Light Roast vs. Dark Roast Coffee: Which Is Healthier?

Coffee has antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. But what type of coffee roast has the most health perks?

Medically reviewed by Aviv Joshua, MS

Coffee fanatics know that their beverage offers long-term health benefits related to chronic inflammation, cardiovascular diseases, chronic liver diseases, diabetes, and cancer. However, to maximize your health benefits in every cup, you may be left wondering if dark roast or light roast is healthier.

The answer depends, as different coffee roasts may have different levels of antioxidants, anti-inflammatory properties, and acidity. For example, dark roast is less acidic, while light roast has more antioxidants. Here's what else you need to know about what type of coffee roast is best for maximizing its health benefits.

Coffee Roasting

Roasting is a heat process that brings out the aroma and flavor locked inside the naturally green coffee beans. You can enjoy green coffee, though the drink will be made without roasting the beans.

Roasting causes chemical changes as the beans are rapidly brought to very high temperatures. As the beans roast, the temperature changes the compounds that make up the beans. That chemical change affects the coffee's smell, taste, and antioxidant properties.

The type of roast you end up with depends on the roasting time and temperature. There are four major categories of roasts:

• Light roast: If coffee is a light roast version, the color is lighter and the taste is mild. Types of light roast coffees include cinnamon, half city, and light city.

• Medium roast: Coffee of the medium roast variety has a medium brown color and is considered the main preference in the United States. A medium roast may be city, American, or breakfast varieties.

• Medium dark roast: Medium dark roast results in coffee with a rich, dark color. The primary type is full city.

• Dark roast: Coffee that falls under the dark roast category ranges from slightly dark to charred. This roast is also less acidic and may be under a few names such as New Orleans, European, espresso, Italian, or French.
  

Which One is Healthiest?

The health benefits of light roasts compared to dark roasts are based on what you want to gain from your cup of coffee. Healthy factors to consider include antioxidants, anti-inflammatory properties, and acidity.

Antioxidants

Light roasts may have an advantage regarding the number of polyphenols, a type of antioxidant, remaining after the roasting process. Some studies suggest that the longer coffee beans are roasted, the fewer polyphenols they will have.

Still, while light roast contains more polyphenols, dark roast may have more antioxidant activity as the activity increases with the roasting degree. For example, strongly roasted coffee has higher antioxidant activity than lightly roasted coffee. The activity level may compensate for the lack of polyphenols in dark roasts.

Anti-Inflammatory Properties

One study found that light roasts have more substantial anti-inflammatory effects than dark roasts. The findings also indicated that light roast coffee had the highest antioxidant activity—contrary to other findings with dark roast coffee and antioxidant activity. Still, it's important to note that researchers conducted the study on cell cultures, not humans.

The late Sampath Parthasarathy, PhD, former associate dean for research at the University of Central Florida, told Health that researchers would need to replicate those results in human trials.

"We know that antioxidants protect against many health problems. And we also know that inflammation is the basis of many chronic diseases, whether it is diabetes, heart disease, cancer, or neurological diseases like Alzheimer's," explained Dr. Parthasarathy. "But these diseases are progressive and occur over a long period of time. And you can't see long-term benefits in a test-tube study."

Acidity

Some coffee lovers drink decaf or forgo the beverage altogether. Sometimes, coffee irritates the stomach or brings on heartburn caused by gastric acid secretion.

Researchers have also compared roasts based on acidity. Some evidence suggests that darker roasts lead to less gastric acid secretion than medium roasts. Therefore, dark roast may be easier on the stomach than other roasts.

Caffeine Content

Some people may think that the darker the roast, the more caffeine coffee has. However, that's not the case.

One study analyzed the composition of Arabic coffee, which included determining the caffeine content of light, medium, and dark roasts. Across all three roasts, the caffeine content was around 1%—though the content was slightly higher in medium and light roasts.

Coffee Taste

Coffee roasts also vary when it comes to flavor and sweetness. Light and medium roasts are milder, while medium dark roasts are stronger and bittersweet. Dark roasts are the most bitter of the roasts.

A Quick Review

Coffee offers a multitude of health benefits to help prevent chronic illness. However, there are differences in the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and acid content between the different roasts from light to dark. Ultimately, the type of roast you prefer will likely depend on taste and smell preferences.

Related: 14 Ways To Get More Energy Without Caffeine

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