The Pros and Cons of Bulletproof Coffee

Everyone and their mother has been talking about how butter is the new “it” ingredient thanks to the rise in popularity of bulletproof coffee. If you haven’t heard of this buttery beverage, it’s coffee made with grass-fed, unsalted butter along with coconut oil and an optional flavoring like cinnamon or vanilla). The brew has been popularized by Dave Asprey (who also recently released The Bulletproof Diet) and clocks in at about 400 calories…400 calories!! In my personal view and that of Matt Fitzgerald, a well-known author and athlete, I haven’t tried it and never will, for two reasons:
1. I prefer my coffee black.
2. Bulletproof coffee contains 440 largely empty calories.

Those who support the buttery concoction say that it gives them an energy boost and helps keep them stay satiated for hours. I would hope that I would feel full having downed 400-plus calories first thing in the morning! But I’d rather fuel with food that has nutritional substance like fruit or eggs or oatmeal sweetened with a few drops of agave. I was curious what a non-biased nutritionist would have to say however, so I spoke with Tammy Lakatos Shames and Lyssie Lakatos, RDN, CDN, CFT, nutritionists, personal trainers, authors, speakers, and founders of The Nutrition Twins and asked them to highlight the pros and cons of this newfangled trendy beverage.

Pros:
* Coffee contains potent antioxidants.
* The caffeine in coffee can help with athletic performance and alertness if it’s used in moderate amounts.
* The butter used is from grass-fed cows so you don’t have to worry about the cows consuming animal byproducts.
* It’s appealing to Paleo diet followers.
* If cinnamon is used, it may help to improve blood sugar regulation and the reduce the risk of diabetes.

Cons:
* When you drink bulletproof coffee, it’s recommended to replace breakfast, but it supplies very few nutrients and a whopping 441 calories (80% of which are artery-clogging saturated fat).
* It replaces a typically nutrient-dense meal that contains antioxidants, fiber and nourishment like oatmeal, a hardboiled egg, and berries. Bulletproof coffee has no fiber or protein, both of which are top recommendations as part of a breakfast that provides long-lasting satiety. (Although the fat in the Bulletproof coffee is purported to do this by advocates, studies show mixed results, and many people who try the coffee on on-line forums report being hungry a few hours later.
* There’s no joy or satisfaction of eating food when you drink a meal.
* Although a few recent studies show that saturated fat isn’t detrimental for heart health, this is when saturated fat is consumed in normal amounts, not the excessive amounts that are found in bulletproof coffee. Bulletproof coffee contains 2/3 of your total daily fat allowance and 200% of the recommended amount of saturated fat. Learn more here.

Have you tried bulletproof coffee? Would you?