Cleaning your coffee maker with 35p kitchen staple makes it 'taste even better'
If your morning coffee is starting to taste bitter and stale - it's time to give it a thorough clean.
Many Brits can't function if they don't start their day with a much-needed hit of caffeine. But your beloved Americano may be riddled with bacteria that could tarnish the taste of your fancy Colombian coffee beans. It may even cause a slew of health problems such as allergic reactions.
In fact, a study from the National Sanitation Foundation International found half of the coffee reservoirs (where the water is stored) they tested contained mould and yeast - including coliform, a strain of bacteria reports say can indicate Salmonella and E. coli. Luckily, you don't need an expensive coffee cleaners to sort the problem out; a simple kitchen staple will do the job just fine.
According to Real Simple, you can improve the taste of your coffee and banish any bacteria by using distilled white vinegar. The natural remedy can be picked up from a slew of supermarkets including Tesco, which is currently selling a bottle for just 35p.
If you have a drip coffee maker, simply pour equal parts of distilled white vinegar and water into the water tank and switch on brew. When half of the solution has pulled through, switch the machine off and let it sit for around an hour. Then, turn the coffee maker back on and let the cycle finish. Remember to pour out the vinegar solution and run the parts through clean water until the scent has gone - otherwise you'll wake up to a rather funky-tasting cup of Joe.
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For single-cup coffee makers, it's a similar process: just pour the vinegar solution into the water chamber and run the machine without a coffee pod. Do this several times until all the solution has been used up. Again, make sure you rinse with water after to get rid of the acidic smell. And remember, you should be cleaning your machines at least once a month.
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Now, just because you've got a newly-cleaned coffee maker - it doesn't mean you should be sipping on lattes all day. In fact, a sleep expert says the optimum time to get your morning caffeine fix is at 10am, or around 45 minutes after you've woken up.
"If you're someone that wakes up at around 7am, for example, leaving your first coffee until around 10am to 12pm will be when your body, and mind, will appreciate it the most and you'll get the most benefits from the caffeine," said Dr Deborah Lee of Get Laid Beds. The expert says this because a cortisol hormone 'follows a rhythm specific to your own sleeping cycle' which peaks after waking up and reduces throughout the day. If you have a coffee earlier than this, you can eventually become 'immune' to it.
Dr Lee also recommends avoiding any type of caffeine after 3pm. This includes coffee, fizzy drinks, energy drinks and certain teas. "Try switching to herbal teas if you need a hot drink to stay warm, or decaf to trick yourself into thinking you're getting your caffeine fix," she added. "Your sleep schedule will thank you!"
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