Finally! The Truth About Coffee

Many files are laying in an arranged disorder on my desk. My laptop barely finds an empty space to rest on. Still… on the left side there is a space that no one dares to touch. This space is occupied by a cup. Inside it, a black hot liquid that always makes me wonder if Heaven has just landed on Earth. I am sure the Gods’ nectar and ambrosia are eternally accompanied by something similar. The work cannot wait; my deadline is right around the corner and the project must be handled ASAP.

Still… my mind is somewhere else; my eyes lay on the cup. I need to sip on it. I simply love that taste.

Yes… yes… I know… near my favorite cup there is another one smiling at me. A tasteful cup of tea is waiting for my hand to grab it. However, my brain sends out its orders to… “Take the black cup! Take it! Sip & Enjoy!

The heart whispers also and with its sweet voice says, “Give your desire a chance. Taste it. Taste it!”

I have already decided! No war will be declared between my brain and heart. My left hand targets the cup. It grabs it and brings it closer… and closer… My lips touch its rim. My mouth is suddenly invaded by that black, hot heavenly Gods’ nectar… I swallow. Oh… it is soooo good. It is there… inside me now. My entire being is embraced by a warm, delightful, amazing sensation. My excited tongue licks the lips that were just touched by it… it, THE COFFEE!

Coffee… is one of the most consumed beverages in the world. Its energizing effect was first discovered in Ethiopia, in a wild form and it was first cultivated in Arabia. From there, the coffee traveled to India, Europe, Indonesia and America. Nowadays, on almost all corners of the planet are people who consume and love coffee.

During this time, researchers have studied coffee’s effects on the human health system. Coffee contains several components which are known for their influence at the chemical level of the human body.

Caffeine has similar effect as a stimulant. But not only caffeine has the properties of this effect. It seems that, coffee contains an unknown chemical agent that stimulates the production of cortisone and adrenaline, which are two stimulant hormones.

For this reason, to have the maximum benefit from coffee consumption, we must pay attention to the quantity that we drink.

18 Positive Effects of Coffee on Human Health

1. Low risk of developing Alzheimer or Dementia – According to the tests made on consumers, it was noticed that those who were moderate coffee drinkers (3-5 cups/day) had fewer chances to develop Alzheimer or Dementia in their life, comparing with people who were low-drinkers (0-2 cups/day).

2. Drinking coffee doesn’t increase the chances of developing both gallstones and kidney stones. This study was made by Harvard School of Public Health.

3. Cognitive performance – memory can be stimulated by coffee consumption. There were studies which proved that people who were moderate coffee drinkers obtained better results regarding time of reaction, verbal memory, and spatial-visual observation. The best results were obtained by older people. Women especially over 80, who regularly consumed coffee all their life, obtained the best results on the cognitive tests.

4. Analgesics and caffeine – coffee contains caffeine which increases the gastro-intestinal absorption of some analgesics pills. Caffeine doesn’t have analgesic effects, but because of its properties of increasing absorption, it is contained in many analgesic medicines. Still… it was noticed that for some patients, caffeine can decrease the pain caused by migraines through its actions on the cerebral blood vessels.

5. Diabetes – the risk of developing type 2 Diabetes is decreased by 50% for those who are moderate coffee consumers. This was first noticed in people who were heavy coffee drinkers and the tests extended the good results over to the moderate category also.

6. Liver protector – Decreasing incidences have been noticed for developing liver cancer in coffee consumers. The necessary quantity for this protection is still not clear. The studies continue.

7. Cardio protector- In 2008, Japan made a public study on people between the ages of 40-79 years old. The results showed that the caffeine consumers (from coffee or other sources) had a very low death risk caused by cardiovascular illnesses.
   Other studies conducted by Iowa Women’s Health, on 27,000 women which lasted for 15 years, proved that 2-3 cups of daily coffee consumption decreases the risk of heart disease by 24%. Of course the benefits are lowered if the number of cups is higher.

