Coffee and Health

Coffee nd Your Health

Coffee has long been a key component to many peoples’ morning ever since the the coffee bean was discovered. It has since provided both a natural energy to kick off the day as well as a mental calmness resulting from a daily routine.

So how does one consider carefully any projected health issues due to excessive coffee drinking? We are not doctors, but want to certainly deconstruct the argument as it has been a matter of many discussions within many medical journals for many years. Let’s consider what makes us want coffee and what it is made of.

What you put in it

What you put in your coffee is usually worse for you than what it is in itself. Processed creamers and sugars with artificial flavoring to mask the taste of the coffee is often high in calories and fats. Compromising the calories is often not very tasty and therefore creates a daily routine of starting of the day unhealthy. However, there are now healthier alternatives for those that can’t “take it black”.

Fat free half and halfs are available that do not taste much different that the fat filled version. Land-o-Lakes fat free half and half for instance is still as full bodied as you would expect a half and half to be without compromising on taste. For the sweetener alternatives, Splenda is likely the healthiest option as opposed to the other popular brands you find.

What it is naturally

Coffee beans are grown on small bushes and are therefore subject to how organic the soil and farming is of these crops. Many of the higher end coffees are grown organically and are clearly marked on the packages. Some of the more massed produced and lower end coffees are farmed like other fruits and vegetable using a great number of pesticides. This is still a personal choice though as there has not been any direct research findings that show pesticides have affected coffee drinkers in any way.

From harvest to brewing, some of the same concerns hold true. Coffee has always been a very basic formula, grind your coffee, add water, and brew. The flavor and caffeine are obtained as drips of water drain through grounds of coffee into the pot, but what about before the coffee gets to you?

Especially for decaffeinated coffee, there is another opportunity to have chemicals enter the process. Chemicals are typically used to decaffeinate coffee unless you are purchasing Swiss Water Processed coffee. This among some others use all natural processing using only water to remove the vast majority of caffeine from the beans. So again, if you are concerned with the use of chemicals in what you feed your body and drink decaffeinated coffee, SWP coffee is the way to go.

Why you drink it

Many people drink coffee each morning for the much needed boost to get the day started. Others continue to drink coffee cup after cup throughout the work day. Whether you are just “juicing” for some energy or simply love the taste always consider your health if you believe your intake might be more than your doctor would recommend.

Alternatives to Coffee

This first alternative is simply changing the way your think of your morning cup. If your doctor is recommending a reduction and caffeine and you are a heavy drinker throughout the day, consider creating a blend. A 60/40 split of decaffeinated over caffeinated is a great way to maintain mental routine while lowering your caffeine intake. Simply purchase the same coffee, but a decaf version. You may also touch it up with a nice SWP Mexican bean which has depth in the body of the coffee, but have your flavored coffee caffeinated. It will create a smooth cup with rich body and a touch of flavor.

Also consider replacing a cup of daily coffee with a green tea. The tea often has the same if not more caffeine, but has many more antioxidants and other beneficial attributes.

Everyone is different

Each person metabolizes amounts of caffeine differently so get to know your body rather than advice from a friend’s doctor! Be aware that reducing caffeine too quickly can cause severe headaches so don’t go cold turkey. If you are trying to cut back, cut down a cup a day until you get to your desired amount and then maintain. Also keep in mind to keep well hydrated so replace that normal cup with a glass of water.

If you are trying to replace that morning boost with something a bit healthier and aren’t ready to hop on the treadmill as soon as you wake up, just grab a bowl of cereal within 30 minutes of waking. A glass of water or two before you hit the road and you will be on your way as awake as you need to be. The intake of food first thing gives your body some nutrition to start churning on. Your body will learn quickly this is the new energy source.

For more about the medical side of your health and coffee, read our other article on Coffee and Health.

Here’s to your health and many more years of the fine taste of coffee!

Coffee – Coffee Recipes By The Cup

One of the many advantages of drinking a beverage both ancient and international is the delightful variety of recipes for enjoying coffee in different ways.

Caribbean, Mexican mocha, Cuban cubano and Grog are only a few out of an endless list of possibilities.

