Is coffee a form of laxative?

Coffee to many is regarded as the delicious beverage that wakes up the brain in the morning.  To many it’s their lifeline in ensuring they don’t doze off and miss important dates or events. However, today at MF Products we’re going to look and see if coffee has other ‘purposes’. There are claims that coffee has the ability to energize ones bowels as it does to one’s brain and today The MF Products Team is going to find the underlying cause of this.

Whilst there’s not a consistent string of studies on this case, there is one in 2015 that pointed out that decaffeinated coffee had a significant effect on those with postoperative ileus. Postoperative ileus refers to digestive problems that occur after abdominal surgery. In this case, the patients studied had colon surgery. There are also studies from the 1990’s that establish a connection between coffee and digestion. What was shown was an increased rectosigmoid motility. This essentially meant movement at the intersection of the large colon’s end and the upper rectum increased within 4 minutes in about 29 percent of participants.

 A 1998 study found that caffeinated coffee, decaf coffee, and a 1,000-calorie meal all stimulated the colon. However, caffeinated coffee stimulated the colon 23 percent more than decaf coffee and 60 percent more than plain water.

So, whilst a cup of MF Coffee may have a laxative effect in some people, whether it’s the coffee or the caffeine isn’t particularly clear as of right now.

There is also something else to consider, the gastrocolic reflex. The simple act of drinking coffee or any other beverage in the morning stimulates a defecation reflex known as the gastrocolic reflex. This reflex helps jump-start your bowels whenever you eat or drink and allows the blood vessels to widen in the digestive system to increase blood flow and bowel movement.

In conclusion, older research suggests that caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee (available on mfproducts.co.uk soon) can have laxative effects to some degree, while newer studies are edging towards coffee’s specific role in the digestive system. Either way, a pleasant cup of MF Coffee will truly do you well whether it’s for laxative purposes or for simple enjoyment.