8. Cancer – Studies conducted in Africa showed that coffee consumers had a reduced risk of developing mouth, esophageal or pharyngeal cancer. For ovarian cancer no influence was noticed. For breast cancer the influence was so low that the tests couldn’t prove it was not coincidence. A good influence was observed in cases of endometrial cancer. At the same time, good results were noticed in liver and prostate cancer cases.

9. Laxative/diuretic – coffee can prevent constipation. Both, the caffeine and decaffeinated coffees have the same effect. Contrary to popular beliefs, coffee doesn’t act as a diuretic if it is moderately consumed (less than 5 cups/day) and does not cause an electrolytic disequilibrium in the body’s water level.

10. Antioxidant – The polyphenol, hydroxyl acids, flavonoids and anthocyanin contained in coffee have antioxidant effects on cells. The effects are similar for regular and decaffeinated coffee. Kraft Company conducted tests which proved that the best effects are caused by the toasted coffee compared with the green coffee. As an antioxidant, the coffee prepared as espresso has the highest efficiency.
    The Atomic Study’s Center Bhabha in India demonstrated that caffeine has a stronger anti aging power than vitamin C has.

11. Dental cavities prevention – The tannin contained in coffee reduces the potential that food has over the cause of dental damage.

12. Gout – A study on over 45,000 people that lasted for 12 years, demonstrated that men over 40 who consume coffee have a lower gout risk.

13. For someone who has an asthma crisis and doesn’t have his medicines handy, a moderate consumption of coffee can help escape the crisis.

14. For people who have problems with their production of saliva, a cup of coffee can make miracles. The effects can be felt in 5 minutes after consumption and lasts between 30 min to 4 hours.

15. The herpes virus is destroyed when it comes in direct contact with coffee. These tests were done by the Japanese on 15 types of coffees (8 normal and 7 instant.)

16. Coffee mixture applied directly on the hair has a beneficial influence.

17. Combined with vitamin K, coffee has a beneficial influence on treating the dark eye circles.

18. A body scrub that contains coffee will lighten and brighten your skin. Also it has a good influence on skin pigmentation and cellulite.

Hmmm… so many good influences! It seems that I have to increase the number of cups I drink each day. I am included in the low consumer category right now. I am a fan of quality and I tend to disregard quantity, but in the case of coffees… maybe it would be better to increase the quantity also. I will think about that.

Of course I presume that the cups must not be huge. 🙂

Now… let us see…

10 Risks We Take When Consuming Coffee

1. Coffee causes dependency.

2. Causes gastric problems especially for people who have gastritis, colitis and ulcer.

3. Modifies the sleeping pattern.

4. Influences Cholesterol – LDL is higher. The preparing procedure that cancels this influence is filtered coffee, but only if the filter is made from paper.

5. Hypertension – even if in the past people thought that coffee increases the levels of blood pressure, recent studies didn’t find any connection between these two. The test in which 155,000 female nurses participated, and which lasted for 12 years, demonstrated that coffee doesn’t increase the measured levels of arterial tension. Only the pulse is higher.

6. Pregnancy – tests made by Denmark in 2003 on 18,478 pregnant women concluded that a high consumption of coffee causes damage to both mother and child. A moderate consumption does not affect the mother or the fetus.

7. Anemia – it is negatively influenced by coffee consumption.

8. Coronaries illnesses – a study at Harvard on 128,000 people that lasted 20 years and was published in 2006, concluded that there doesn’t exist any correlation between coffee and coronaries illnesses. The same study proved that smoking, alcohol use and a sedentary life style is more damaging than coffee consumption. But, the number of cups of daily coffee consumption must be in a moderate range.

9. Acne – it seems that it is influenced in a negative way by the caffeine contained in coffee.

10. In the world, there exist people who have caffeine intolerance. In their case it is recommended for coffee consumption to be avoided.