bulletproof-coffee-722x406People have long been relying on coffee to give them a good jolt in the morning, but now some health-seeking individuals are taking java to a new extreme. This latest and greatest wellness craze goes by the (trademarked) name of "Bulletproof coffee," and it's a blend of coffee, grass fed butter, and medium chain triglyceride (MCT) oil derived from coconut and palm oils. Proponents claim that replacing your usual breakfast with a mug of this high-fat tonic will give you an unprecedented burst of energy, increase mental focus, and help you burn more calories throughout the day. The creator of Bulletproof coffee, Dave Asprey, advocates drinking the beverage as part of a Paleo-style diet heavy on fat, along with grass-fed meat and certain vegetables.

So what are the two good reasons to avoid this rich morning brew? A high saturated fat load and its weak nutritional profile.

A single cup provides about 465 calories, with 100% of them coming from fat and 85 percent coming specifically from saturated fat. I am by no means an advocate of a low-fat diet, but I do recommend getting the majority of the fat from foods high in UNsaturated fats, including nuts, seeds, olive and other vegetable oils, oily fish, and avocado, rather than saturated types. High-quality scientific evidence from decades of trials shows that replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats reduces the risk for heart disease. A little butter is fine, but plowing through two sticks a week at breakfast alone isn't something I endorse. (For more detailed information, check out my earlier posts on the saturated fat debate and coconut oil's health effects.)

But it's not only the excessive saturated fat content that concerns me. I wouldn't recommend drinking a mug of coffee with 1/4 cup of olive oil or polyunsaturated-rich safflower oil every day either. Consuming a daily breakfast that is comprised of 100% fat and provides minimal micronutrients flies in the face of one of the most universally held tenets of healthy eating — that consuming a wide variety of whole foods, mostly plants, is the best way to protect against disease. Eating a diverse mix of produce and other whole foods representing all of the major food groups is the best way to ensure that you're meeting the body's daily requirements for essential vitamins, minerals, and fiber. A "meal" of coffee, butter, and refined oil, on the other hand, has a pretty dismal score on nutrient density (calorie density is another story).

To take a closer look, let's compare the nutritional profile of a Bulletproof breakfast with two options that I consider healthy, well-balanced meals.

Breakfast A: 1 serving (2 cups) Bulletproof coffee made with 2 Tbsp. MCT oil and 2 Tbsp. grass fed butter

465 calories, 51 grams fat (100% calories from fat), 0 grams carbohydrate, 0 grams fiber, 0 grams protein, 1000 IU vitamin A, 0 mg vitamin C, >0.71 mg vitamin E*, 16 mg calcium, 239 mg potassium, 15 mg magnesium

*Note: Grass fed butter is thought to be higher in vitamin E than regular butter, but I couldn't find reliable information on the nutritional content of grass fed butter. Some sources without citations state that grass fed butter has 50% more vitamin E, which would equate to 1.07 mg.

Breakfast B: 1/2 cup oats prepared with 1 cup 1% milk + 3/4 cup mixed berries + 3 Tbsp. almonds

458 calories, 19 g fat (37% calories from fat), 56 g carbohydrate, 20 g protein, 11 g fiber, 546 IU vitamin A, 32 mg vitamin C, 7.6 mg vitamin E, 412 mg calcium, 841 mg potassium, 171 mg magnesium

Breakfast C: 1 slice whole-grain bread topped with 1/2 avocado + 1 hard-boiled egg + 1 pink grapefruit

407 calories, 18 g fat (40% calories from fat), 54 g carbohydrate, 13 g protein, 12 g fiber, 3207 IU vitamin A, 83 mg vitamin C, 2.3 mg vitamin E, 113 mg calcium, 905 mg potassium, 90 mg magnesium

Breakfasts B and C still supply a good amount of healthy fat, and because they contain a mix of produce and other high-quality carbohydrates, they also deliver substantial amounts of many vitamins and minerals that tend to be lacking, including fiber, potassium, and magnesium. In other words, they are far nutritionally superior to a cup of buttered coffee.

If you are still fully committed to drinking Bulletproof coffee, I advise getting your cholesterol levels checked regularly. Physicians have documented case reports of otherwise healthy individuals whose LDL cholesterol levels spiked after adopting the daily regimen. The drink may be bulletproof, but your heart isn't.