If you love coffee

[Altaira]

Caffeine looks like this when viewed from an electron microscope




Coffee consumption has always been controversial and each new study contradicts the previous one. Once they say its really good for you then another researcher claims there are too many side effects to consider so you better try to avoid it. I've always loved coffee and never drunk too much of it as I used to know my own limit over which I get heart palpitations or and low blood sugar, cold sweats and some more negative effects. I personally think that there is a right way to drink coffee which is to drink if enjoy it, to drink coffee because one loves it not because one wants to wake up. This simple rule will help everyone to stay within the safety limits, to avoid the negative effects of over consumption and harmful consequences.




Here is a very useful article which I found very educational and helps to make your own mind about the coffee.

14 Surprising Facts About Caffeine, Explained by Science

http://www.policymic.com/articles/84...ned-by-science

Some extracts from the article :


Once you do take a sip, it takes only 10 minutes or so for the caffeine to kick in.

After as little as 10 minutes, the caffeine concentration in your blood reaches half the maximum concentration, which is enough to have an effect. The caffeine reaches maximum levels, making you most alert, after 45 minutes. Depending on how fast or slow your body's able to break down the drug, you could feel the effects of caffeine for 3 to 5 hours.



Caffeine is a stimulant to the central nervous system, and like other drugs, regular use of caffeine can cause a mild physical dependence. Caffeine withdrawal is now recognized as a mental disorder. So consume carefully.

In addition to caffeine, there's lots of other stuff in coffee that may be good for your health.


That's because coffee also contains hundreds of different compounds. These include many antioxidants that protect our bodies from damaging chemicals called "free radicals." These molecules cause aging and are associated with illnesses such as cancer and heart disease. NIH studies show that coffee drinkers have a reduced risk of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, type 2 diabetes and many other diseases.

There's a caveat: Many coffee drinkers are also heavy smokers, heavy drinkers and red meat eaters, all things that are detrimental to your health. This means that the data above is adjusted for these risk factors, so you should avoid these habits if you want coffee to have a positive effect. Also, the research here isn't conclusive enough to prove a causal relationship, but it's the best data we have so far. Overall, it's encouraging news for coffee lovers!.................

[Sooz]

I stumbled across this a few days ago:

Putting butter in your coffee! Sounds weird and I haven't tried it yet. But I do love my coffee in the morning and lately I've been having it with a teaspoon of organic cacao powder (real dark chocolate), with a dash of sprinkled cinnamon. Yumski!

Now I would never thought of putting butter in my coffee, but it kind of makes sense - organic, pure butter is a good fat, nice and creamy. And mixed with a little coconut oil as well, what a better way your start your day? Sounds pretty healthy to me. I can't wait to try it...

....and besides it sounds terribly decadent...

http://thepaleomama.com/2013/01/i-ju...-in-my-coffee/

(All I need now is to find a healthy bacon recipe and all will be right with the world....)

[Seikou-Kishi]

I've been having hemp seed oil daily Sooz for it's high EFA content and perfect-for-humans ratio of omega 3 and 6 oils, and while it tastes rather nice, it might be a little better to have a way of consuming it that wasn't just oil on a spoon lol.

I don't drink coffee habitually but I've had it before. I don't like the feeling coffee gives me. It makes me feel in disharmony with myself.

[Eelco]

I live on the stuff. elixer of life as I lovingly call it. freshly brewed with a pinch of cinnamon and no other adjetives... hmmm

yeah i should really drink it a little less.
I think my daily intake is about 1.5 litres.

with love
Eelco

[modwiz]

I am brewing a nice pot of organic sumatran right now. I drink it black, so butter will not be tried. I'll save my organic butter to slather on my organic 9 grain bread with organic blueberry fruit spread. Tastes good with my coffee.

[lilac]

My gallbladder is pretty cross with me these days. I only drink one cuppa/day, but I make sure it's a hummer. I like to use rotating milks, i.e. coconut milk, almond milk or sometimes hemp milk. Recently I discovered a decent alternative called Kick Start! It contains wonderful superfoods. Chaga mushroom, ramon nut, yerba mate, raw cacao, maca root, sarsparilla, guarana, roasted dandelion. Guarana, from Brazil, contains 3 times the amount of caffeine that coffee has. Thanks for this thread - been thinking about this for quite awhile.

[jimmer]

I make it half decaf and half robust.
if you love the taste, but not the jitters, give it a try.

[Sparky]

Modwiz I am brewing a nice pot of organic sumatran right now. I drink it black

Me too. Green Mountain is also fair trade.

Lilac

Recently I discovered a decent alternative called Kick Start! It contains wonderful superfoods. Chaga mushroom, ramon nut, yerba mate, raw cacao, maca root, sarsparilla, guarana, roasted dandelion. Guarana, from Brazil, contains 3 times the amount of caffeine that coffee has. Thanks for this thread - been thinking about this for quite awhile.

