Most people need coffee in the morning to feel energized, boost energy, and improve productivity. But when you frequently add creamers to subsidize the bitter taste of coffee, it makes you wonder whether these benefits are also reduced.
Creamer is often used to lighten and sweeten coffee, but does it also make your coffee less intense? Are you consuming less caffeine than you usually would without the creamer? In this article, we are answering your questions about creamer in coffee and its effect on the caffeine present in coffee.
Does Creamer Make Coffee Less Strong?
Creamers are very commonly used as a replacement for milk in coffee. Often to make it less bitter, and sweeter and to add more life to it. Creamer does help dilute your coffee, therefore making it less strong.
Very often people add cream, sugar, sweeteners, and even ice to dilute the coffee, making it thinner and less strong. The attempt of adding these ingredients is often done in the pursuit of making it taste better and more palatable.
Effect On Caffeine When You Add Creamer To Coffee
The question however remains: does creamer reduce the caffeine in coffee? The answer is no, it does not. Adding creamer dilutes the coffee for sure, but it cannot reduce the amount of caffeine present in it.
Adding creamer to coffee does not reduce the amount of caffeine present in the cup. Creamer has other significant effects like reducing the bitterness, altering the texture of coffee, and adding a sweet taste, but caffeine reduction is not one of them.
Can You Put Creamer In Espresso Instead Of Milk?
Yes, you can put creamer in espresso. As a matter of fact, coffee creamer is an excellent replacement for milk. It adds thickness and sweetness to your coffee. You can also use flavored coffee creamers in your coffee for a more enhanced taste and texture. Read more about adding creamer to espresso instead of milk.
What Happens When You Add Creamer To Coffee? The Good & Bad
Unlike what its name suggests, creamer does not contain any form of cream or dairy in it. It is made with sugar, oil, and thickeners and works as an easy sweetened, and flavored replacement for cream, sugar, and milk in coffee and tea.
The taste of creamer is similar to that of cream or half-and-half. You can find single-serving or bigger bottles that can be refrigerated for days. It also comes in a number of flavor options such as vanilla, hazelnut, caramel, pumpkin spice, etc.
Many popular brands also have non-dairy, lactose-free, sugar-free, and vegan creamer. They serve as an advantage for coffee lovers, who like the idea of having flavored coffee, but do not have all the necessary ingredients and time to make one.
Adding Creamer To Coffee: The Good
Creamers are a delicious option for coffee enthusiasts. They add the perfect amount of sweetness, texture, and flavor to your coffee. Creamers have a longer shelf life when compared to milk or cream.
Liquid creamers remain fresh for upto a week or two, while powder creamer can last for months. Another great thing about creamers is the varied flavors they come in. When you use creamer you do not need to add additional sugar and flavored syrups.
Adding Creamer To Coffee: The Bad
While an easy solution, creamers might not be the best for health enthusiasts. Creamers are high in sugar, oil, and thickening substance which might not be the best option if you prefer a low-calorie coffee.
Creamers are also very addictive in nature. Many often forget to keep a watch on the quantity of creamer and add too much in order to mask the bitter taste of coffee which often leads to a very sweet and unhealthy coffee.
[Also Read: How Much Creamer In Coffee Should You Add?]
How Much Caffeine Is In A Regular Cup of Coffee?
There are several factors that affect the caffeine content in a cup of coffee. Difference roasts and brewing methods can have different amounts of caffeine content. On average, one cup of brewed coffee contains around 95 mg of caffeine.
How Long Does It Take For Caffeine To Exit The Body?
How long your body takes to absorb the caffeine and then lose its original effects can vary on a lot of factors like your age, energy level, daily activities, etc. Still, If we had to give a timeline on how long it takes for caffeine to exit your body, here is the answer.
The first question should not be how long it takes for the caffeine to exit, it should be how long it takes for the caffeine to kick in. It normally takes somewhere around 30 to 60 minutes for the caffeine to actually kick in and show its effects.
Post which, the half-life of caffeine i.e; the half amount of caffeine that was ingested takes anywhere between three to six hours to exit your body. For example, if you had one cup of coffee which has around 95 mg of caffeine, it will take around 6 hours for that to leave your body.
And then after another six hours, the rest of the caffeine leaves the body. This means that the caffeine present in 1 cup of coffee can stay in your bloodstream for about 10 to 12 hours.
Does Adding Water To Coffee Reduce Caffeine?
No, adding water does not reduce the caffeine in coffee. Adding water will only dilute the coffee and increase the quantity of coffee and not have any effect on caffeine whatsoever.
How to Reduce the Amount of Caffeine In Coffee? 9 Ways
Now that we know adding creamer to coffee does not reduce the caffeine present in it. So, can you reduce the caffeine in your cup of coffee at all? If yes, how?
No, you do not have to avoid coffee completely. You can reduce the amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee through some simple measures. Here are nine proven methods that can help you reduce the caffeine in coffee –
1. Reduce the quantity of coffee grounds
This is an obvious step but works amazingly for people looking to reduce caffeine. You can reduce the total amount of coffee grounds you soak, keeping the quantity of water the same. Now, we are not saying that your coffee will taste the same, because it won’t.
Reducing the quantity of coffee grounds will reduce the caffeine content, but it will also give you a weaker cup of coffee than usual. If you’re okay with compromising on the front, then reduce the coffee grounds for your next brew.
2. Try a different ground size
If you brew your own coffee, you probably already know this, when you use coffee grounds that are too coarse you will be left with an under-extracted coffee and when you use coffee grounds that are too fine, you will be left with an over-extracted coffee.
