Coffee drinkers have been issued with a warning over when to have the first cup. If you roll out of bed and pour yousrelf a cup of coffee, then you may want to re-think what you’re doing as making yourself a cuppa too soon could be the very reason you need one. Many people think that a cup of coffee will wake them up and make them have more energy – but as it turns out, having one too early could hinder your sleep.
The warning comes amid a brand new study by Breville which revealed Brits drink 3 cups of coffee a day – and the time people tend to have their first is 7am. Because of this, Rex Isap, the sleep expert at Happy Beds, has issued a warning to Brits, urging people to not avoid coffee altogether, but instead hold off from drinking it within the first hour of waking up.
Why should I avoid coffee when I wake up?
Rex said that “during the day, your brain produces a chemical called adenosine. Essentially, this promotes sleep; as you are awake longer, it builds up and helps you feel sleepy. But caffeine blocks the Adenosine receptors, which keeps you alert and promotes wakefulness. If you have ever struggled with sleeping after a coffee, this could be why.”
He further explains: “When it comes to the ideal time to have your first coffee, we might tend to reach for the kettle as soon as we wake up. Ideally, however, you want to wait an hour before waking to truly reap the benefits.
“When we wake, our cortisol levels are at their peak. Cortisol, often associated with stress, enhances your alertness levels. So, drinking caffeine while your cortisol levels are already high can work against this or even help with gaining a tolerance for caffeine.”
So are you going to change when you have coffee? If you do, you may sleep better and have more energy.
