Caffeine is the most popular psychoactive drug in the world. And this, it is worth noting, is well deserved. Especially if we talk about it in the context of a cup of coffee, without which the morning would definitely be incomplete (and also not so cheerful and pleasant). But even die-hard coffee drinkers sometimes worry about whether they're drinking too much coffee. And all because we constantly hear about it in order to receive certain health bonuses.
Fortunately, this coin also has a flip side. The same scientists regularly conduct studies involving coffee aimed at assessing its benefits. No, they do not deny that exceeding the norm of consumption (up to 400 mg of caffeine per day) can provoke sleep problems, cause unreasonable ones and cause rapid heartbeat. But they still recommend drinking coffee in moderation - and here's why.
Liver condition
A review combining the results of nine studies and published in the journal Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics found that drinking more coffee was associated with a reduced risk of cirrhosis. Scientists have found that just one cup of coffee a day reduces the risk of liver disease by 22%, two cups by 43%, three cups by 57%, and four cups by 65%.
Diseases of the heart and blood vessels
As the BMJ reports, a review of more than 200 studies on the topic found that people who drink 3-4 cups a day are 19% less likely to die from cardiovascular diseases. Especially, scientists note, this works in people at risk of heart failure.
Type 2 diabetes
Oncological diseases
A review published in the European Journal of Cancer Prevention reported that coffee drinkers who drink at least three cups of strong black coffee per day had an 18% lower overall risk of cancer than those who did not. Another scientific review, Business Insider reported, found that drinking at least one cup of coffee a day reduced the risk of liver cancer by 15%. Some evidence from case studies also suggests that coffee drinkers may be less likely to develop cancer of the mouth, throat or prostate.
Alzheimer's disease and dementia
A meta-analysis of studies on coffee consumption and brain health found that coffee drinkers in all its forms were 16% less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease, or cognitive decline in general, according to the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. There are also smaller studies that suggest that coffee consumption leads to a progressive reduction in the risk of Alzheimer's disease.
Depression
In a large study of more than 50,000 women and published in JAMA Internal Medicine, it was found that at least one cup of unsweetened coffee per week reduced the risk of developing the disease by about 15%, and 2-3 cups per day reduced the risk of developing 20%. Another study of more than 100,000 men and women found that people of both sexes who regularly drank coffee were 45% less likely to attempt suicide.
Overall mortality
One large study of more than 500,000 Europeans found that men who drank three or more cups of coffee a day had a 12% lower risk of dying. However, according to BI, in women the risk is reduced by only 7%. Coffee drinkers are less likely to die from circulatory problems and diseases, scientists add digestive system. So how about a cup of something strong and flavorful?
Photo: Scanpix
The peculiarity of this popular drink is that it affects almost all the main organs of the body, from blood circulation to the organs of vision, and acts almost instantly - only a few minutes after consumption, writes MyJane.ru.
Here's what happens to a person about an hour after he drinks a cup of coffee (some facts are quite surprising):
Brain
Coffee is necessary not only to avoid falling asleep over a boring task. The caffeine contained in this drink is indeed a powerful stimulant. But it not only prevents you from falling asleep, but also temporarily strengthens your mental abilities and helps you better concentrate on the task at hand. Caffeine is a psychoactive substance that improves chemical connections in the brain. In moderate doses, it sharpens attention and allows you to concentrate your mental abilities on the task at hand. It begins to act 30 minutes after consumption and lasts for several more hours. So if you have to brainstorm, need to drive for a long time or need to quickly “shake yourself up”, then a cup of coffee is exactly what you need. But “moderation” in in this case- key word: excess caffeine overloads nervous system and leads to nervous stress.
Eyes
Caffeine also speeds up the sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the body's subconscious activity. That is, it sharpens your instincts and turns on the “hide-or-flight!” mode, as if you were in danger. This mode stimulates brain receptors and promotes the production of adrenaline. It also temporarily sharpens your vision (so you can see hypothetical enemies better and see where to run). So half an hour after a cup of coffee you can see better. The pupils dilate slightly. True, this expansion is so weak that you are unlikely to notice it in the mirror.