The first is one of the more unusual, but be daring. Start by baking a coconut for thirty minutes at 300F (134C). Remove and allow to cool, then break open the shell and remove the inner flesh and grate. Mix the meat, coconut milk and a half cup of cow’s milk in a pan and heat until it thickens. Then strain the mixture to remove the coconut granules. Mix the mixture with a cup of coffee and sip. Hmm…

Like any mocha, the Mexican is a delicious blend of coffee and chocolate – two natural partners. Take a teaspoon of your favorite chocolate syrup and add a quarter teaspoon of cinnamon and nutmeg. Pour in one cup of coffee and add white or organic sugar to taste. You can mix with whipping cream, or top with whipped cream, too. Mmm…

Cubano is drunk like tequila, straight and like a shot. For the Americano, you might want to dilute with rum or hot milk. Add rum to taste, but any more than a tablespoonful of milk will really spoil the effect. Be adventurous!

Grog is a traditional English holiday treat. Carefully peel a large orange and separate into slices. Do the same with a lemon. Put a peel about the size of one orange slice into the bottom of the cup. Mix in one-third tablespoon of butter, a tablespoon of brown sugar, a pinch each of ground cloves and nutmeg. Then throw in a pinch of cinnamon. Pour in a half-cup of coffee and stir. Add heavy cream to taste. Happy holidays.

There are other international delights, such as Viennese, Turkish and Vietnamese.

For the Viennese, melt one-eighth cup dark chocolate into a sauce pan and stir in one tablespoon of light cream. Slowly add a half-cup of coffee and whip until frothy, then let settle. Sprinkle cinnamon and cocoa across the surface and taste with pinky raised. Now you’re an aristocrat.

The Turkish is simple. You’ll benefit from obtaining one of the special “džezva” pots used to boil the coffee. Yes, boil! Turkish coffee is strong. Start with finely ground Turkish coffee. Pour a cup of water into the pot, then add a half teaspoon of sugar and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add a teaspoon of the coffee, then stir and replace onto the heat. Remove after a layer of foam appears, then allow to settle and cool.

The iced coffee drink of Vietnam is not to be missed. Acquire a Vietnamese coffee press. The hard part is now over. Put the ground coffee in the press, then pour a tablespoon of condensed milk into the bottom of a cup. Pour boiling water over the press and let drip. Stir and add ice. Wow!

Of course, you could save yourself the trouble and simply take a little world tour, letting the locals do all the work. Not a bad idea actually.

Coffee – Coffee In Food, Yum!

Lovers of the drink know how delicious that liquid dream can be. But delights abound in using coffee as an ingredient in food preparation too.

While commonly used in desserts – and we’ll look at a couple – the uses of coffee aren’t limited to sweets. Barbecue sauces and glazes for meat, chili and even pot roasts benefit from a dash of the ground bean.

In any recipe, freshness is essential, so either buy freshly ground or grind your own and use right away. And if the recipe calls for brewed coffee, make it just before preparing the dish with good filtered water. And remember, most recipes call for coffee two or three times as strong as you’d want to drink.

Here are only a few of the many possibilities…

Coffee Meatloaf Sauce

Australian Meatloaf is becoming increasingly popular outside kangaroo country.

For the sauce add a tablespoon of instant coffee to a quarter cup of water and half-cup of ketchup with a quarter cup of a favorite dry red and equal amount of Worcestershire sauce. Two tablespoons of vinegar, an ounce of margarine and two tablespoons of lemon juice with some brown sugar complete the mixture.

After the meat has cooked for 30 minutes, add the sauce and bake 45 minutes more at 375F (190C).

Espresso Brownies

To make brownies surpassing even Alice B. Toklas’, try this one.

Heat a cup of sugar, a quarter teaspoon of salt, and a stick and a half of butter in a sauce pan. Add a teaspoon of vanilla and four ounces of chopped, semi-sweet chocolate and stir until well melted. Now add a tablespoon of your favorite finely ground dark-roast. For an interesting variation substitute with two teaspoons of espresso granules.

