Are you a coffee lover and acne is troubling you? Do you think giving up coffee might give you relief?

There is no evidence in science that coffee is causing acne. So, no need to give up on coffee that you love. What needed is just to make some amendments. Yes! Coffee can not cause acne, but the existing ones can get worse. To stop that you need to think before taking add-ons like sugar, milk, or cupcakes with a cup of coffee.

Let us know more about how coffee can cause acne or make it worse further in this article.

1. How Does Coffee Indirectly Contribute to WorseningAcne?

Coffee does not cause acne. For one, no scientific evidence has been found till now to prove this point.  However, it can make the condition worse if you’re already suffering from it.

So, what is it in coffee that might still be an indirect reason for the same? Let us find out how a morning cup of coffee affects us.

1.1. Sugar And Acne

Sugar can pave the path for acne. This happens in order. The coffee and added amount of sugar you intake can have a severe effect on your insulin spike. The sugar increases your insulin level which leads to the secretion of sebum, the natural oil. Hence, it clogged the pores of the skin and eventually, caused acne.

Moreover, the insulin spike can accelerate the insulin-like growth factor-1, short, known as IGF-1. If this hormone increases in your body, it directly affects your existing acne outburst as well as causes acne. So, sugary coffee or added sugar can be a bane for your skin. Try not to add sugar and have your coffee as natural as it can be. Otherwise, ask a dietician what amount of sugar content is good for your health and body.

1.2. Milk And Acne

Dairy milk consumption causes acne in individuals. Many studies have been conducted and found various results which at last point out the role of milk in acne. One such study concluded that dairy products like dairy milk plays vital role in causing acne vulgaris among the age group of 7-30. Similarly, studies have shown that people consuming skimmed, that is, the non-fat milk were having severe acne issues. While those who consumed less or no skim milk, rather consumed whole milk or not consumed were far better in the acne conditions.

These are the results that show how addition of milk (sometimes, cream) in coffee can also affect your acne. So, choose wisely from now on what to add and how much. This minor change can bring a huge improvement in your condition, while vice-versa can occur if ignored. Do not ignore this fact and try out what is suitable for you.

So, this is how adding some milk and sugar to your coffee can bring such a drastic change to your situation. Choose wisely before adding something extra. Do not do it over to prevent worsening acne problems. Also, it would be best to consult a dermatologist to know what is good for your skin. Can coffee cause acne? No, but add-on(s) can.

2. Drinking Coffee Can Trigger Hormones

We saw that answer to the question, can coffee cause acne clearly, No! It has no role in your growing acne. But it does affect your existing acne. How? What causes this acne worsening situation? What does coffee do with your body to make acne worse?

“Hormones” is the answer to all these questions. Yes! Coffee triggers your hormones and thus, paves a path for making your acne worse. Hormonal changes bring huge changes to our bodies. We know it, right? Hormonal changes during teenage cause changes and bring puberty. So, it is not hard for hormones to make the situation worse in case of a growing number of acne.

Let us see can coffee cause acne and if not, then what triggers hormone and bring these changes.

2.1. Stress Hormones

“Cortisol” the stress hormone is the one that gets triggered the most by the presence of caffeine in your coffee. Various studies have revealed an increase in cortisol levels in the human body. Due to the consumption of caffeine, stress hormones get activated and thus, cause your existing acne to burst out or get worse.

Also, caffeine is meant to alert your body and prevent sleepiness. Along with heightened stress response, the situation gets worse. As it disturbs your sleep cycle. Lack of sleep causes stress, that is, again an increase of cortisol. Which further leads to inflammation in the skin. And also, increases the natural oil secretion, that is, Sebum, which causes acne breakouts. This happens due to clogged pores.

So you see this is how caffeine can cause either the existing acne worse or the acne breakouts due to excessive oil. This makes it important to find out what amount of caffeine is enough or good for your body. To prevent any repercussions.

2.2. Estrogen

It is also found in a study on women that estrogen levels get disturbed due to improper intake of caffeine. However, it was surprising that the effect was the opposite in Asian and white women. Studies showed that Asian women consuming 200 mg or more of caffeine in a day were found to have spiked estrogen levels. Whereas, white women found lower estrogen levels.

So, a certain amount of caffeine intake can cause hormonal disturbance in a woman’s body in a particular way. That’s why it is recommended to know your caffeine tolerance level soon if you are a coffee lover too.

2.3. Insulin

Insulin hormone is used to stimulate your liver, fat tissues, and muscles to absorb the glucose to maintain the sugar level in the body. However, studies say that coffee affects the body and causes blood sugar spikes as well as insulin resistance in the body. Which triggers the release of sebum, the natural oil, that is, directly related to acne condition. Know more here.

This is how coffee triggers body hormones and hence paves an indirect path for hormonal acne. However, you know can coffee cause acne or not. And that is, coffee can not cause acne. However, habitual caffeine consumption makes acne worse.

3. Skin Benefits of Coffee

Now, let us talk about a few benefits of coffee. You have a clear answer to whether can coffee cause acne. It is time for its skin benefits that one should know about. Let’s start!

