with these processes, there is an effect on the adrenal cortex, which causes an increase in the amount of "stress hormones" in the bloodstream. These are adrenaline, cortisol and noradrenaline. These substances are usually produced if a person is in an anxious, excited or frightened state. As a result, there is additional stimulation of brain activity, which sooner or later leads to an acceleration of cardiac activity, increased blood circulation and spasms of peripheral vessels and cerebral vessels. The result is an increase in motor activity, psychomotor agitation and an increase in blood pressure.

Green coffee and blood pressure

Green coffee beans are actively used in medicine as a means of stimulating metabolism, stabilizing sugar levels, and activating the central nervous system. Of course, like regular coffee, green beans require moderation, otherwise abuse of green coffee can affect the functioning of many body systems.

It has been experimentally proven that 2-3 cups of green coffee per day reduce the risk of developing cancer, obesity, type II diabetes, and problems with capillaries.

How do green coffee and blood pressure relate?

Green coffee contains the same caffeine as roasted black coffee beans. For this reason, green coffee is recommended for people who do not have problems with blood pressure, or for hypotensive people - people with a tendency to low blood pressure.

With low blood pressure, green coffee can have the following effects:

• stabilize the condition of the coronary vessels;
• balance the vascular system of the brain;
• stimulate the respiratory and motor centers of the brain;
• normalize the vascular system of skeletal muscles;
• stimulate cardiac activity;
• accelerate blood circulation.

There are no confirmed facts that green coffee lowers blood pressure. Doctors unequivocally state: for people with stage II and III hypertension, drinking coffee, including green coffee, is highly undesirable.

For all other people, drinking green coffee in reasonable amounts should not cause a significant increase in blood pressure. However, it should not be forgotten that abuse of the drink and regular excess of permissible dosages can lead to vascular spasms in the brain, increased blood pressure and serious disruptions in cardiac and brain functions.

As systematic observations show, every fifth person who drinks coffee experiences an increase in blood pressure. However, the exact mechanism of this increase has not yet been thoroughly studied.

Does caffeine sodium benzoate raise blood pressure?

Caffeine sodium benzoate is a psychostimulant drug, almost completely analogous to caffeine. As a rule, it is used to stimulate the central nervous system, in drug intoxications and other diseases that require excitation of the vasomotor and respiratory centers of the brain.

Of course, caffeine sodium benzoate increases blood pressure, just like regular caffeine. It can also cause an “addiction” effect, sleep disorders and general agitation.

Caffeine sodium benzoate is not used in cases of persistently elevated blood pressure, increased intraocular pressure, atherosclerosis, and sleep disorders.

The effect of the drug on blood pressure readings is determined by the dosage of the given psychostimulant, as well as the initial blood pressure readings.

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Does coffee with milk raise blood pressure?

It is very difficult to say whether coffee with added milk has a positive or negative effect on the body. Most likely, the essence of the issue is not so much in the drink, but in its quantity. If the consumption of any coffee drink, even milky, is moderate, then any risks will be minimal.

It has been proven that caffeine can contribute to increased blood pressure. As for milk, this is a controversial issue. Many experts are inclined to believe that adding milk to coffee allows you to reduce the concentration of caffeine, but it will not be possible to neutralize it completely. Therefore, it is recommended to drink coffee with milk, but again within reasonable limits: no more than 2-3 cups per day. In addition, the presence of a dairy product in coffee allows you to replenish calcium losses, which is very important, especially for older people.

It is safe to say that coffee with milk may increase blood pressure, but usually not significantly. Anyone can drink up to 3 cups of weak coffee with milk.

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Does Decaffeinated Coffee Raise Blood Pressure?

Decaffeinated coffee would seem to be a great solution for those who are not recommended to drink regular coffee. But is it really that simple?

The difficulty is that "decaf coffee" is not quite the correct name for the drink. It would be more correct to say "coffee with less caffeine." The production of such coffee allows the content of the undesirable alkaloid in an amount of more than 3 mg. In fact, one cup of instant decaffeinated drink still contains up to 14 mg of caffeine, and a cup of brewed coffee "decaf" - up to 13.5 mg. And what will happen if a hypertensive patient, being sure that he drinks decaffeinated coffee, drinks 6-7 cups of the drink? But such an amount of caffeine can already affect the body.

While the technological subtleties of the coffee decaffeination process are not perfect, experts advise against drinking this drink too much: in addition to low doses of caffeine, such coffee contains harmful impurities left over from the reactions of decaffeination of the drink, as well as a greater amount of fat than in regular coffee. And the taste, as they say, is "an acquired taste".

If you really want coffee, drink regular black, but natural, not instant. And don't overdo it: one cup, maybe with milk, is unlikely to do much harm. Or switch to chicory: there is definitely no caffeine in it.

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Coffee for intracranial pressure

Caffeine is contraindicated in cases of increased intraocular and intracranial pressure.

The most common cause of increased intracranial pressure is considered to be spasm of the cerebral vessels. And caffeine, as we have already said above, can only worsen these spasms, which will significantly impede blood circulation and worsen the patient's condition.

With increased intracranial pressure, you should consume drinks and medications that expand the lumen of blood vessels, improve blood circulation, which can alleviate symptoms and, in particular, headaches.

You should not experiment with drinking coffee if you have intracranial pressure: you should only consume drinks and foods if you are completely sure that they will not harm you.

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What coffee increases blood pressure?

What kind of coffee increases blood pressure? In principle, this can be attributed to any type of coffee: regular instant or ground, green, and even decaffeinated coffee, if consumed without measure.

A healthy person who drinks coffee in moderation can get many benefits from this drink:

• stimulation of metabolic processes;
• reducing the risk of type II diabetes and cancer;
• improving the function of the senses, concentration, memory;
• increasing mental and physical performance.

If you are prone to high blood pressure, and especially if you have been diagnosed with hypertension, you should drink coffee much more carefully: no more than 2 cups a day, not strong, only natural ground coffee, you can have it with milk and not on an empty stomach.

And one more thing: try not to drink coffee every day, sometimes replacing it with other drinks.

Coffee consumption and blood pressure can coexist if you approach this issue wisely, do not abuse it and observe the measure. But, in any case, if your blood pressure increases significantly, before pouring yourself a cup of coffee, consult a doctor.