Most of the world’s coffee drinkers consume their daily espresso, decaf, brewed, or instant coffee to get that instant caffeine hit that only coffee seems to provide. While the content of caffeine differs depending on the type of coffee being consumed, coffee nutritional facts suggest that coffee does in fact improve cognitive performance among other things. There are many potential benefits regarding the consumption of coffee beverages, and much debate about coffee nutritional facts. Overall, moderate consumption of coffee seems to do the body no harm and can actually have long-term benefits.

Coffee nutrition facts suggest that drinking coffee could have numerous health benefits in terms or preventing or reducing the chances of getting various diseases. Ailments such as gallstones, Parkinson’s disease, Type 2 Diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and even Cancer can be risk-reduced by consuming coffee. Coffee nutrition facts even suggest that drinking coffee could lessen the frequency of such things as asthma attacks.

Coffee consumption offers other considerable health and nutrition benefits that affect our day to day well being. Coffee nutrition facts show that the antioxidants present in coffee beverages are an integral source of energy and protection against common illness. While antioxidants can be consumed in higher doses in other foods and drinks, it remains a nutritional component of coffee. Antioxidants maintain health by preventing diseases such as Coronary Heart Disease and Cancer. In this respect, drinking a beverage that contains antioxidants helps protect the heart.

Other benefits from coffee nutrition facts show that consuming highly caffeinated products such as coffee can considerably reduce the risk of deterioration in terms of brain activity and dementia. Caffeine content in coffee ranges from approximately 2mg in instant decaf coffee up to 175mg in some forms of drip coffee. Other general coffee nutritional facts show that coffee contains 0mg of cholesterol, 0mg of sodium, 0.01g of fat, 0.01g of carbohydrates, and 0.04g of proteins.

Coffee nutritional facts detail the other remaining contents of coffee such as: lipids, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins. There are quite a few minerals found within coffee such as: Magnesium, Niacin, Phosphorous, Foliate, Manganese, and Thiamine. These minerals occur in small traces depending on the type of coffee. Coffee nutritional facts note that minerals are all integral to maintaining proper growth and development within the body as well as strengthening the immune system.

Caffeine also effectively blocks the damaging effects of cholesterol. Coffee nutritional facts show that the caffeine levels found in coffee are demonstrative in protecting a vital barrier, the “blood brain barrier,” that separates the central nervous system from any contact with harmful chemicals in the blood. While cholesterol can weaken this barrier, caffeine consumed from products such as coffee drinks helps to solidify it.

Coffee is a popular drink of choice for many due to the relatively low calorie content of drinking simple black coffee. It is also considered an equally effective diuretic for proper hydration as sports energy drinks. General coffee nutritional facts suggest that while over consumption of coffee is not advised, coffee consumption in moderation certainly has its health-related benefits.

There are many benefits to eating and drinking organically-produced food, and this is certainly true for organic coffee. Growing coffee crops organically is more natural and, more importantly, healthier for everyone and everything involved. Synthetic chemicals, which help grow food unnaturally, often damage the environment around them. They make the surrounding eco-system unstable by introducing unnatural forces. Organic coffee growing, on the other hand, helps reverse this damage by introducing natural and environmentally compatible solutions.

But there’s more. The difference organic makes goes beyond just the environment. Buying organic coffee also promotes positive economic and social change. It’s not just good for you; it’s also good for the farmer.

Organic coffee uses natural solutions, such as composting and terracing. To control pests, organic coffee farmers use biological pest control. Additionally, because organic coffee is often shade grown, many trees can be preserved. In the end, organic methods make the environment around the crops a healthy one. The aim is to promote the stability of the ecosystem they are using to grow their crops.

As a result, in many ways the farmer benefits from growing organic coffee. The farm can become naturally sustainable, and the farmer saves on the cost of buying pesticides and other chemicals. Accordingly, the initial amount of capital required to grow a crop is lower. As well, organic farms are healthier for those who work on the land, and for those who live nearby.

Non-organic farming often results in the polluting of nearby water sources, which harms the entire nearby community. Going organic is one way to avoid this. Organic farming promotes sustainability for both water supplies and the soil it uses. And the methods it does use only do more to make the earth healthy. Organic farms are also much better for any animals that live around or migrate through the farm, such as birds.

If all those reasons weren’t enough, don’t forget that you also benefit. There are health benefits of organic coffee, which uses only the best of ingredients. You don’t need to worry about drinking any synthetics or chemicals used in the processing stage.

The only downside of organic farming is that it yields a smaller crop. While it may be cheaper to grow, the crops will be less abundant. Consequently, organic farms tend to make less money than they would otherwise, given the same amount of land. This is why non-organic farming is still the predominant form of growing coffee. 

Nonetheless, there are many good reasons to go organic. And as consumer demand for organic coffee increases, more and more farmers will see organic methods as beneficial to them. But until we start paying for it, we cannot expect coffee growers, who can barely make ends meet, to initiate this change. It’s up to us—the ones who can afford to make a difference. We can do more by buying organic fair trade coffee, as well, which is another way to support coffee growers.

So consider switching to organic coffee, now that you know the facts. Organic coffee is better for you, the farmer, and the environment. Help send a positive message. Help make a real difference.

