There is a reason 90 percent of the population loves coffee
Mother Nature wants people to be healthy and reproduce. She
has created in them an attraction to foods that promote good health. Bright,
vibrant vegetables that shimmer with energy, luscious fruits, and the dazzling
aroma of coffee just can't be denied. Some of the health benefits of coffee
come from its caffeine content. The ability of coffee to lower the risk for
Parkinson's disease and treat asthma and headaches is linked to caffeine.
Caffeine can enhance athletic performance by increasing endurance. This is why
coffee was designated as a controlled substance until recently by the Olympic
Games Committee.
Coffee drinking is major source of antioxidants for most
people
People in the U.S. receive most of their antioxidants from
the coffee they drink. Scientists have found that a typical serving of coffee
contains more antioxidants than a typical serving of blueberries, grape juice,
raspberries, or oranges. A cup of coffee contains up to four times as much
antioxidant activity as a cup of green tea contains.
Antioxidants protect people from free radicals produced in
the body and encountered in the environment and diet. Scientists believe that
drinking coffee makes it possible to limit, postpone or prevent many
degenerative diseases including cancer, heart disease cataracts, and diseases
of the nervous system. Epidemiological studies have shown that adding
antioxidant polyphenols to the diet reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Chlorogenic acid is the prominent polyphenol in coffee,
although there are others. A Japanese study of 61,000 people found that coffee
drinkers are less likely to develop liver cancer that those who abstain. The
researchers hypothesized that chlorogenic acid was the cancer fighting agent.
Robusta coffee contains up to ten percent chlorogenic acid, and Arabica coffee
contains an amount up to seven percent. Caffeic acid is another polyphenol
found in coffee that has been shown to protect cells from oxidation. Caffeic
acid works together with cholorogenic acid to protect cerebral neurons, promote
cell differentiation, and normalize colon function. The combination has been
found effective at halting cell proliferation and inducing appropriate cell
death in breast cancer cells.
American's coffee drinking averages more than one cup per
day. Decaffeinated coffee has the same antioxidant content as regular coffee.
New research findings suggest that the addition of milk to coffee binds the
antioxidants and reduces their potential to be effective in the body. A recent
study found that caffeic acid was unavailable to the body as the result of it
binding with milk added to blueberries.
Coffee consumption and risk of stroke in women
Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health assessed
the association between coffee consumption and the risk of stroke over a 24
year period of follow-up in women. They analyzed data from a cohort of 83,076
women without history of stroke, coronary heart disease, diabetes or cancer who
participated in the Nurses' Health Study. Coffee consumption was assessed from
1980 through 2004. They documented 2280 varied strokes. After adjusting for
confounders, the correlation of coffee drinking with stroke fell by 20 percent
in the group drinking the most coffee. The researchers concluded that coffee
drinking moderately reduced the risk of stroke. Their study was reported in the
February edition of Circulation.High regular coffee consumption associated with reduced endometrial cancer risk
A hospital based case-control study, reported in the January
International Journal of Cancer, examined the associations between endometrial
cancer risk and usual consumption of regular and decaffeinated coffee among 541
women with endometrial cancer and 541 women healthy women. Women who drank four
or more cups of combined coffee and tea showed a significantly reduced cancer
association.
Coffee offers protection against Alzheimer's disease and
dementia
Determining the long-term impact of caffeine on cognition
was the aim of a study in Finland, reported in the January Journal of
Alzheimer's Disease. Scientists specifically looked for the association between
coffee and/or tea drinking at midlife and Alzheimer's disease or dementia in
late life. Participants were randomly selected from a population-based cohort
previously participating in a longitudinal study. After an average follow-up of
21 years, 1409 individuals aged 65 to 79 completed the re-examination. A total
of 61 cases were identified as demented, with 48 having diagnosed Alzheimer's
disease. Coffee drinkers at midlife had lower risk of dementia and Alzheimer's
later in life compared with those drinking none or only small amounts of
coffee. An amazing 65 percent decrease was found in people who drank 3 to 5
cups of coffee per day. Tea drinking showed no association with dementia or
Alzheimers' in this study.
A study reported in the Oct.-Nov. issue of American Journal
of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias, found that caffeine may have a
protective effect on the likelihood of developing Alzheimer's disease.
Antioxidants were also seen as protective through their ability to reduce
inflammation.
Risk of type 2 diabetes is lower in coffee drinkers
An older study reported in the Journal of the American
Medical Association concluded that habitual coffee consumption was consistently
associated with lower risk of diabetes. Although the exact mechanism of its
action was not revealed, the scientists concluded that the antioxidants in
coffee help control cell damage that can contribute to the development of the
disease. The high concentration of chlorogenic acid in coffee reduces glucose
concentrations. The researchers pointed out that their results were not due to
caffeine, as decaffeinated coffee produced the same degree of risk reduction.
In a report that combined data from several sources, people
who drank four to six cups of coffee a day had a 28 percent reduction in risk
of diabetes compared with people who drank two or fewer cups a day. Those who
drank even more had a 35 percent reduction.
Coffee increases cooperation and sociability, and decreases
depression
A newly released study from the February issue of Nutrition
and Neuroscience examined the effects of caffeinated coffee on antidepressant
related cooperative behavior. Seventy-seven low level caffeine users took part
in a randomized, double-blind, cross-over study of a single dose of caffeinated
coffee and a single dose of decaffeinated coffee with a three day period in
between. Participants were asked to play a game with an imagined person. After
drinking caffeinated coffee, participants were more open to the imaginary
player and displayed fewer signs of sadness. The researchers concluded that
only the caffeinated coffee helped to improve social skill and depressive symptoms.
Longitudinal studies have found a significantly lower rate
of suicide among men and women who drink two or more cups of coffee each day.
Reasons for this were unclear.
More research reveals more benefits
Newer studies continue to add to older, impressive results
revealing the benefits of coffee. Drinking two or more cups a day was found to
reduce the risk of colon cancer by 25%. The likelihood of developing gallstones
was decreased by nearly 50% in those drinking at least two cups of coffee a
day. Liver cirrhosis was reduced by a whopping 80% in drinkers of two or more
cups a day.
Source:
http://www.naturalnews.com/025737_coffee_risk_drinking.html#ixzz20zsJyVBj