Making A More Tolerable And Less Irritating Coffee

[postman]

I've recently realized that the irritation I get from coffee is because stomach irritation, rather than some other kind of physiological stress reaction or inherent oversensitivity which is what I initially thought. Taking T3 increases my tolerance to coffee, but this seems to be because it increases stomach acid. Taking stomach acid pills (betaine HCl) has the same effect. I have a rather compromised digestion in general.

What could be done to make coffee more easy on the stomach/intestines? Some people praise cold brewed coffee, does anyone have experience with that? Does the kind of bean matter? filtered vs non-filtered? Has anyone tried coffee from raw green coffee beans? Press vs drip? High heat vs low heat? What are your thoughts and experiences with this?

 

[Wolf]

I've recently realized that the irritation I get from coffee is because stomach irritation, rather than some other kind of physiological stress reaction or inherent oversensitivity which is what I initially thought. Taking T3 increases my tolerance to coffee, but this seems to be because it increases stomach acid. Taking stomach acid pills (betaine HCl) has the same effect. I have a rather compromised digestion in general.

What could be done to make coffee more easy on the stomach/intestines? Some people praise cold brewed coffee, does anyone have experience with that? Does the kind of bean matter? filtered vs non-filtered? Has anyone tried coffee from raw green coffee beans? Press vs drip? High heat vs low heat? What are your thoughts and experiences with this?

@Joeyd suggestion of adding creatine to my coffee has helped with any strange irritation or serotonin like issues from my insane coffee intake.

 

[postman]

@Joeyd suggestion of adding creatine to my coffee has helped with any strange irritation or serotonin like issues from my insane coffee intake.

Interesting, how much do you add?

I've found that adding a lot of sugar makes it easier on my system, but now I think that's mostly just because it affects the acidity or something else with the coffee itself rather than the physiological effect of coffee on my cells or whatever, because it helps even when I'm carbed the **** up and I don't crave any sugar at all.

 

[Wolf]

I always add some form of milk and sugar to my coffee. As for creatine I add 1g of whatever cheap Walmart brand muscletech or whatever creatine.
My body doesn't like a lot of creatine all at once and I space my dosages out throughout the day based on half life.

 

[postman]

I tried some cold brewed coffee. It didn't seem to make much of a difference. However when I ran it through a paper filter it made a huge difference. I haven't had regular heated paper filtered coffee in a very long time so I can't compare it to that, but compared to instant coffee and steel-filtered cold brewed coffee, paper-filtered cold brew coffee is the clear winner.

I wonder why that is. The diterpines get filtered, but supposedly instant coffee doesn't have much diterpines yet it causes me problems, so it's probably something else that's culprit, or maybe it's the diterpine and other things as well.

 

[Elephanto]

It is the chlorogenic acid that is the most important gut irritant in coffee. Casein partly binds to it but I find it still causes irritation. Adding sugar doesn't help since fructose also causes intestinal permeability. I find Yerba Maté to be a proper replacement, it is also much higher in antioxidants, anti-estrogenic at low dose unlike Coffee, and less stressing on the adrenals at the expense of a less "fun" buzz. Though you'll have to brew it in a traditional way, that is to not boil water (simply get it hot) and add cold water in the herbs container, otherwise it extracts tannins which also cause gut irritation. The occasional green tea is pretty healthy too but an anti-androgenic effect may appear with frequent and high consumption.

 

[postman]

It is the chlorogenic acid that is the most important gut irritant in coffee.

What do you base that on?

 

[nwo2012]

I think the drip method through filter paper, is best, as does RP.
Metal filters often contain heavy metals and also allow too much of the aromatic oils through.
This is the only method that does not give me reflux type symptoms. Instant, metal filter and coffee bags all irritate my gut to some degree. I also feel the darker the roast the smoother it is.

 

[Elephanto]

What do you base that on?

according to the University of Maryland Medical Center, a regular exposure to the chlorogenic acid in coffee, especially on an empty stomach, can lead to an irritation of the stomach lining which is also known as gastritis.

And from the fact that usually people find that milk in coffee makes it less harsh on the gut and less susceptible to cause discomfort, since casein binds to chlorogenic acid.

Any strong acid will be harsh on the gut, like citric acid or taking a lot of undiluted vinegar.

 

[nwo2012]

And from the fact that usually people find that milk in coffee makes it less harsh on the gut and less susceptible to cause discomfort, since casein binds to chlorogenic acid.

Any strong acid will be harsh on the gut, like citric acid or taking a lot of undiluted vinegar.

Reinforces that RP always says use a sat fat with it and preferably with meals.
I always add a little gelatin and find that helps too.