Where do you buy it...or are you mixing your own mate?

[Altaira]

Some of you mentioned they drink decaffeinated coffee. I was rather dubious about this because the extraction method involves chemicals which are not safe at all. Just saw a little article about it.




The earliest commercial decaffeination process involved steaming coffee beans in a salt water solution and then soaking them in the toxic chemical benzene to dissolve the caffeine.

Due to health concerns, benzene has now been replaced in the "direct method" with different toxic chemicals, ethyl acetate or methylene chloride. Since ethyl acetate can be derived from fruits and vegetables, this coffee is often advertised as "naturally decaffeinated!"

In the "indirect method," also known as the "water method," the beans are soaked in water, treated with ethyl acetate or methylene chloride and then re-soaked in the same water to reabsorb essential oils.

One toxin-free decaffeination process is the "charcoal method," which is similar to the water method but uses a charcoal filter rather than chemical solvents to remove the caffeine. The "carbon dioxide" method, in which beans are steamed and soaked in carbonated water, also uses a carbon filter.

Other toxin-free decaffeination methods are the "Swiss water" and "trigylceride" processes. Most coffee companies and retailers will share information about their decaffeination processes upon request, so make sure you ask what method they use before drinking their coffee.
http://www.naturalnews.com/044327_co..._solvents.html

[BabaRa]

I am brewing a nice pot of organic sumatran right now. I drink it black, so butter will not be tried. I'll save my organic butter to slather on my organic 9 grain bread with organic blueberry fruit spread. Tastes good with my coffee.

Sounds yummy - when do you want us all over for breakfast. Name the date, we'll all be there - right gang!

But I'm with Sooz, find some organic bacon (I have always said I must have been Jewish in my last life and denied pork, and am making up for it in this life). Oh, and I do need organic milk/cream in my coffee as well.

[Eelco]

Yup I'll come. some grainy porridge and fresh fruits there? been eating that for breakfast since retreat.

with love
Eelco

[Altaira]

THis is smal bit of a thorough article about how good oe bad coffee can be. There is a lot of useful information and those who love coffee will be delighted.

Coffee Contains Some Essential Nutrients and is Extremely High in Antioxidants
Coffee is more than just dark brown water… many of the nutrients in the coffee beans do make it into the drink.

A typical 8oz (240 ml) cup of coffee contains (1):

Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin): 11% of the RDA.
Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic Acid): 6% of the RDA.
Vitamin B1 (Thiamin): 2% of the RDA.
Vitamin B3 (Niacin): 2% of the RDA.
Folate: 1% of the RDA.
Manganese: 3% of the RDA.
Potassium: 3% of the RDA.
Magnesium: 2% of the RDA.
Phosphorus: 1% of the RDA.

This may not seem like a lot, but try multiplying with 3, 4, or however many cups you drink per day. It can add up to a significant portion of your daily nutrient intake.

But where coffee really shines is in its high content of antioxidants.

The average person who eats a typical Western diet actually gets more antioxidants from coffee than fruits and vegetables… combined (2, 3).

Bottom Line: Coffee contains a small amount of some vitamins and minerals, which add up if you drink many cups per day. It is also high in antioxidants.


Should You be Drinking Coffee?

There are some people who would definitely want to avoid or severely limit coffee consumption, especially pregnant women.

People with anxiety issues, high blood pressure or insomnia might also want to try limiting coffee for a while to see if it helps.

There is also some evidence that people who metabolize caffeine slowly have an increased risk of heart attacks from drinking coffee (44).

All that being said… it does seem clear that for the average person, coffee can have important beneficial effects on health.

If you don’t already drink coffee, then I don’t think these benefits are a compelling reason to start doing it. There are downsides as well.

But if you already drink coffee and you enjoy it, then the benefits appear to far outweigh the negatives.

I personally drink coffee, every day… about 4-5 cups (sometimes more). My health has never been better.

Take Home Message
It’s important to keep in mind that many of the studies in the article are observational studies, which can not prove that coffee caused the beneficial effects.

But given that the effects are strong and consistent among studies, it is a fairly strong indicator that coffee does in fact play a role.

Despite having been demonized in the past, the evidence points to coffee being very healthy… at least for the majority of people.

http://authoritynutrition.com/coffee-good-or-bad/

[Ledstar]

I just had my night cup of road warrior blend, helps me sleep. Rocket espresso in the mornin gets me rollin...Coffee... gotta have it.

[Elbie]

I just had my night cup of road warrior blend, helps me sleep. Rocket espresso in the mornin gets me rollin...Coffee... gotta have it.

once you go black, you never look back.


i love coffee, except instants. one time only i got affected badly which gave me a nasty headache in the late afternoon ..it's when i forgot, had no time to brew.


other than that, i suffer no ill effects whatsoever..i could have a double esspresso after (late) dinner and go to sleep happily.. great tonic.

[Altaira]

Have a lovely day


I love my morning coffee black with nothing added