Teeth
If you drink coffee frequently, the coffee pigment can give your teeth a yellowish coating. But coffee in general is good for teeth because it contains large number polyphenols that effectively fight tartar and bacteria. But only on the condition that you drink “pure” coffee, without added sugar, milk or cream. Sweet coffee with milk is not only not healthy, but also harmful, because as soon as polyphenols dissolve the top layer of plaque, sugar, regular or milk, gets easy access to cleaned tooth enamel. This can lead to demineralization of the enamel and even tooth decay.
Heart
If you drink coffee often, then most likely you have learned from your own experience that the cardiovascular system reacts most quickly to coffee. Caffeine increases the sensitivity of nerve channels, so that electrical impulses that “accelerate” the cardiovascular system pass through them more easily. Accordingly, about 15 minutes after drinking coffee, your heart rate increases by 10-15% and your blood pressure rises (the exact figure depends on how much coffee you drank, how accustomed you are to this drink, how much you ate before and what medications you took) . In general, two cups of coffee a day does not pose any risks for most people. But exceeding this amount is not recommended for people with heart disease, high blood pressure and tachycardia.
Stomach
If you have high stomach acidity, then drinking coffee can cause heartburn because it has the ability to relax the sphincter, which protects the esophagus from heartburn. With low stomach acidity, coffee is useful - it increases the secretion of gastric juice by 10-15% and helps digest food faster.
Intestines
Along with accelerating the digestion of food in the stomach, caffeine also stimulates the intestines, causing it to work faster and harder. But food still needs some time to be digested properly. If it moves through the intestines too quickly, it can lead to diarrhea. And in this case, people suffering from irritable bowel syndrome are at risk.
Bladder
As most coffee lovers probably know, it is better not to drink this drink if there is no toilet nearby. Indeed, coffee is a strong diuretic, stimulating the kidneys and bladder to remove more fluid from the body. Interestingly, the diuretic properties of coffee do not depend on whether you drink regular coffee or decaffeinated coffee. So in this case, the responsibility lies not with caffeine, but with other stimulating steroid-like components, of which coffee is found in excess.
Fat deposits
Unless you snack on coffee cakes, you probably haven't thought about fat in relation to coffee. But in fact, coffee is quite fatty product, containing many natural oils. True, they are usually retained by the filter. But some unfiltered methods of brewing coffee, such as in a coffee maker or French press, leave oils in the drink and droplets can be seen on the surface. But since coffee speeds up your metabolism while allowing you to lose many more calories than coffee contains, these oils add virtually no body fat.
Here are some more interesting facts about the effects of coffee on health:
Coffee beans contain antioxidants from the quinine group. Interestingly, they become more effective after roasting the beans.
Coffee drinkers reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.
The caffeine in coffee makes your workout easier.
Coffee contains a lot of natural magnesium, which takes part in all metabolic processes without exception and is a natural antidepressant.
Drinking coffee reduces the risk of liver cirrhosis.
Drinking 4 cups of coffee per day reduces the risk of melanoma, one of the most lethal types of cancer.
The caffeine contained in coffee allows you to find more errors in text.
Coffee can help relieve headaches thanks to the caffeine and other nutrients it contains.
Drinking two or more cups of coffee daily can relieve a man of erectile dysfunction (or, more simply, impotence).
A dose of caffeine from a cup of coffee can improve your memory for up to 24 hours.
Coffee may prevent the development of multiple sclerosis.
Drinking coffee reduces the risk of breast cancer.
Coffee can make you happier because it stimulates the production of happy hormones - dopamine and serotonin.
It's possible that coffee may reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease (at least it worked in mice).
Drinking 3 to 5 cups of coffee per day reduces the risk of clogged arteries.
Everything is very simple with coffee; it is often drunk in three cases: in the morning (to wake up), in the afternoon (to gain a charge of vigor) and in the evening (to avoid falling asleep). Luckily, coffee can provide us with all this. Since coffee contains caffeine, this allows us to always be on top of our game. Coffee can also be called a business drink for business people.
Coffee can also be called a “guardian of order”, because it is always happy to help when we need to collect runaway thoughts or when we are seriously tired, and there are still many, many things to do, when we look at the work ahead and don’t know how to start and how to finish it. And it is at such moments that our thoughts lead us to the kitchen in order to brew a cup of our favorite coffee. After drinking a portion of this magnificent drink, silence sets in, and then a flow of necessary and fresh thoughts comes that allow you to pull yourself together.