 

[General Orange]

Why don't you try a little BAKING SODA in your café to reduce acidity

 

[General Orange]

https://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/news/20100322/brewing-gentler-java#1
March 22, 2010 - Scientists in Europe say they’ve pinpointed several components of coffee that may cause many people to suffer stomachaches and heartburn.

They say their research shows, for the first time, that caffeine, catechols, and chemical-substances called N-alkanoly-5-hydroxtryptamides stimulate molecular mechanisms of stomach acid secretion in human stomach cells.

"We found out there’s no single, key irritant," Somoza says in a news release. "It is a mixture of compounds that seem to cause the irritant effect of coffee."

They say they unexpectedly found that one of the components, N-methylpyridium, or NMP, seemed to block the ability of stomach cells to produce hydrochloric acid and could offer a way to reduce or avoid stomach irritation.

Since that chemical is generated only during roasting and isn’t found in raw coffee beans, darker-roasted coffees contain higher amounts of this stomach-friendly substance, the researchers say.

- So dark roast is less irritating and I think one could add some extra minerals to the coffee to chelate the irritants Catechols.

 

[Mhouse]

My experience is that a cup made with an Aeropress tastes less bitter and is easier on the stomach, at least compared to when I use the same beans in an espresso machine (and even in an automatic brew drip machine). They claim that the caffeine content is roughly the same and that the difference in taste is due to other substances in coffee. (The Aeropress is cheap but entirely plastic though.. which may be a downside.)

 

[Dave Clark]

Why don't you try a little BAKING SODA in your café to reduce acidity

I second that. I use 1/8 teaspoon of baking soda in the grounds of the coffee when I brew it. I tried it straight in my cup of coffee, but it seemed that when I put it in the grounds I tasted it less. Perhaps you have to play with how much to use to your taste as well. Maybe putting it in your cup would only require a pinch of baking soda.

 

[docall18]

I sometimes get stomach irritation from both coffee & caffeine. Symptoms mainly relate to increased serotonin - diarrhoea, anxiety, bloating etc. This occurs even with large amounts of food/carbs, so it is not low blood sugar.

I think the probable cause is increased release of bile acid. I have seen in other posts that bile acid can irritate the gut and increase serotonin. Caffeine is know to increase bile acid.

However, bile does help to detoxify, so maybe it is a good thing.

 

[Jon]

Why don't you try a little BAKING SODA in your café to reduce acidity

+1

This noticeablybchanges the taste of the coffee to a less bitter/acidic flavor.

 

[docall18]

Why don't you try a little BAKING SODA in your café to reduce acidity

Your stomach is much more acidic than coffee. Coke is even way more acidic than coffee.

 

[Waynish]

Adding sugar doesn't help since fructose also causes intestinal permeability.

Does it always though? I think the main mechanism for sugar increasing permeability is by feeding bacteria that produce endotoxins.

 

[Elephanto]

Does it always though? I think the main mechanism for sugar increasing permeability is by feeding bacteria that produce endotoxins.

Could be one mechanism but I think there's a few others. It is probably gut irritating as fructose restriction is beneficial in children with abdominal pain :
Fructose malabsorption syndrome. - PubMed - NCBI
They draw the conclusion that while relieving symptoms, fructose restriction has a negative effect on gut microbiota by significantly reducing bifidobacteria strains. But those are Lactic Acid-producing bacterias so maybe not as detrimental as they think. No proof of negative effects was shown, it is simply a conclusion based on their classification as probiotics.

Fructose malabsorption is thought to cause intestinal permeability (so you may be right, that if a portion of fructose isn't absorbed it becomes entirely available for gut bacterias, especially in the small intestine, and for biofilm production of Candida). As such, it is considered a FODMAP and low FODMAP diets have shown efficacy in treating IBS and other gastrointestinal disorders.

The maximum amount of fructose a healthy digestive tract can handle in one sitting is 25 to 30 g – the amount you would find in two apples. When you have digestive problems such as IBS or intestinal permeability (leaky gut), your body cannot handle that amount of fructose in one meal, because your gut has fewer healthy cells to digest it.

In studied low FODMAP diets, the permissible amount was 10g daily. But I think that it would be just as fine to limit to 10g per meal for someone in the process of healing his gut. Then once intestinal barrier integrity is recovered, the 25-30g of fructose per meal shouldn't pose a problem. I've done a complete restriction of sugar for about 3 weeks at the start of the summer and I feel it has really helped my gut and afforded long term protection, at the same time it was a period where my Testosterone noticeably increased.

 

[General Orange]

Your stomach is much more acidic than coffee. Coke is even way more acidic than coffee.

Over lvl 9000!