We can take this knowledge to your advantage, by using slightly coarser grounds. When you use coarse-ground coffee, the extraction process is a little longer, which then means less caffeine. The only point here is to make sure that you do not use grinds that are very coarse or you will end up with a bitter-tasting under extracted coffee.
3. Experiment with dark roast coffee
Another great method to reduce caffeine is to use dark roast coffee. There has been a huge myth that a dark roast has more amount of caffeine than a light roast since it has a stronger flavor. This is wrong, as a matter of actual fact, dark roast coffee contains less caffeine than light or medium roast coffee when measured by volume.
Now, what do we mean by ‘measured by volume’? Will the caffeine be higher if we measure it by weight? Yes, it will be. Let us explain, when coffee beans are roasted it loses their weight (mainly water content) and changes their size. Basically, the more the beans are roasted the more it increases in volume.
Therefore, when you measure dark roast through a scoop, you get fewer beans as it is larger in size, but when you measure it by weighing it, you get more coffee beans as it has set its water content. In conclusion, use dark roast coffee and measure it with a scoop, to get less amount of caffeine.
4. Reduce brewing time
Reducing brewing time is another excellent method of consuming the same amount of coffee with less caffeine. Here is what we mean to say, when you pull an espresso shot or brew a french press, it takes a much short amount of time to brew than a drip brew.
The lesser time you take to brew the coffee, the lesser caffeine it has. For example, a single shot of espresso has around 65 mg of caffeine, while 12 oz of drip brew has around 145 mg of caffeine. This goes to say that switching up your method of brewing coffee or simply brewing it for a lesser time can give you less amount of caffeine per cup of coffee.
5. Use Arabica coffee beans
If the above method does not work with your regular coffee beans, simply switch the beans. Arabica coffee beans have around half the quantity of caffeine as Robusta coffee beans. Robusta beans have around 2.5% of caffeine while Arabica has around 1.5%.
6. Drink instant coffee
Instant coffee is basically freeze-dried brewed coffee with half the amount of caffeine than usual brewed coffee. You can simply switch to instant coffee when you need to reduce your daily caffeine intake. It is easy and simple to make and tastes almost similar to a brewed cup of coffee.
7. Try cold brew
Cold brew is a refreshing coffee drink perfect for the summer. Just as the name suggests Cold Brew Coffee is Coffee brewed with cold water. In simple words, the process of making Cold Brew involves steeping coarse coffee grounds in cold or room temperature water for 12 to 14 hours.
It has 30% less caffeine than a regular cup of hot brew and tastes extremely refreshing. We wrote an article on what is cold brew & how to make it. – Check it out.
8. Switch to decaf maybe?
If you tried the above methods and none worked, why not try decaf coffee? If you do not want to go completely decaf you can always try a half-and-half method that is used 50% decaf and 50% usual coffee, this works great as well.
How Much Caffeine Is Too Much Caffeine?
Caffeine works great when consumed in moderation. Excessive caffeine consumption will do you more harm than good. According to the scientists at FDA, for healthy adults, any more than 400 milligrams of caffeine or 3 to 4 cups of coffee can have negative effects on your health.
What Happens When You Consume Excessive Caffeine? How To Fix It?
If you consume too much caffeine in a short period of time, it can cause a range of negative effects including anxiety, nervousness, headaches, and heart palpitations. Here are some measures you can take when in such cases-
1. Hydrate yourself
Excessive caffeine often causes dehydration. Drinking water helps you feel hydrated. While drinking water will not reduce the effects of caffeine, it can help to alleviate dehydration and thirst.
2. Take a walk
Taking a leisurely walk may help to calm your jitters and increase your metabolism to help flush the caffeine from your body. Walking also calms your mind down and reduces anxiety and nervousness.
3. Take deep breaths
Consuming too much caffeine can lead to feelings of anxiety and agitation, and can cause shallow, rapid breathing. To help relax and reduce anxiety in this situation, try taking slow, deep breaths.
Final Thoughts
You can use creamer in your coffee to add that extra sweetness or flavor, but it will not reduce the caffeine in your coffee. It does however makes it taste sweeter if you find black coffee too strong or bitter.
However, if you want to reduce the caffeine in your cup of coffee, you can try the listed ways. Caffeine is good when consumed correctly, too much of it will only make things worse. Therefore, keep a watch on your caffeine content and do not consume it too late in the day!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Yes, creamer can reduce the acid in coffee. Acidity is measured on a pH scale. Creamer has a pH of 6.8, while coffee has a pH of 4.7 to 5. A pH of 7 is considered to be neutral. Adding creamer to coffee ensures that the pH level rises, in turn making it less acidic. Learn more about reducing acid in coffee here.
No, creamer has no effect on the caffeine levels in a cup of coffee. Adding creamer would add more liquid to your cup, and change the taste and texture, but will not alter the caffeine in it.
Creamer is a great addition to coffee. It helps you lighten, sweeten and flavor your coffee. You can find different types of creamer in the market like vegan-free, lactose-free, sugar-free, etc.
Ideally, you should add your coffee first and then add creamer. So you can keep a watch on how much creamer you need or how light you prefer your coffee to be.
Milk adds natural sweetness and a really delicious creamy texture to your coffee. Creamer’s also gives your coffee the perfect taste to balance out the bitterness.
Creamer is often used as a replacement for milk and sugar. If you prefer flavored coffee, creamer is a fun addition. If you however like your coffee simple and sweet, sugars are great as well.
You can put milk, cream, half-and-half, sugar, simple syrup, maple syrup, flavored syrups, honey, etc instead of creamer.
