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This is a question that many people want to know. There is a lot of conflicting information out there about coffee and a number of people are connecting the drinking of coffee with a number of health issues.
The coffee bean has been used for a number of years in human existence. In fact the discovery and use of the coffee bean is shrouded in antiquity and all we know now is that it was the Ethiopians who first started using coffee. We have been coffee drinkers for centuries and probably longer too.
Considering that man has been drinking coffee for centuries without any problems it does seem unreal to think that it could be the cause of hitherto unconnected health problems. Let is delve a little deeper to find the truth.
Does drinking coffee have any advantages
The most common, and widely known advantage of drinking coffee is of course that it is a stimulant and that it perks us up. In fact the early morning cup of coffee has become an institution with most of us, and we almost drink it as a habit.
During the day too, having a cup of coffee will help clear our minds and help us concentrate better. In fact most of us drink coffee primarily because of this one reason. There are however a number of other health benefits to drinking coffee too and they are tabled below.
- Low to moderate consumption of coffee has been found to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease later on in life. Drinking 3 – 5 cups of coffee a day has been found to not only reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s but also of dementia in old age.
- Likewise moderate consumption of coffee has been found to be effective at reducing the risk of getting Parkinson’s disease.
- Surprisingly drinking a lot of coffee has been found to help people reduce the risk of getting Type II diabetes. It has been found that people
who consumed up to 7 cups of coffee have a 50% less chance of getting diabetes than non drinkers. - Although there is no specific information, in a study in Japan of more than 77,000 people, it was found that coffee drinkers had a lesser risk of dying from cardiovascular problems than those who did not.
- Coffee seems to be able to increase the effectiveness of most headache medicines although how this is is not known. Nowadays a number of pain relievers include caffeine in their make up itself although taking it with coffee still has benefits.
- Coffee improves cognitive performance and helps in short term memory and recall. Although this is not generally known, many people drink a cup of coffee because they feel it helps them concentrate better.
- Coffee even decaffeinated coffee has shown to prevent gall stones from forming in both men and women. How much it helps is still under study, but as of now all information points to an inverse relationship between coffee drinking and gallstones formation.
- Coffee reduces the incidence of cirrhosis of the liver. How exactly this is achieved is still a matter of scientific debate, but there is no doubt that coffee has a beneficial effect on the liver.
- Coffee has been found to reduce the incidence of cancer in the liver and prostate cancer. There does not seem to be any positive effects on other types of cancer though.
- Coffee has for centuries been known as a laxative, and in traditional medicine coffee was used as an enema to relieve constipation.
- Coffee has a number of antioxidants. They are not natively present in the coffee bean as such, but are formed during the roasting process.
- Coffee has been found to help with preventing dental caries and plaque. It has also been found to be helpful in reducing the symptoms of gout in men over 40.
Are there any negatives to drinking coffee
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Just as in anything else in this world, coffee too comes with its negatives. Let us find out what exactly they
- Strong coffee can damage the gastrointestinal tract which is why people with ulcers or gastritis are not encouraged to drink coffee.
- Drinking too much coffee has been connected with what is commonly called “Coffee jitters”. Because coffee is a stimulant, having too much of it can cause anxiety and irritability, and because it is habit forming it can also cause withdrawal symptoms.
- Drinking coffee before going to bed can cause sleeplessness.
- There are two chemicals called cafestol and kahweol that are found only in coffee. Initial studies seem to point to these two chemicals increasing the amount of “Bad” cholesterol in the blood. Using a paper filter however removes these chemicals so coffee drinkers are encouraged to use paper filters rather than metal ones.
- Pregnant women are not encouraged to drink coffee and in no case to take more than 3 cups a day. This is because caffeine can cross the placenta and stimulate the growing fetus so much that it can cause the pulse rate and breathing to rocket upwards. The growing child too does not have fully developed organs to excrete this caffeine which means that it takes three times longer to metabolize it. Drinking too much coffee has also been linked to an increased incidence of stillbirths.
- Since coffee retards the absorption of iron by the body, drinking too much coffee may cause anemia. This is true even when iron is taken in supplement form.
- The link between coffee and coronary disease is inconclusive to say the least. Caffeine is known to cause a temporary hardening of the arteries, but in the quantities normally consumed this is not an issue. Most studies have proved inconclusive with regards to the effect caffeine has on the heart, although in one study published by the Harvard Medical school, higher consumption of coffee was also linked to higher consumption of alcohol, smoking and a lack of physical exercise which are all coronary risk factors. The only thing known is that coffee seems to stimulate the centers for inflammation which is why only 4 cups or less a day has been shown to be beneficial to the body.
Is coffee bad for you?
We now come to the crux of the matter. Is coffee bad for you. We have seen both the health benefits of coffee as well as the ill effects of coffee. Taken all together the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages of drinking coffee.
In fact most of the supposedly ill effects are either due to an over consumption of coffee, or can be easily negated by a little bit of exercise and better nutrition. Moderate coffee consumption is beneficial to the body.
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Jenny Allan is the webmaster at NutritionUncovered.com where she provides practical nutrition and supplement tips and advice. If you enjoyed this article you can get FREE updates by RSS. |
