What Happens to Your Skin When You Stop Drinking Coffee?

Do you love your morning cup of coffee but feel like it’s negatively affecting your skin? You’re not alone. Many people wonder if quitting coffee may be the solution to improving their skin’s appearance. 

Ultimately, drinking coffee has its pros and cons. It provides a nice energy boost and positive health benefits like antioxidants. But it can also dehydrate and lead to poor sleep. So what happens to your skin when you stop drinking coffee?

Stopping coffee consumption may have positive effects on the skin. It may help collagen production, which supports skin structure. Some may also see a decrease in acne. That said, you may also lose out on some of the benefits of coffee for the skin, like protective antioxidant properties. 

There’s quite a bit to look into here. In the rest of this article, we’ll break down the good and bad of coffee for the skin. By the end, you’ll have a better idea if quitting coffee will benefit your skin’s appearance. 

Key Takeaways

• Coffee can have positive and negative effects on the skin. 
• Some people will see noticeable benefits from quitting coffee. 
• Most people drinking coffee in moderation won’t have it affect their skin much.

Will Quitting Coffee Improve My Skin?

In some ways, quitting coffee may improve your skin. But there are pros and cons. The right solution for you may depend on what skin improvements you’re looking to achieve. The table below will explain coffee’s advantages and disadvantages for your skin. 

Pros of Coffee for the Skin	Cons of Coffee for the Skin
✔ Antioxidants can protect against skin damage ✔ Can reduce inflammation ✔ Can make you appear more energetic and revitalized	✖ Decreases collagen production ✖ Can increase acne flare-ups ✖ Can cause poor quality of sleep  ✖ Can decrease skin hydration

As you can see, answering this question isn’t a clear-cut solution. The following sections will break each of these categories down in more detail. 

What Happens to Your Body When You Stop Drinking Coffee for a Month?

Several things can happen to the body when you stop drinking coffee for a month. First, we should talk about potential side effects when you stop drinking coffee. Caffeine, as a stimulant substance, can lead to some minor withdrawal symptoms. Those symptoms could be:

• Headache
• Fatigue
• Decreased alertness
• Irritability
• Feeling foggy
• Feeling down and out of it

Most of these symptoms will be minor. Although, the headaches can get pretty bad for the first few days. But some people may not experience any symptoms. It usually depends on how much caffeine you consume and individual biological factors.

Other than the potential side effects, you may also experience some positive changes. Upon stopping coffee consumption, some people start sleeping better. You may also feel like your mood and energy start to feel more stable throughout the day. 

The results will vary from person to person. Other things like lifestyle, diet, and genetics also contribute to your well-being and skin health. 

What Happens to Your Skin When You Stop Drinking Coffee?

If you stop drinking coffee for a month, you may start to notice your skin looks more hydrated. It can have a brighter and more lively appearance. The circulation to the skin could also improve, further contributing to these effects. However, due to individual factors, this won’t happen for everyone. 

Does Coffee Cause Dehydration?

Caffeine is a diuretic. That means it can cause more frequent urination. Coffee can dehydrate your body and skin to an extent. 

That said, these effects are usually minimal for most people. Most people will be fine if they stay within daily limits for caffeine intake (maximum of 400mg daily). Most studies show that you need to consume 500mg or more of caffeine daily to have noticeable dehydrating effects. That would be equal to 5 cups (40 ounces) of coffee daily. 

Positive Benefits of Drinking Coffee for Your Skin

It isn’t talked about enough that drinking coffee can have some positive effects on your skin. Before you quit drinking coffee, it’s also essential to consider its benefits. 

How Can Coffee Help Your Skin?

One of the powerful benefits of coffee is it is rich in antioxidants. To get more technical, those antioxidants are called:

• Chlorogenic acids 
• Ferulic acids 
• Caffeic acids 
• N-coumaric acids
• Melanoidins

These specific antioxidants are responsible for: 

• Improving the immune system
• Keeping skin healthier 
• Preventing skin damage 
• Reducing inflammation (in some cases)

All of these benefits can have positive effects on the skin’s appearance. 

Caffeine can also help boost your appearance in the short term. Drinking a cup of coffee will give you energy. Increased energy will help revitalize the look of your skin. But this short-term benefit shouldn’t be used in place of a healthy lifestyle. 

The Benefits of Quitting Coffee on Your Skin

Quitting coffee will have benefits on the skin for some people. But it will vary on a case-by-case basis. The main benefits of quitting coffee for your skin will be:

• It may help collagen production. Studies have found that caffeine can affect collagen synthesis and production. Collagen is responsible for the skin’s structure and strength. So quitting coffee and allowing the body to produce and use collagen more easily could help. 
• It may improve the skin’s hydration. As mentioned earlier, caffeine is a diuretic that can have some dehydrating effects. In some cases, mostly where someone is consuming excessive amounts of caffeine, cutting back or quitting coffee can help improve the skin’s hydration and appearance. 
• It may improve sleep, leading to healthier skin and appearance. Caffeine intake can affect sleep for some. If someone is sensitive to caffeine, it could have lasting effects into the night that impact sleep. The same can be said if you consume caffeine too late in the day. So quitting coffee or limiting the time of day when you drink it can help. 
• It could improve acne symptoms. In some cases, caffeine can worsen already existing acne. Caffeine intake affects cortisol levels and adrenal receptors (also associated with stress response). Increased stress can lead to the worsening of acne. In addition, if someone drinks coffee with milk or heavy sweeteners, that can also worsen acne. 

Quitting coffee can lead to improvements in the skin in some cases. So if you align with one of these areas, stopping or reducing caffeine intake may help. 

Does Coffee Ruin Your Skin?

Seeing all the effects caffeine can have on the skin can lead to this question. While quitting caffeine can benefit the skin in some cases, it doesn’t mean coffee necessarily ruins the skin. For most people, drinking a daily cup or two of coffee will have very minimal effects on the skin. Plus, there are steps you can take to limit these effects. 

How to Lessen the Impact of Coffee on Your Skin

The best thing you can do to lessen coffee’s impact on your skin is moderation. Most cases where people see skin improvements from quitting coffee are when they drink too much. Limiting caffeine intake and not loading up on creamer or sugar in your coffee all the time will help a lot.  

In addition, doing other things to improve your lifestyle and well-being will help. Things you can do are:

• Drink enough water
• Get good sleep at night
• Eat a healthy and well-balanced diet
• Exercise

If you live a healthy and balanced lifestyle, most people can drink coffee without problems. 

Conclusion

That wraps things up for this one. Overall, coffee can be good and bad for the skin. 

Quitting coffee can lead to significant improvements in some cases. That said, not everyone will see super noticeable benefits. If you live a healthy lifestyle and drink coffee in moderation, most people will be just fine and won’t have to worry about their skin’s appearance. 

That means you can probably enjoy your morning cup of coffee without worrying too much. 

Resources:

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430790/
2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27225921/
3. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9194998/
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4665516/
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4206198/
6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2249754/