Healthier Coffee

Hug in a mug! Go juice! Rocket fuel! Cold brew! We love coffee! I do, anyway.

Coffee can be really unhealthy

As long as it’s packed full of flavor and nowhere near ‘black,’ I love a good coffee; hot in the winter and cold in the summer! However, if I’m not careful, I can drink a huge chunk of my daily allotment of sugar in just one cup.

Not to mention adding unnecessary calories and animal dairy. To give you an idea, a tall (12 fl oz) Starbucks Caramel Brulee latte contains a whopping 310 calories and 36g of sugar!¹

The research behind refined sugar

The American Heart Association (AHA) explains that adult women should consume no more than 6 teaspoons, or 25g, of sugar per day. This translates to no more than 100 calories from sugar daily.

The AHA also suggests men should not consume more than 9 teaspoons, or 36g, of sugar per day. That's no more than 150 calories from sugar daily. There is no nutritional need or benefit that comes from eating refined or added sugar.^2,3

Sugar and eye health

Research also shows that refined sugar (or added sugars) are not healthy for our eyes. However, it is possible to have sweet and flavorful coffee drinks that are low in sugar.

It’s important to remember that if something tastes sweet but is low in sugar content, there is some form of ‘fake’ sugar or sugar substitute. That’s a topic that can be an entire article in and of itself.⁴

Know before you go

I don’t know about you, but ordering a coffee at Starbucks or our local, quaint coffee shop feels really intimidating to me. I never really know what to say. "A triple venti no foam macchiato...um shaken...and can you scratch the sugar?" It’s all too much for me.

What I want to say is, “Get me a sweet caramel-flavored coffee with low sugar.” But, for some reason, I feel my order must be official or fancy at coffee shops.

Because of this, I tend to make my coffee at home because it’s easier for me to monitor exactly what’s going into it. It’s also more convenient and cheaper from home. Instead of stopping by Starbucks on your next Target stop, you could try to scout the coffee aisle where you can purchase everything you need.

Creamer and milk substitutes

You may be wondering how it's possible to cut back on calories, dairy consumption, and sugar intake but still get the flavors we want in our coffees. Adding sugar-free coffee syrups and plant-based milk, such as almond or oat milk, to our coffee is a great way to do this.

I’ve found that I really like the sugar-free syrups made by Torani and Jordan’s Skinny Syrups. There are so many unique and delicious flavors to choose from besides all the common caramels, hazelnuts, and vanillas! I’ve had everything from ‘French toast’ to ‘glazed donut’ or ‘white chocolate’ to ‘cinnamon bun.’

We do not have to give up the foods and drinks we love in order to take care of our eye health.