Nutritionist reveals the healthiest way to drink your coffee if you can’t kick your morning cup

If you’re an avid coffee drinker, you probably feel especially targeted when someone talks about how ‘unhealthy’ your morning cup of joe is. 

And while there are plenty of ‘healthier alternatives’ to coffee, you might not want to totally abandon your favorite part of the day.

This might be especially true if your morning coffee is the only thing that gets you through your day.  

But co-founder of Culina Health and registered dietician and nutritionist Tamar Samuels told DailyMail.com that coffee isn’t necessarily the enitrely-bad-for-you drink that everyone makes it out to be. 

In fact, she said that your body’s response to caffeine depends on a number of different factors – and you can use this response to figure out when a cup of coffee is best for you. 

First, it depends on how much tolerance you have to caffeine – this can determine how much is okay for you to drink at one time.

Another factor to consider is whether you’re having your coffee on an empty stomach or not. 

And finally, it depends on when you’re actually having your coffee.  

Samuels explained that some studies have found that caffeine levels in the blood drop by half within six hours of consumption. 

‘You can be strategic about when you have your caffeine depending on when you need to feel most alert throughout the day,’ she said.

‘As a rule of thumb, the closer to consumption, the more alert and focused you will feel.

‘If you’ve timed your coffee appropriately you should feel alert, awake, and focused.’ 

But you shouldn’t be having more than 400mg of caffeine a day.

To put that in perspective: one cup of coffee (8oz) has about 100mg of caffeine. 

Samuels said that the best way to make sure your consumption is healthy, is to listen to your body. 

You can minimize health risks of coffee by drinking it in moderation – so one cup a day is totally fine. 

But you also can make changes so that your order isn’t full of sugar.

‘To lighten up your next coffee order, you can opt for unsweetened plant-based milk or low-fat cow’s milk,’ Samuels said. 

‘You can also ditch the whipped cream and ask for less sweetener.’

And if you do want to take steps toward weaning off your coffee – because quitting cold turkey is definitely not an option – Samuels said to do so slowly.

‘If you’re a consistent coffee drinker, stopping abruptly can give you some side effects such as nausea, irritability and difficulty concentrating,’ she said.