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The Truth About Coffee and Skin Aging

Feb 10, 2024 · 34K views · 3K likes · 72 comments · 30 shares

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AI Search Summary

This video debunks the claim that coffee ages your skin because caffeine is a diuretic that dehydrates the body. The core point is that coffee can have a short-term diuretic effect at higher-than-usual caffeine doses, but normal coffee intake does not appear to cause meaningful whole-body dehydration, and dehydration-related skin changes are not the same as skin aging.

  • Main question: Does coffee dehydrate you or age your skin?
  • Short answer / core takeaway: For typical coffee drinkers, coffee is not well supported as a cause of dehydration or skin aging; evidence suggests caffeinated drinks can contribute to hydration.
  • Evidence type: Claim audit using hydration physiology, caffeine/fluid-balance studies, and systematic review evidence.
  • Search topics: coffee skin aging, caffeine dehydration, coffee diuretic myth, caffeine fluid balance, coffee skin hydration.

Common Search Questions

Does coffee age your skin?

The video argues that the claim is not supported by the evidence presented. Hydration can affect skin hydration parameters, but temporary dehydration is not the same as aging, and coffee does not appear to cause meaningful dehydration in typical use.

Is coffee a diuretic?

Coffee or caffeine can be a short-term diuretic at higher doses, especially when the dose is above someone’s usual intake. Habitual intake and dose matter.

Does caffeine dehydrate you?

The studies discussed found no measurable full-body dehydration from moderate caffeine intake, including when caffeine was taken over multiple days. Caffeinated beverages can also contribute to rehydration after exercise.

Who should be more careful about hydration?

The caption notes that older adults may have weaker thirst regulation and that people taking diuretic medications may need to be more conscious about fluid intake. That is a separate situation from claiming coffee generally ages skin.

Key Takeaways

  • The viral claim combines fear, vanity, and an overly broad dietary rule.
  • Body hydration can affect skin hydration, but that is not the same as permanent skin aging.
  • Caffeine can increase urine output briefly at high doses or above habitual intake.
  • Moderate coffee intake has not been shown to cause measurable whole-body dehydration in the cited studies.
  • References belong in the References section, not buried in caption notes.

Transcript

The viral coffee-and-skin claim

Avoid these three drinks because they can make your skin look older. Sixteen million views with the winning recipe of an appeal to fear and vanity coupled with an unqualified dietary rule.

We can talk more about one and two in a different video, but let’s skip to three. Number three was a real surprise to me because it is so healthy for you.

Was a surprise? Oh, he must mean that he was surprised when he read the research study that his claim was based on. I am excited to see it.

The claim being evaluated

It is coffee damaging to the skin. Why does coffee age the skin? Caffeine is what is called a diuretic. That means it dehydrates you. So caffeine can dehydrate the body and dehydrate the skin and make you look older.

Now I am not saying do not drink coffee ever again. If you do like coffee or drinks that contain caffeine, and many of them are very healthy for the brain and for the body, make sure you drink plenty of water.

That’s it. No evidence. Just trust me because: “If you are new to my channel, hi, my name is Robert Love. I am a neuroscientist.”

Not that being a neuroscientist really has much to do with what he is talking about. Hi, Robert, I am a scientist who only makes recommendations based on cited evidence. But let’s analyze his claim.

What the claim gets right and wrong

Avoid coffee because it will age your skin, because it is a diuretic, which dehydrates you, so actually just worry about drinking a ton more water. This gets a few things right, but relies on many assumptions, which is not how we do science.

First, yes, your overall body hydration level does impact your skin hydration parameters. That is not the same as aging your skin, because if you just drink more, then suddenly your skin bounces back and is as good as new. No cause for fear.

Next, yes, diuretics make you pee more. But when you lose fluids, your body does this weird thing where suddenly you want to drink more and replenish. It is, what is that word again? Oh, thirst.

Why coffee usually does not cause dehydration

Your body is pretty good at regulating your overall fluid balance, so a diuretic is unlikely to impact your skin, although there is some truth to this with elderly folks on diuretic medications.

Anyway, coffee does not cause dehydration and it is often not even a diuretic, contrary to popular belief. That is why we rely on scientific evidence. As a great educator often says, time for school. See notes, everyone.

What the caffeine studies showed

Coffee can be a short-term diuretic, but mostly at high doses of caffeine. This study took coffee drinkers who typically consumed between one and three cups of coffee per day and, based on their body weight, gave them a cup of coffee with the equivalent of either six cups of coffee worth of caffeine, or water.

They then took urine samples over the next three hours. Only the four-to-six-cup coffee-equivalent caffeine group, the high caffeine group, ended up peeing out more than the group that just drank water. But that was still just three hours after drinking the coffee, and the body is really good at maintaining long-term balance.

Another study used those same two doses of caffeine, this time in pill form, given over 11 days, while measuring 20 different biomarkers of full-body hydration status. Neither dose of caffeine caused any measurable dehydration.

In fact, another study showed that caffeinated beverages work perfectly well for rehydration after exercise. So if you are a fellow coffee lover who is also a little bit vain, drink without fear for your skin. But yes, it does make you poop.

Additional Notes

Caption context

The caption asks whether coffee ages skin, makes people pee, or dehydrates them. It notes that very high intakes above about 6 cups per day, or about 6 mg/kg caffeine, are less studied.

It also notes that the short-term diuretic study used people whose test dose was above their habitual intake, so the effect might differ if that dose were their baseline. Exercise may reduce caffeine’s diuretic effect, and women may experience a somewhat increased short-term diuretic effect compared with men.

Keywords and topics

  • Coffee and dehydration
  • Caffeine diuretic effect
  • Skin hydration versus skin aging
  • Coffee myths
  • Nutrition claim audit

References