Besides the fact that coffee gives you energy, people also drink it because it has a pleasant taste. The drink also has a pleasant color, which depends on the degree of roasting. The more the coffee is roasted, the darker the color of the drink. As for the strength, the opposite is true: the stronger the roast, the weaker it is. During heat treatment, caffeine tends to break down, and the strength, of course, depends on the caffeine.
But this fact stops few people; some people even drink decaffeinated coffee. The main thing is that it tastes good, they say. Caffeine is also found in tea, but there is less of it and it does not act as quickly as in coffee. After drinking a cup of coffee, you can immediately feel a surge of energy.
The aroma is also very important. It, in turn, can be saturated, bright, weak or barely perceptible. Its strength directly depends on the coffee variety. Very aromatic coffee Arabica is considered. Robusta is not as aromatic, but very strong. These varieties are often mixed with each other to obtain a strong drink with a bright aroma. This does not mean that Arabica without Robusta will not have an invigorating effect, since these two varieties exist perfectly well apart.
It's all about our taste preferences. Arabica is sour. Of course, not the same as lemon. Robusta has no sourness at all, so it is not as pleasant. Coffee itself has such a taste that you won’t be able to drink a lot of it. With sourness, its taste is a little bitter, and sugar and fresh milk can somehow soften it. But true lovers of bitterness will not exchange it for sugar or milk.
You won't drink a lot of coffee yet, as messing around with caffeine can be dangerous. An excess of this substance causes terrible fatigue and loss of strength in the human body.
Everyone knows why they drink coffee, some want to cheer themselves up, and others just want to enjoy the inimitable coffee taste and aroma, of course, because today there are a huge number of coffee varieties in the world, trying which is an exciting and enjoyable experience.
Your body naturally produces the hormone cortisol in the morning, which will help you feel alert and fresh. This is due to the features human body, the so-called circadian daily rhythms. So if you have a habit of drinking coffee in the morning to wake up, then this makes no sense at all. It is much better to wait until the cortisol level drops, and this will come after 9–10 o’clock in the morning, and only then.
Coffee does not cause dehydration
Great news! Caffeine has long been blamed for its diuretic properties, but this is actually not true. As long as you don't drink coffee in large quantities (more than 500-600 mg per day, or two cups), there won't be any negative effects.
Studies have shown that diuresis does not change significantly when a person drinks caffeinated drinks. So as long as you enjoy coffee in moderation, there is little cause for concern.
Coffee was discovered thanks to Ethiopian goats
According to legend, Ethiopian shepherds were the first to drink coffee after seeing how goats behaved and chewed the berries of this plant with pleasure.
Coffee will help you live longer and healthier
Coffee contains many antioxidants (it is the largest source of antioxidants in the average Westerner's diet!). This helps in the fight against so-called free radicals, which are the cause of many serious diseases. As a result, coffee drinkers are less likely to develop diseases such as Parkinson's disease, diabetes and heart disease.
Coffee contains important nutrients needed for survival
Drinking coffee may help you burn fat
Studies have shown that drinking caffeine can increase your metabolism by 3 to 11%. This is one of the few chemicals that actually helps you lose weight!
Coffee is grown in a strictly defined area called the planet's coffee belt.
The coffee belt unites all regions that have the conditions necessary for the growth of coffee. Since this plant requires a lot of sunlight and heat, all these areas are located near the equator.
The entire effect of coffee is caused by tiny 0.0016-inch caffeine crystals entering your body. So small, but they work!
Coffee is a berry bean that is red, yellow or green in color.
See those berries that grow on trees? This is what the contents of your cup of coffee used to look like!
Caffeine takes effect very quickly
It only takes about 10 minutes from the first sip until the caffeine starts to take effect!
Black Ivory is the most expensive coffee and it's made from excrement.
The most expensive coffee in the world is made from elephant dung and is called Black Ivory. It costs $50 for one cup. To get 1 kilogram of this type of coffee, you need to feed 33 kilograms of fresh coffee berries to an elephant. After they are digested, the wives of the elephant mahouts collect the dung, knead it and extract coffee from it.
Coffee is good for your liver
People who drink four cups of coffee a day are 80% less likely to develop cirrhosis of the liver.