3.1. Anti-Aging Ability

Do you want clear, smooth, and wrinkle-free skin? Then, coffee is what you need. Why? Because coffee is a good source of anti-ageing. It helps remove facial redness, fine lines, and sunspots. It directly prevents photoaging effects. All this is possible due to the presence of antioxidants in coffee.

3.2. Body Exfoliant

One of the best body exfoliants is coffee. It works well with body skin. Gives you smooth and tan-free skin. The use of coffee grains for scrubbing the body helps in removing all the dead skin cells. It is best for smooth, shiny skin. Not just your skin but also your lips can benefit too. Scrubbing your lips with coffee grains can help pigment your lip colour. You can use coffee grounds mixed with coconut oil to make a scrub too. This helps in better circulation of blood in the body.

3.3. Prevention Against Skin Cancer

Coffee beans on roasting break one of its key components known as “trigonelline” into “niacin”. That is why coffee is a rich source of niacin also called “Vitamin B3” and this source provides prevention against cancer cells. Nonmelanoma, a skin cancer can be prevented from consuming niacin. This is how coffee is beneficial for one’s skin health.

3.4. Eye Care

Eyes are a sensitive part of our body and hence, require good care. But one’s hectic life and lack of sleep cause stress as well as dark circles. No one likes dark circles. So, what can we do? Mask coffee under the eye area might work, right? Yes! Coffee helps remove under-eye dark circles. This happens because caffeine helps in dilating the dark circle contributing to blood vessels.

3.5. Reduce Inflammation

Do you know coffee not only has antimicrobial properties but also anti-inflammatory properties? Thus, it helps in fighting skin infections, and acne vulgaris. Also, inflammation prevention reduces skin puffiness and redness. The chlorogenic acid in coffee also helps in removing the inflammation of skin that has been caused by acne, or eczema. Coffee protects the skin and provides skin care.

Can coffee cause acne? No! Can coffee provide skin benefits? Yes! This is how coffee can be a boon for your skin. It does have various skin benefits and thus, provides you with smooth, fine line-free skin.

4. How Much Coffee Should You Consume?

You get it, Can coffee cause acne or not? Further, we looked into the skin benefits that are provided by coffee. Now, let us discuss coffee consumption and what amount could be too much coffee to consume.

4.1. Normally

It is recommended that the most ideal choice for intake of coffee a day is 4-5 cups a day. Which is equivalent to a maximum of 400 milligrams of coffee. But this amount is for those who do not get bothered with caffeine or coffee consumption. And are not too sensitive to it.

Moreover, it depends on individual caffeine tolerance levels. Some people might be okay with this much amount of caffeine intake while others might be affected. So, it depends on different individuals how hard caffeine hits them.

4.2. Pregnancy

Pregnant women are advised to intake a maximum of 200 milligrams of coffee, that is a maximum of 2 cups of coffee in a day. But it is not the optimal choice. Optimal solutions ask for no consumption of coffee during pregnancy. Caffeine might have severe issues in labor as it might cause premature delivery, miscarriage, and other issues.

That’s why to ensure pure safety it is best to give up coffee or any caffeine consumption during pregnancy. For not only the mother but child will be safe, it is the best choice.

4.3. Decaf

Decaf coffees are there for people who want to drink coffee but do not want to consume much caffeine too. They can opt for a decaffeinated coffee drink. Although decaf does not mean that it doesn’t contain caffeine, it is just that it has a very low amount of caffeine content. That is, almost 2-15 milligrams in a cup of 8-ounce.

So, no need to leave your love for coffee, just make amendments and enjoy it!

4.4. Sensitive To Caffeine

Recommend to fully remove caffeine consumption from your diet in any form. People who are very sensitive to caffeine intake must not drink coffee as it might prove to be injurious. It might cause dizziness, irritation, insomnia, anxiety, and more. So, be cautious of the caffeine content in your edible items or drinks like caffeinated beverages.

If you drink coffee and it makes you feel nauseous or anxious, visit the doctor immediately. You may be the one sensitive to caffeine and it might get you in severe conditions. So, make sure to make sure that your body is fine with the caffeine consumption. Do not take it lightly and NEVER IGNORE!

These are the recommended consumption amounts for people with different conditions. We understand well, can coffee cause acne or not. Also, precautions are better than cures, that is why, you should also take precautions before it gets late.

5. Final Note 

Now, coffee can contribute to making your existing acne worse even though it doesn’t cause acne by itself. So, you need to take care and consult a doctor about caffeine’s effects on your body. It is better not to add on with coffee such as sugar, cupcakes, and all. Because added sugar and milk can be involved in your acne conditions.

Caffeine triggers various hormones of the body that have direct or indirect hands in worsening acne. Stress hormones get active and cause effects like lack of sleep, acute psychosocial stress, or sebum secretion. Similarly, insulin level spikes up. Sometimes, it is the estrogen level in a woman’s body that keeps on fluctuating.

Next, it is all up to your body’s caffeine tolerance. It depends on how caffeine-sensitive your body is. That decides how much coffee in a day is sufficient for you.

Moreover, in common, a maximum of 400 mg, that is, 4-5 cups of coffee in a day is recommendable. Otherwise, it depends on the individual’s body.

Lastly, do not give up on coffee without making sure that it really affects your skin and causes acne. Because it generally doesn’t.

Last Updated on December 22, 2023 by soubhik92@gmail.com