Coffee and Cholesterol
Here’s the skinny on coffee and cholesterol. Some studies, pioneered by scientists in Norway, have shown that brewing unfiltered coffee, such as in a French Press, espresso or an ibrik for Turkish coffee, increases cholesterol levels. Filtered, coffees, however, like a pour over (that uses a paper filter) or drip does not because the barrier not only filters the coffee but the lipids that causes increased cholesterol.
What can we make of this? First, Norwegians sure like their coffee. So do the Finns, the Danes, the Dutch, the Swedes and the Icelanders. Seriously. Scandanavian countries make up the top five coffee consuming countries in the world. The US is number 25. So, yeah, they’re concerned about coffee and cholesterol given how much they consume—about 27 pounds of coffee per year per person. Or they have nothing else to do when it gets dark in the winter, so they research coffee while drinking it.
More importantly, however, these studies aren’t the best indicators that unfiltered coffee poses a cholesterol risk, as pointed out by the University of Rochester. We’re sending them a free roast for their intelligence. They noted that the coffee studies didn’t account for diet and genetics—the two most important factors in cholesterol levels. Seems kind of obvious that if participants in the study had 5-6 cups of coffee day, followed by pizza, ice cream and pork belly for breakfast afterwards (the scientists administering the study weren’t invited), then—shocker—they might show elevated cholesterol levels. Or someone’s cholesterol could increase with unfiltered coffee if their parents, grand-parents and great-grand-parents all the way to Adam and Eve had a history of cholesterol sensitivity.
Even if that weren’t the issue, unfiltered coffee at at any humanly possible amounts (yes, including the Scandinavians) isn’t going out do a bad diet, a history of cholesterol or a gripping fear of the gym. In fact, coffee studies have been shown to suppress appetite and decrease caloric intake. That can’t be made for cholesterol. That’s aside from other health benefits of coffee, like reducing risk for certain cancers, lowering the risk of diabetes and dementia.
Coffee also significantly reduces irritability. Everyone will thank you. So, don’t worry about unfiltered coffee and brew a good French press with our blends or single origin coffees!