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How much Turkish coffee should I drink?

Worldwide coffee consumption has reached over 2.25 billion cups per year.

Countless people drink coffee for its great taste and smell, stimulating and mood altering effects and its many health benefits such as lowering your risk of type 2 diabetes and even protecting against Parkinson’s disease and cirrhosis. (1)

One of the best choices for coffee lovers is Turkish coffee. With its beautiful flavour, numerous health benefits and long and rich history, Turkish coffee is the perfect choice to satisfy your daily need of a nice cup of coffee.

But do you know how much Turkish coffee you should drink per day?

About 6 servings (390ml/13 fluid ounces) of Turkish coffee will keep you under the recommended daily allowances for caffeine. While anything below that is considered safe for healthy adults, anything above 6 demitasse cups might be risky to drink.

According to experts, healthy adults can consume up to 400mg of caffeine per day. Anything above that can be dangerous and cause symptoms such as insomnia, anxiousness, headaches and fast heart rate. So when consuming Turkish coffee or any other coffee, it’s important to limit yourself just to be on the safe side.

Let’s explore what caffeine is, what it does to your body and see how much caffeine a cup of Turkish coffee has in order to better understand how much you can drink per day.

How much caffeine is safe per day?

Caffeine is a stimulant naturally found in seeds of plants such as coffee, cocoa and tea. It acts as plants natural defense mechanism by paralyzing and killing insects that come near the plant.

First known instance of consuming caffeine in the form of coffee dates back to 15th century Yemen and even before that Mayans consumed chocolate in 600BCE for its caffeine content.

Throughout the history people wanted caffeine to get energized and feel happier. Nowadays many people need coffee to kick-start their day.

According to FDA guidelines you should limit your caffeine consumption to 400mg per day. (2) Toxic dose is 10 grams. It’s hard to reach by drinking coffee alone and people who get caffeine toxicity get this because of caffeine supplements. But since it can be deadly, it’s better to be cautious.

How Caffeine Works

chocolate has caffeine

Your brain naturally produces a chemical called Adenosine.

Adenosine acts as an inhibitory neurotransmitter, which means it supresses your brain function by binding to other neurotransmitters and slowing them down and makes you feel sleepy, which is important for… Well, sleeping.

When you wake up your Adenosine levels are at their lowest, as you go about your day, your Adenosine levels increase and get you ready to get relaxed and sleep.

When coffee is consumed, caffeine particles bind to receptors in your brain and block Adenosine’s access to them, making you feel energized and more alert in the process.

Basically caffeine works by suppressing the suppressor.

Benefits and adverse effects of caffeine

Just like anything you consume, moderation is key when drinking coffee. A cup or two will get you ready for the day, while 10 cups might end you up in the hospital.

A moderate consumption of caffeine has benefits such as;

  • Improved cognitive and physical performance
  • Increased sense of well-being and happiness
  • May be effective in prevention of diseases such as Parkinson’s and diabetes
  • Protection of liver against cancer
  • Boosts long term memory

Caffeine consumption may have adverse effects such as;

  • Making you jittery and stressed
  • Causing tremors and sleep problems
  • Can be addictive if consumed regularly
  • May cause mood swings

How much caffeine does Turkish coffee have?

The amount of caffeine in a cup of Turkish coffee depends on many factors such as how big your cup is, how much coffee you put in and the type of coffee beans used to make the coffee.

For example caffeine content of Robusta beans is somewhere between 2.2% to 2.7% while Arabica beans’ caffeine content is between 1.2% to 1.5%. Contrary to popular belief, Turkish coffee is not a type of bean but the technique that’s used to prepare the coffee. So, you can use any bean of your choice.

Turkish coffee is made with 6-7 grams of finely ground coffee beans and amounts to roughly 65ml or 2.2 fluid ounces of coffee. This means a cup of coffee has around 65mg of caffeine.

Turkish coffee is lower in caffeine per serving compared to other types of coffee such as Espresso.

Another Factor to Consider

spoonful of sugar

Although Turkish coffee can be consumed unsweetened, many Turkish coffee lovers prefer to drink it with added sugars. If you like your cpffee with sugar, it also becomes an important factor to consider when trying to figure out how much Turkish coffee you should drink per day.

Overconsumption of sugar has been linked to obesity, increased risk for diabetes, inflammation and dangerous conditions such as high blood pressure.

Other Nutrients in Turkish Coffee

Along with caffeine, Turkish coffee has many other beneficial compounds such as antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.

  • Polyphenols that improve brain function, blood sugar levels and improve digestion
  • Flavonoids, which reduce the risk of cancer, asthma, stroke and heart disease as well as protecting your brain
  • Chlorogenic acid that helps reduce insulin spikes and balance blood sugar levels by decreasing absorbtion of carbohydrates as well as aiding in weight loss by increasing fat metabolism
  • Vitamin E, which keeps you skin healthy, has anti-aging benefits and antioxidant properties
  • Differents forms of vitamin B which are important for cell health, proper nerve function and hormone production
  • Magnesium and potassium, which are really important to overall healthy because they regulate blood pressure and nerve function
  • Manganese, which is important for bone health, glucose tolerance and reducing inflammation

Conclusion

Consuming coffee has many benefits such as increased alertness and well-being, along with having many positive effects on health.

Turkish coffee is a delicious option for your daily cup of coffee with long history and rich cultural background that is easy to make enjoy and has many beneficial nutrients.

And if you’re looking to try your first cup of Turkish coffee, you can prepare it using these simple tools and ingredients.

Like anything good in life, Turkish coffee consumption should be limited, otherwise it can be dangerous. Safe upper limit for the amount of Turkish coffee to drink per day is 6 servings.

If you’ve found this post helpful or interesting, please don’t forget to share it on the social media. Help spread the enjoyment that Turkish coffee brings! 😉