Can you lose weight by drinking coffee?

Lose pounds by drinking coffee. Some swear by the method, others say there isn't enough evidence that it works. It's high time to find an answer once and for all to the question: does caffeine help with weight loss?

Many have already wondered whether there is a relationship between drinking coffee and losing weight. The American doctor Bob Arnot and author of the book The Coffee Lover's Diet say he knows the answer. If you drink at least three cups a day, you burn more fat than normal. Caffeine makes your metabolism work faster, which stimulates weight loss, Arnot says.

The book now has many fans from all over the world. But Iris Groenenberg, Nutrition and Health knowledge specialist at the Nutrition Center, is critical. "It is insufficiently scientifically proven. European legislation, therefore, does not allow the claim to be made on coffee that it is beneficial for fat burning."

If coffee makes you more active and therefore moves you more, it may help you lose weight.

Iris Groenenberg, knowledge specialist in Nutrition and Health at the Nutrition Center

Coffee indirectly helps you lose weight

According to Groenenberg, the answer to the question is clear: no, coffee does not help you lose weight. "You may lose weight if you normally drink a lot of soda that contains a lot of calories and replace it with a cup of coffee without calories."

Coffee may therefore indirectly contribute to the loss of those excess kilos, says Groenenberg. "If you become more active from coffee and as a result, you start exercising more, it may help you lose weight. But that differs per person, everyone reacts differently to caffeine. That has to do with habituation, but also with whether you are sensitive to it or not. Not."

The same sound is heard in the alternate corner. Evelien Lems of Pure Living is an orthomolecular health coach. She also believes more in the indirect effects of coffee, such as the fact that caffeine has a stimulating effect and can improve your sports performance. "Caffeine can help you with your workout that way. Drink a cup of coffee half an hour before exercise."

Drink your cups of coffee strategically

Also, drink a cup of coffee about an hour after lunch if you want to use coffee for weight loss. Lems: "Many people suffer from an after-lunch dip. Coffee gives you a mental and physical boost of energy and would make your digestion work faster. It's about drinking coffee strategically."

While there's no conclusive scientific evidence for this, there are two, somewhat older, studies that suggest coffee can speed up metabolism somewhat, Lems says. About the 1989 study, she says: "Swiss researchers have found that caffeine speeds up the metabolism especially in slim women and to a lesser extent in overweight women."

Filter coffee contains less harmful cafestol.

Coffee fits in the Wheel of Five

Drink wisely, say both Lems and Groenenberg. The Nutrition Center advises adults: a maximum of four cups a day. Groenenberg: "Coffee without sugar simply fits in the Wheel of Five. Preferably choose filtered coffee, such as old-fashioned filter coffee, but coffee pads are also possible. Part of the cafestol remains in the paper filter, which is a substance that reduces LDL cholesterol. increases in the blood. And with elevated cholesterol, you run a higher risk of cardiovascular disease."

Would you rather get rid of those excess pounds in a different way? "People like to look for something that is easy, but you cannot avoid tackling your entire diet," says Groenenberg. "Do it in small steps, if you knock it over in one go, you won't last as well."