Answering “is coffee healthier than tea for prediabetes” ultimately depends on an individual’s caffeine tolerance and blood sugar management. A recent study did find, however, that frequent coffee drinkers have a significantly reduced risk of type 2 diabetes than non-drinkers due to factors like chlorogenic acid, lignans, N-methylpyridinium minerals (such as potassium magnesium niacin ), proteins lipids such as cafestol kahweol.

Coffee is an increasingly popular beverage among those with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, especially as caffeine levels rise temporarily and appear to boost insulin production and function. This effect could be the result of unique chemicals found in coffee that stimulate nerve activity while having beneficial impacts on glucose and insulin homeostasis. Other components like methylated polyphenols, trigonelline caffein and N-methylpyridinium have also been known to decrease oxidative stress while improving adenosine signaling.

Nurses’ Health Study II was a prospective cohort study involving 88,259 US women without prior histories of type 2 diabetes at baseline and used Cox proportional hazards regression to examine the correlation between coffee consumption and type 2 diabetes over four years of follow-up. Age-adjusted baseline characteristics by category of change in coffee intake over this time are presented in ESM Table 1. Researchers discovered that those experiencing significant reductions in coffee intake over this period tended to be older individuals who experienced greater weight gain during this period compared to individuals who experienced no significant change over this period.

This study lends credence to earlier research indicating that regular coffee drinking may lower risk for type 2 diabetes. Although in the Nurses’ Health Study II it was possible that coffee’s effect was related to its caffeine content, more recent studies have not confirmed this assumption. Caffeine tolerance may vary widely and blood sugar effects depend on whether or not your cup of java contains sugar and milk or other carbohydrates as part of its preparation.

Tea and coffee both have similar effects on blood sugar, with tea having less caffeine content depending on its type. Diabetics should prioritize herbal and green tea without added sugar as these beverages tend to provide more balanced solutions than most flavored drinks that contain additional sweeteners.

As an alternative to coffee, those living with prediabetes or diabetes could try making this Strawberry, Basil & Lime Infused Water at home. Not only will its delicious fruit-and-vegetable-infused flavor help ensure adequate fluid intake while simultaneously helping lower blood sugar and manage weight, it will also prevent diabetes’ onset or progression by cutting down on high calorie drinks such as soda.