If you rely on that cup of coffee to get you through the morning slog, you might want to stop reading this now. The latest research has proven that drinking your cuppa first thing in the morning is actually one of the worst times of the day. The study, conducted by ASAP Science, explain that the instant caffeine hit from those beans could end up leaving you feeling more stressed than ever. So how could this harmless lifeline be affecting your stress levels? According to the researchers, drinking coffee in the early hours of the morning could be affecting the high levels of cortisol in our bodies that peak before 10am. Drinking coffee when cortisol levels are high can interfere with the body’s production of the hormone – which is released in response to stress and low blood pressure – and force the drinker to rely purely on their caffeine kick to relax in the morning. The team behind the study also point out that by taking caffeine every morning, you can quickly build up a tolerance to the side-effects of the hot beverage… leaving you exhausted within an hour of finishing the last drop. If you still need your fix, instead opt to stick the kettle on any time between 10am and noon and 2pm and 5pm.