How Much Coffee Is Too Much?
Asking for a friend
There’s a lot of research on coffee, it’s health benefits and risks, and how much we should be drinking. According to science, three to five cups per day is healthy, but if we have a sixth cup, we have gone too far.
These articles specify that a cup is 8 ounces, so that’s something to keep in mind. Traditional coffee pots make it hard to know what constitutes a “cup.” Every night before bed, I fill my coffee pot with water up to the 6-cup mark — so that in the morning, I’ll have half a pot of coffee to drink while I write. So am I drinking six cups of coffee? What does 8 ounces even look like?
In the interest of science and my own health, I measured how much liquid my favorite cup holds. I poured water from a bottle that holds 16.9 fluid ounces into my cup. It held slightly less than half of the water. So my favorite cup holds about 8 ounces.
You know what that means? It means it’s healthy for me to drink half a pot of coffee each morning. In fact, I may live forever because coffee is the sweet elixir of life, or something like that.
The real question is, what’s up with Mr. Coffee telling me that a full pot of coffee is twelve cups’ worth? I think the deception has gone on long enough.
Apparently, a “cup” as measured by Mr. Coffee is 6 ounces. Coffee pot manufacturers evidently believe we all drink our coffee out of cute little tea cups. Probably while extending our pinkies. They probably also believe we set the cup on a cute little saucer. The saucer itself may be placed on a doily.
What if we made a coffee pot that had clear markings for Healthy Amount and Too Much Coffee! That would be more useful.
Anyway, as it turns out, I drink the perfect amount of coffee each morning, which is wonderful news. Had it turned out otherwise, I would probably have continued drinking the same amount anyway. Coffee makes me happy. If it also keeps me healthy, well, that’s just a bonus.