It’s easy to be skeptical about the health effects of coffee drinking. Coffee retailers promote the health benefits of coffee – a lower risk of colon cancer, diabetes and Parkinson’s disease, as well as a smaller chance of cavities, treatment for headaches and possibly a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. But what are the dangers of this mysterious drug?

There appears to be very few, and minor ones at that. Drinking anything in excess creates potential problems for the body’s self-regulatory processes that naturally correct imbalances and illnesses. Coffee itself has a few specific effects that, with the proper understanding, can be balanced by a healthy diet.

Boiled and unfiltered coffee are believed to contribute to an increase in cholesterol levels, due to two cholesterol-raising compounds cafestol and kahweol. In excess, coffee is also believed to alter the tone and function of blood vessels. Like all caffeinated beverages, it can affect natural heart rhythms by creating a rapid or irregular heartbeat. Similarly, the caffeine causes a temporary rise in blood pressure that can adversely affect those who already have a high blood pressure.

As the caffeine in coffee is a mild diuretic, it is important to remember to increase fluid intake when drinking coffee to avoid dehydration, and some studies have shown that it’s possible this diuretic effect leads to the urinary excretion of calcium. Therefore, if you plan on drinking more than three cups of coffee each day (600 ml), make sure you include some calcium in your diet to avoid osteoporosis, especially if you are pregnant.

Some also blame a lack of sleep on the caffeine found in coffee for several hours after coffee consumption. However, this effect varies from person to person and can be caused by a number of other caffeine-containing beverages and snacks, too. Some also consider caffeine a dependence-causing drug, so heavy drinkers may experience headaches for several days when they suddenly quit drinking coffee altogether.

Most doctors praise coffee-drinking for the health benefits of the beverage. While some studies are not conclusive, evidence has shown that the number of health benefits far outweigh the number of possible dangers. The benefits that are currently being flouted in relation to coffee consumption include a lower risk or smaller effects from a wide array of life-threatening diseases and illnesses. But coffee also contains antioxidants, which improve the quality of life for people who are already healthy. Antioxidants help to prevent oxidation, which is a process that contributes to damaged cells and aging.

In addition, those who drink coffee regularly have a significantly smaller risk of getting Parkinson’s disease. There is also a much smaller risk of getting type 2 diabetes in young and middle-aged women. It has also been suggested that coffee drinking protects against liver cirrhosis, gallstone formation, kidney stones and Alzheimer’s disease. It is also a fabulous asthma treatment, as caffeine opens airways and improves asthma symptoms. And another general benefit of coffee drinking is an alertness and improved mental functions.

Weigh out the pros and cons yourself and make your own decision: is too much coffee bad for you?

If you enjoyed this blog post, you might also like our Interesting Coffee Facts page.

Image Credit: flickr / people drinking coffee awkwardly

New study results are suggesting that several cups of coffee each day could be all it takes to avoid Alzheimer’s, or even to reduce the effects of Alzheimer’s in people who have already been diagnosed with the disease.

The study, conducted by US scientists, showed that drinking five medium-sized cups of coffee each day might reverse memory problems that include Alzheimer’s disease. Five cups of coffee might sound like a lot, but it’s really equivalent to about two-and-a-half large-sized coffees or even less. And if you prefer drinking espressos, cappuccinos or lattes, an extra shot cuts down the total drinking amount down to only one cup.

That’s because the University of South Florida study, which tested the effects of caffeinated water and coffee in 55 mice, showed that the true benefit results from the caffeine in coffee. The exact amount of caffeine that they gave each mouse was 500 milligrams per day for two months. The mice originally showed memory impairment symptoms, but after two months of caffeine intake, their memory and thinking skills seemed to be on par with mice that never suffered from memory problems. At the time of publishing the study’s results, the scientists weren’t sure if the effects were permanent.

While it was unknown whether the same effect would be seen in people, previous studies had already shown that drinking coffee could delay Alzheimer’s and protect against vascular dementia. The new research led scientists to begin research on the idea that drinking coffee could possibly reverse some elements of memory impairment.

Though the research, at this point, is still speculation, the scientists do know that caffeine was able to cut down the amount of a dangerous protein most commonly found in the brains of dementia patients in the mice being tested. The protein, called beta amyloid, was reduced by 50 per cent in the brains of the mice. They also know that the inflammation in the brain of the mice, which mimics Alzheimer’s disease in humans, was reduced. Researchers hope that the effects will be the same on human patients.

A similar study by Finnish and Swedish researchers showed that middle-aged people who drank between three and five cups of coffee each day had a significantly lower risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s in the future. The researchers found that the study participants had a 60 to 65 per cent lower risk of developing memory problems about two decades later in life. They were unsure why the coffee seemed to create such great benefits, but thought that the strong antioxidants found in coffee, which are known to counter Alzheimer’s, might play a role in the phenomenon.

The health benefits of caffeine, as a result of drinking coffee, have been long tested and proven through numerous studies. This history of studies has shown that long-term caffeine consumption will reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, liver cirrhosis, liver cancer, colorectal cancer and suicide.

Health officials prefer to say that coffee should be considered as having therapeutic effects, rather than a healing effect, as more studies need to be conducted before the full effects of coffee consumption are validated.