As popular as coffee remains, other options for morning drinks also abound. Even folks who skip breakfast typically drink something in the morning. And what you choose to drink can influence the rest of your day, as well as your long-term health. Consuming a healthy beverage can be an important part of a suite of positive morning habits and rituals.
So let’s take a look at a number of different beverages you can enjoy in the morning to support your health, mood, and energy.
Surveys suggest that almost two-thirds of Americans say they rarely wake up feeling rested and energized. It makes sense, then, that many people want a burst of energy in the morning, which is one reason caffeinated beverages are so popular.
While coffee is the poster child for wake-up drinks — and can offer significant health benefits — coffee alternatives can also increase your energy. Some, like black and green teas, coffee-mushroom blends, and commercial energy drinks, also provide caffeine.
But caffeine isn’t for everyone, and not everyone reacts well to it. One person’s “This is a pleasant pick-me-up” may be another’s “Why is my heart thundering like the last lap of a NASCAR race?” So you may want to start some (or all) of your days without caffeinating.
Energy Drinks with Synthetic Caffeine
Also, some drinks with added caffeine are not the healthiest breakfast drinks. Many provide synthetic caffeine, a substance first created by Monsanto (now Bayer) that appears to behave differently than its natural counterpart. Your body absorbs and metabolizes synthetic caffeine faster, which can lead to a quicker spike in energy, as well as a faster and more dramatic crash afterward. And other ingredients in so-called energy drinks, including white sugar and artificial flavors and colors, are cause for concern as well.
(Most of the caffeine that’s used in the beverage industry — for drinks like Red Bull and Rockstar, as well as Coca-Cola and Pepsi — is synthetic caffeine.)
Coffee Alternatives
If you’re not partial to caffeine, and are wondering what to drink instead of coffee or tea in the morning, some energizing alternatives include chicory root and maca. Chicory root coffee, a New Orleans staple, comes from a root that’s related to dandelion as well as sharp salad greens like radicchio, frisée, and endive.
Chicory root has sometimes been added to coffee as a tastes-somewhat-like-it filler to help people extend their supply of the more expensive bean. In addition to water, warmth, and taste, chicory root is a rich source of inulin, a kind of insoluble prebiotic fiber that your beneficial gut bacteria absolutely adore. Long prized as an herbal remedy, chicory root’s health benefits have begun to attract scientific attention as well.
Chicory root’s bitter taste can wake up your appetite and trigger the secretion of bile. At the same time, it has also been used to counter the stimulant effects of coffee, as it can induce relaxation and calm in those who consume it. (That sounds like the best of both worlds to me!)
Another plant that makes a fine morning pick-you-up beverage is maca. This root from the cruciferous family, originally from the Andes, has become popular since rumors of its aphrodisiacal properties began circulating on the internet. While this purported effect may not be entirely welcome at 7:30 in the morning when you’re trying to wake up, get the kids dressed and fed, and hit the freeway — or home office desk — by 8:15, there’s more. Maca may also improve mood and brain function.
Healthiest Breakfast Drinks to Hydrate You
Given that most Americans are chronically dehydrated, drinking water at any time of the day is often a good idea. And, since most of us start the day by releasing water from our bodies after a night of breathing and sweating away moisture, the morning is a perfect time to rehydrate.
Many people even wake up feeling dehydrated. A number of things can exacerbate the body’s nightly water loss, including breathing dysregulation (like snoring, mouth breathing, and sleep apnea), night sweats, an over-warm bedroom, hormonal imbalances, and side effects of common meds, such as antidepressants.
Even in the absence of these factors, it’s a good idea to hydrate when you first wake up, especially if you exercise in the morning. Dehydration can cause dry mouth, malaise, foggy thinking, drowsiness, and even dizziness throughout the day. So if you want to perform at your highest level, both mentally and physically, make sure you replace any fluids you’ve lost during the night.
Plus, there’s evidence that water consumption tends to reduce the intake of calories, sugar, and saturated fat — so, bonus!
Drinking Water (or Broth) in the Morning
Plain water is a good place to start. One way to decrease the odds of dehydration first thing is to have drinking water accessible and visible right when you get up. A water bottle, tall glass, or mason jar on your bedside table can serve as a visual cue to drink as soon as you wake. Alternately, set your drinking water on the bathroom counter and drink as soon as you’re done peeing.
In addition to pure water, you may want to have some vegetable broth in the morning (which may already have electrolytes like sodium and potassium in it), or add electrolytes to your water. After all, when you sweat, you lose electrolytes in addition to water. If you like, you can add slices of fruit to water.
Healthy Morning Drink Ideas to Kickstart Your Metabolism
Drinking enough fluids in the morning can jumpstart your metabolism, which helps manage your appetite and weight. Make sure to avoid sugary drinks that can cause blood sugar fluctuations and contribute to food cravings throughout the day.
Even plain drinking water can contribute to reductions in weight and body fat. To further enhance these effects, some people add a little bit of apple cider vinegar to their morning glass of water.
We’ve seen that chicory root can get the digestive juices flowing thanks to its compounds that our taste buds find bitter. Another way to boost metabolism and reduce cravings is to add some plant-based protein to your morning beverage. No, I’m not suggesting floating tofu cubes in your morning joe. But you can add nuts, seeds, or nut or seed butters to smoothies and shakes.
There are also compounds in some herbal teas called catechins that promote satiety. Green tea, for example, contains a catechin called epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) that appears to decrease levels of ghrelin, an appetite stimulant gut hormone.
Get Vital Nutrients in the Morning
Water is great, and so are electrolytes, but why stop there? There’s a world of awesome nutrients out there, and drinking your fruits and veggies can get them inside you where they can do good things. Fresh juices and smoothies are wonderful and tasty delivery systems for vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and many other valuable phytonutrients.
Green smoothies pack a particularly powerful nutritional wallop, as the blending appears to increase the bioavailability of phytochemicals found in plant foods. And with smoothies, unlike juices, you get fiber as well. To aid in the absorption of some nutrients and prevent later blood sugar crashes, you can add healthy fats like avocados, nuts, seeds, or nut or seed butters. And some teas can also contribute antioxidants to your diet. That EGCG, which as we’ve seen is a catechin, also helps prevent free radicals and so protects your cells from damage.
Relax with a Morning Beverage
What if you don’t want or need a burst of energy first thing in the morning? You can also drink a relaxing hot beverage, such as herbal tea and warm lemonade.
Golden milks and adaptogenic elixirs can be especially comforting in the morning. They provide warmth and comfort on a cold day. And teas in particular can stimulate the production of feel-good neurotransmitters in the brain.
What to Drink in the Morning
Let’s put our morning beverage options in one place. As you can see from this impressive list, you’ve got a lot of choices.
Types of morning drinks include:
- Coffee and coffee drinks
- Tea and tea drinks
- Caffeine alternatives
- Adaptogenic elixirs
- Smoothies
- Plant-based milks
- Golden milks
- Vegan milkshakes
- Water (with or without additions like apple cider vinegar, herbs, or fruit slices)
- Juices
- And vegetable stocks and broths deserve an honorable mention, too!
Adapted from Food Revolution Network