Can’t quit coffee? 

Will it be a freezing day in hell before you give it up? Will we have to pry your favorite coffee mug out of your cold dead hands? 

OK, we get it. You love your coffee. This post isn’t meant as a lecture on the evils of coffee consumption. In fact, there are some well-researched health benefits of drinking coffee. 

Just like alcohol, more is not better; moderation is the key. 

But what this post is intended to do is enhance your coffee experience and make it healthier. By adding certain spices and powders, you can transform ordinary coffee into an anti-inflammatory and immune-supporting powerhouse. 

Benefits Of Regular Coffee

You’ve heard about the healthiest tea on the planet—SUPER MATCHA GREEN TEA—and perhaps even drink it in the afternoon to keep your energy up. 

We think Super Matcha is superior to regular coffee in terms of phytonutrient density.

But coffee on its own is no slouch of a beverage. In fact, several studies confirm its health benefits. For example, research published in the Journal of Medicinal Food says that coffee exerts physiological antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. 

Love dark roast coffee? Then you may want to reconsider. That’s because the darker the roast, the lower the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects from the coffee, the researchers observed. 

Italian researchers published an article in Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics that found that moderate coffee consumption (5 cups a day max) increased blood levels of the body’s master internal antioxidant, glutathione. (Suggested reading: Best Superfoods For Your Body's Internal Antioxidants)

More benefits of coffee: it contains the polyphenol antioxidant, chlorogenic acid, which helps metabolize blood sugar and dietary fat, and possesses antioxidant and anti-bacterial properties. (Hmm: Should you wash your hands with coffee?) 

It goes without saying that there can be downsides to drinking too much coffee, such as triggering anxiousness and jitters. And if you have gut issues, you may want to severely restrict your coffee consumption. That’s because coffee is acidic. In order to overcome gut issues, you need to consume foods that push blood pH more into alkaline territory, even if it’s a tiny amount. (Which is why we love Super Matcha. It’s alkaline, not acidic.) 

 

Is Superfood Coffee Bulletproof?

Maybe you’ve heard about “Bulletproof Coffee” or a similar take on it. In case you have heard of it but aren’t exactly sure what it is, here’s the scoop… 

Despite its marketing hype, Bulletproof Coffee is not superfood coffee. In fact, for certain people with a genetic predisposition (the ApoE4 gene), some experts actually believe it can be like a bullet to the heart. Why? It’s because the main ingredients in it—MCT oil and butter—are very high in saturated fat.

If you’re genetically predisposed to cardiovascular disease, having bulletproof coffee everyday may contribute to a heart attack or stroke. Some people also add coconut oil to their coffee in order to add fat, which can slow down the effects of caffeine. 

 

Now, we’re not necessarily taking sides here but many experts believe that coconut oil, which is also very high in saturated fat -- up to 85% of the fat content in coconut oil is saturated -- is not healthy for certain individuals predisposed to cardiovascular disease.

The reason why people have been led to believe that high-fat coffee is a superfood is because of the popularity of ultra low-carbohydrate ketogenic diets, which limit net carbohydrate intake to 25-50 grams per day. (The average American consumes roughly 275 grams of carbs per day). 

Without doubt, you should restrict all heavily-processed carbs like bagels and enriched-flour bread and pastries. But unless you have an autoimmune disease or epilepsy, there’s no reason why you need to severely restrict your intake of carbs. Whole-grains, fruits and vegetables are nutrient-dense foods; eliminating them from the diet can backfire. 

Ingredients For Superfood Coffee 

So now that you know what not to put in your coffee every morning (a ton of saturated fat), let’s cover what you should put in. 

In general, the ingredients below have all been backed by research studies to support the immune system and maintain a normal inflammation response in the body. 

Here’s what we suggest adding to your coffee:

• SUPER ‘SHROOMS - an adaptogenic mushroom powder with 20 fabulous fungi, the most of any brand!
• Cinnamon powder
• Ginger powder
• Cardamom powder
• Turmeric powder
• Black pepper 
• Cayenne pepper
• Coconut palm sugar
• Non-dairy creamer (BōKU is busy developing a superfood non-dairy based creamer! Stay tuned for details.)

Benefits of Superfood Coffee

If we listed every single benefit, based on every single phytonutrient in each ingredient, we’d be here all day. 

So let’s just highlight some of them:

• Neutralizes Stress: The 20 mushrooms in SUPER SHROOMS are considered by herbalists to be adaptogenic herbs (adaptogens), which normalize bodily functions and help neutralize the damage caused by physical, emotional and environmental stress. 
  
  
• Supports blood sugar levels: CINNAMON powder imitates the effects of insulin and increases the amount of glucose that enters into the cells. 
  
  
• Lowers blood pressure: This is one of just 10 proven benefits of CARDAMOM, according to Healthline, which also lists digestion support.
  
  
• Cardiovascular support: TURMERIC is perhaps the most well-researched spice on Earth. It possesses strong anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities and is thought to exert heart-protective effects. Black pepper dramatically increases the absorption rate of turmeric so that’s why you should add a pinch of it to superfood your coffee.
  
  
• Digestive support: GINGER has been used for millennia to combat nausea. Modern research shows it possesses anti-inflammatory properties. Far too many benefits to name…
  
  
• Boosts Metabolism: CAYENNE PEPPER stimulates thermogenesis, aka metabolism.
  
  
• Activates Vitamins and Enzymes: Coconut palm sugar is chock full of minerals and much lower on the glycemic index than regular sugar.
  
  

How To Use Superfood Coffee

Instead of having a regular breakfast, have a cup of superfood coffee instead. Now, superfood coffee is not a complete meal (this is the perfect superfood powder meal replacement). 

You can put a little non-dairy coconut or almond creamer to make it thicker. Many people who have superfood coffee claim that they can go several hours in the morning without having any solid food. They feel more focused and don’t suffer from energy crashes.

Try doing intermittent fasting (which is fasting for roughly 14-16 hours per day) and then breaking your fast not with superfood coffee but with our 55-ingredient SUPERFOOD phytonutrient powder. Then wait 20 minutes or so before having a cup of Superfood Coffee for breakfast. Complete your break-fast later in the morning or early afternoon with SUPER PROTEIN plant-based complete essential amino acid powder. 

 

How To Make Superfood Coffee

Instructions:

Prepare coffee of your choice (we prefer fair trade light roast; see above for explanation). Pour into a blender. Add other ingredients (tsp or a few shakes for each except a dash each of black pepper and cayenne pepper) to the blender. 

Blend for 10 seconds on medium power. Like your coffee super foamy? Purchase an electric frother and place the non-dairy creamer in the frother. Top your superfood coffee with the non-dairy frothed cream. Yum!

 

How To Cut Down On Coffee & Keep Your Energy Up

A cup or two of coffee every day is probably fine. But if you’re consuming several cups, you may want to cut down. That said, it’s hard to give up something that you know helps get you through the day.

 

But if your coffee consumption leads to a vicious cycle where you’re dead to the world in the morning without it, try replacing your afternoon cups with SUPER FUEL or Super Matcha (or better yet, both!) ...

 

You read about Super Matcha above. It contains about one-third of the caffeine as an average cup of coffee.

 

As for Super Fuel, it has several energy-supporting adaptogenic ingredients including Maca Root, which has been used for centuries in South America by ancient high-altitude warriors and modern-day indigenous farm workers.

 

In America, Maca Root is helping men and women boost libido and power through the day. Experience for yourself the liftoff you’ll feel after consuming Super Fuel adaptogenic powder. 

 Do you add any superfood ingredients to your coffee? Leave a comment below...