By Jude Chao
You’ve heard about the internal health benefits of drinking coffee, including increased energy and metabolism and reduced risk of various serious diseases. You’ve heard about the beauty benefits of applying coffee grounds to your skin like reduced appearance of cellulite and shrinking puffy under eye bags,. But can drinking coffee improve your outer appearance? Some tantalizing research suggests that it can. Here are the top beauty benefits of drinking coffee.
Delay visible skin aging
There are two types of visible skin aging: intrinsic skin aging is unavoidable and progresses at a rate influenced by factors like an individual’s ethnicity, anatomy and hormones. The other type is extrinsic skin aging, which is largely preventable and caused by factors like smoking and UV damage. In fact, research has shown that up to 80% of extrinsic skin aging comes from cell and DNA damage resulting from exposure to UV radiation.
While we all know to use sunscreen daily in the recommended amounts to prevent UV radiation, not all of us know that the antioxidants we consume can play a role in delaying visible skin aging, too. UV exposure sets off chemical reactions in our skin that can lead to the production of free radicals, which damage cells and DNA, leading to premature signs of aging. Antioxidants neutralize these dreaded free radicals and coffee is a great source of powerful polyphenol antioxidants. In a 2015 study it was suggested that coffee consumption may help significantly reduce the development of UV-induced age spots and other signs of skin aging!
Redness and rosacea risk reduction
Are you constantly concealing redness with color-correcting primers and carefully blended foundations? A cup of coffee may help. Caffeine causes blood vessels to contract,an effect known as vasoconstriction,which can reduce redness in your skin. In fact, a 2018 study suggested coffee consumption can help reduce the risk of rosacea flares! More research is needed, but coffee’s promise as an easily accessible and frankly, delicious,way to minimize inflammation can’t be denied.
General redness and rosacea aren’t the only types of inflammation we might deal with, however. Caffeine’s vasoconstrictive and anti-inflammatory effects may help reduce dark undereye circles caused by visible blood vessels as well as minimize the appearance of inflamed acne.
Conclusion: Bottoms up!
Should you drink coffee for its possible effects on your appearance? I’d say that of all the beauty drinks and supplements available on the market these days, coffee is one of the most inexpensive, easily accessible, safe, and research-supported options out there. Even better, many of us already drink coffee for its energy-boosting benefits. So consume in moderation, check with your doctor if you have caffeine restrictions, and enjoy!
Do you take any beauty supplements drinks? Let us know which ones in the comments!
Photo by Alexander Gilbertson on Unsplash
Bottoms Up: The Top Beauty Benefits of Drinking Coffee