Stir until everything is well mixed, then transfer to a mixing bowl and let cool for a few minutes.

While still warm, fold in three eggs, a cup of flour and pour the result into a baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes and set out to cool. Yum!

Black Russian Cake

Select a favorite dark chocolate cake mix and add a cup of vegetable oil, a package of instant chocolate pudding, four eggs, and a half cup of creme de cacao. Now add a cup of your favorite Russian coffee. (1 oz vodka, 1/2 oz Kahlua, 5 oz hot black coffee.)

Beat until smooth and pour into a tube pan, then bake 45 minutes at 350F (177C). Da!

The possibilities are endless. Muffins, cookies, breads and all manner of candy – not to mention those well known ice creams – are enhanced by the addition of coffee.

Even cocktails get a boost from the ancient bean. Besides the famous Kahlua there are a wide variety of liqueurs that can be used to enhance a pie.

There’s even a recipe for coffee syrup. Mix a cup of sugar with a cup of double strength Colombian. Boil in a saucepan, stirring constantly to keep the sugar dissolved. Lower the heat and simmer for three minutes, stirring often. Then cool. Try it!

Bon cafetite!

Coffee – Coffee And Health

The last 25 years has seen the growth of a cottage industry in the study of the health effects of drinking coffee. And no wonder – over 400 million cups a day are consumed throughout the world. But for decades health workers warned that the habit might be unsafe. Recent studies show the opposite is more likely to be the case.

Caffeine, one of the main ingredients in coffee, has long been known to be a mild stimulant. That can raise blood pressure, increase heart rate and produce the occasional irregular beat. But most researchers now believe the effect is mild and short-lived.

By contrast, the emerging data about the health benefits of coffee consumption are numerous and diverse.

There’s strong evidence that coffee reduces the odds of developing colon cancer, but only at higher levels of consumption – four cups a day or more. That much intake may well outweigh the benefits.

But other benefits accrue even at moderate levels of coffee drinking.

Coffee, like wine, contains antioxidants that help prevent heart disease and certain cancers by removing cell-destroying oxygen radicals from the blood. Some studies say the concentration of antioxidants is greater than that found in cranberries, apples or tomatoes. Scientists, however, point to the many other valuable vitamins, minerals and fibers in fruits and vegetables.

Apart from the obvious contribution to mental alertness, Chinese studies strongly suggest that coffee can even help reduce the effects of Parkinson’s disease.

American and Scandinavian studies both suggest that decaf and regular coffee help reduce the risk of type-2 diabetes. Good news for the Scandinavians who have the highest per capita consumption in the world.

There’s some evidence that coffee may reduce the risk of developing kidney stones and gallstones. Other digestive system benefits have been seen, as well. Caffeine increases the secretion of stomach acid, which aids digestion.

Caffeine has been shown to reduce constriction of airways in asthma sufferers, with moderate consumption. In addition to the caffeine, coffee contains theophylline, a bronchodilator which helps the effect.

But those benefits, not surprisingly, come with risks.

Though mammalian sperm swim faster, longer and farther in fluids laced with coffee some studies link heavy coffee drinking with reduced fertility.

Increased coffee consumption has been associated with higher blood levels of homocysteine, recently shown to be a risk factor for coronary heart disease. Other studies show an increase in LDL-cholesterol (the ‘harmful’ kind). To what degree these factors actually contribute to heart attacks is a matter of debate.

Coffee contains cafestol, which is known to raise cholesterol levels, mainly in coffee made by the European method of boiling ground beans in water. Percolated or filtered coffee, favored by most Americans, however, removes it. Decaf coffee may be an exception.

Women who drink coffee lose more calcium and tend to have less dense bones than non-caffeine consumers. Those who drink four or more cups per day also have twice the risk of urinary incontinence.

All in all, though, most agree that the benefits – at least at moderate consumption levels – outweigh the risks. By the way, for those heavy drinkers looking for a substitute, colas contain one-third the amount of caffeine per ounce. But somehow drinking a Coke instead of a Latte doesn’t seem worth the risk.