Cappuccino, latte, flat white, macchiato, latte macchiato – you name it! Only thinking about all these combinations of coffee and milk may already let you smile and relax for a moment. But is coffee and milk a really good combination, and how does milk influence the healthy benefits of coffee?
At the moment there is still a scientific debate about the influence of milk on the nutritional quality of coffee (think about its antioxidants). Why? Because there are so many factors that influence this interaction. Take, for example, the type and amount of milk added, the type of coffee, the composition of both milk (protein and fat) and coffee (phenolic compounds) and preparation methods.
To date, researchers have supplied enough evidence that milk reduces the bioavailability and antioxidant activity of coffee phenolic compounds (particularly, chlorogenic acids). Most probably this happens due to the negative effects of both milk proteins and its complex fat structures (=fat globules).
This means that you’d better drink your coffee without milk. But, if you really can’t enjoy black coffee, use whole fat milk, as it seems to bring less damage to the health benefits of coffee!
