Simply put, Bulletproof coffee, or better known as the keto coffee, is a caffeinated beverage containing a lot of calories. Now you might wonder why coffee can suddenly have fats? Because it is made with butter! It is meant to energize your day by substituting for breakfasts that are high in carbohydrates. American businessman and author Dave Asprey, who also invented the Bulletproof diet, came up with the Bulletproof Coffee.
The coffee has only grown to become very popular with dieters worldwide. The ingredient list is fairly simple; you just need rich coffee beans, a MCT (medium-chain triglyceride) like avocado oil and unsalted butter. The mixture is then blended and heated up. It has the appearance of a creamy latte on finish. The inventor of bulletproof coffee has specified that just one cup gives you the energy you need to start the day while providing a low-carb substitute for the typical carb-heavy breakfast. Usually it is the sugar/ carb-rich cereals that mess with your blood sugar levels and start making you crave for more sugar even before noon.
According to a study from 2021, black coffee and bulletproof coffee both had the same impact on cognitive function of the human brain. One bulletproof coffee, which has 250 kcal per serving, boosted feelings of satiety and decreased the expectation of food consumption after three hours, which are immensely beneficial for reducing weight. Butter and MCT oil are important ingredients in bulletproof coffee since they suppress appetite, stabilize hunger, and supply calories to power through your morning. Along with high calories, butter also contains gut-friendly butyrate, fat-soluble vitamins A, D, and K, as well as conjugated fats that may assist to reduce body fat percentage. As a result, bulletproof coffee is appropriate for a ketogenic diet because it has no carbohydrates and the MCT oil in it is converted to ketones by the body. It is believed that this effect is stronger when a meal is not present.
What to Remember?
However, it is important to let you know the downsides that are associated with this beverage. People often opt for this coffee thinking it will fulfill the nutrient requirements of their body. One of the primary drawbacks of skipping breakfast in favor of a bulletproof coffee is that you don’t get to eat a nutrient-dense meal. You’re just ingesting a nutrient-poor beverage that is heavy in fat. Saturated fats make up the majority of the lipids in bulletproof coffee; for instance, just 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter has 12.3g of fat, more than half of which is saturated. One cup of bulletproof coffee will provide more than your recommended daily allowance of saturated fat (20g) and roughly 242–354 calories (depending on how much butter is used). This is when mixed with the suggested MCT oil.
Over-consumption of coffee is also not recommended. Caffeine is well recognized for giving us a boost by acting as a trigger on our adrenal glands, which are the organs in charge of our stress response. Long-term high caffeine intakes may wear down the adrenal glands, which may affect the endocrine system and the balance of our hormones. It also intensifies the body’s response to perceived stress in everyday tasks, such as those performed at work, according to some people.
So if you intend to start consuming the bulletproof coffee, make sure your blood fats—particularly cholesterol—are not increased. The current recommendation for people with cholesterol issues is to limit their intake of saturated fats, including butter. Bulletproof coffee is also not recommended for pregnant or nursing women because they are advised to limit their caffeine intake and consume balanced meals frequently. And remember, try to consume this butter-caffeine delight around 10am as our natural cortisol levels peak between 8 and 9 in the morning. The effect of caffeine will be stronger when the levels start to fall later as we progress through our day.