Drinking Coffee Could Improve Your Mood as Daylight Decreases After the Clocks "Fall Back"

As the days get shorter during the fall and winter, people's energy and moods could be impacted from the changes in the environment. According to a new pan-European survey funded by the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee, 28 percent of adults in around Europe experience depression and 28 percent also amplified feelings of sadness because of "fall back," when daylight hours decrease each year. The 5,000 adult survey respondents from across the United Kingdom, Italy, Finland, Germany, and Poland also noted that this change in daylight makes 21 percent have increased anxiety, 24 percent think it's harder to concentrate, lose 25 percent feel don't have motivation to exercise, and 21 percent found decreases in their sports performance. The participants did find that drinking coffee did help alleviate these conditions.

The survey examined the participants' coffee consumption during shorter days and found that 29 percent of them drank a cup of joe to boost their energy, 20 percent had coffee to increase their mood and emotions, and 21 percent noted that consuming their brew helped with their alertness and concentration. "There is evidence that coffee polyphenols may pass the blood-brain barrier, exert anti-neuroinflammatory effects and even promote neurogenesis, hence resulting in decreased risk of both cognitive and affective disorders," said Giuseppe Grosso, the assistant professor in the department of biomedical and biotechnological sciences at the University of Catania School of Medicine.

Researchers noted that having 75 milligrams of caffeine, which equals one cup of coffee, every four hours can keep people's mood consistent over the course of the day. Other research found that even the scent of coffee can improve working memory and cause alertness. Plus, research found that people who consume coffee can feel more awake, use it for social interactions, help concentration, and increase physical energy.

Other reasons why you might want to drink more coffee during daylight saving time? Coffee is known to stimulate the brain, and in turn, attention, mood, and cognitive function all get a boost. You could also get the energy to exercise more during the fall and winter after drinking coffee. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) explained that drinking caffeine is linked to improvement in endurance performance, categorized as aerobic exercise over five minutes long, endurance capacity, and a decrease the effort or exertion needed to perform during exercise.