In 1991, a team of Cambridge University scientists pointed a camera at a coffee pot to observe the coffee brewing process from the next room. The picture above shows photographs taken with that first camera.
Caffeine increases your adrenaline levels and releases fatty acids from adipose tissue, leading to best results for those who drink coffee before training.
You also know interesting facts about your favorite drink? Write about them in the comments!
How do you start your morning? If you can't wake up without a cup of coffee, then it's time to think about how the drink that many of us consume in excessive quantities affects your body. There are many myths associated with the most important food “doping”, but how can you understand whether coffee is harmful or beneficial for you personally? Together with nutritionist and co-founder of the Beauty Ballers project Anna Ivashkevich, we’ll figure out what happens to the body when you give up coffee.
What is coffee?
This drink is made from roasted seeds (grains) of several types of plants, and the strength of the drink depends on the degree of roasting. By the way, by a cup of coffee we mean a drink prepared in a coffee machine, brewed in a Turk, or freshly ground poured with boiling water, without adding milk or cream (this is food, not a drink). Instant coffee does not apply here, because its strength is lower than grain coffee, and besides, it loses aromatic compounds and almost all useful substances due to the lengthy processing process.
The main disadvantages of coffee
- Coffee should not be drunk on an empty stomach because it triggers the production of the hormone cholecystokinin, which triggers digestion. And if there is no food in your stomach, then there is nothing to digest - this process leads to heartburn and signs of gastritis.
- Preservatives, which are so abundant in coffee, negatively affect metabolism and provoke the appearance of cellulite (so it is better to use it as a scrub).
- The invigorating effect also has a downside: an hour after drinking coffee it causes increased performance. And after another hour you will feel drowsy.
- Coffee should not be consumed by pregnant and lactating women. Caffeine accumulates in the blood of pregnant women, penetrates the placenta, and leads to a decrease in the amount of iron and other mineral elements in breast milk.
- It is addictive: Excessive coffee consumption leads to dehydration, so when you drink too much of this drink, it is very difficult to rehydrate.
The main advantages of coffee
- Coffee contains antioxidants - they remove free radicals from the body, which contribute to the aging of the body.
- Coffee antioxidants help fight oncological diseases, some heart diseases, both types diabetes mellitus and Parkinson's disease;
- Some studies show that real natural coffee reduces the likelihood of developing colon cancer and stimulates the digestive tract.
- Coffee reduces or completely relieves headaches because it dilates blood vessels in the brain.
Why is it better not to drink coffee immediately after waking up?
The key hormone that our body produces throughout the day is cortisol - it is what helps us wake up in the morning and fall asleep in the evening. In the morning, the level of the hormone is highest, and if you drink coffee at this time, the drink will block its production, which means that after a while we will want to sleep again. Typically, cortisol production occurs from 6 to 9 am, and the peak occurs at 8-9 am, so it is best to drink coffee at 10 am or after lunch.
What will change if you give up coffee?
Despite the fact that this drink has undeniable advantages, it is not suitable for everyone. In addition, only 10% of coffee lovers do not abuse coffee; the rest, as a rule, drink an average of four cups a day, which exceeds the permissible limit.
So, if you give up coffee:
Your body will learn to better absorb vitamins
Caffeine “kills” vitamin B and reduces the content of iron, potassium, zinc, and calcium in the body. And one 150 ml cup inhibits the absorption of calcium for as much as three hours. Moreover, caffeine leaches calcium from the body, and as a result of coffee overuse, bones become brittle.
You can get rid of excess weight
As we have already said, caffeine increases the production of cortisol and affects the functioning of the adrenal glands. The adrenal glands work together with the thyroid gland, which takes care of metabolism - because of coffee, it slows down and you gain weight.
Your immunity will increase
Caffeine is not the best best friend our immune system, again, due to the thyroid gland. The limited performance of the thyroid gland leads to weakened immunity, which becomes the cause of disease. If you feel susceptible to various diseases, you may want to stay away from coffee, at least until you feel better.
You will not have liver problems
Coffee is not easily absorbed in the best possible way. Your liver works to produce enzymes that break down and metabolize coffee. So when enzymes are needed for other harmful chemicals, the liver can suddenly become lazy. Many people who drink coffee regularly have a “lazy” liver.
You will become more energetic
Even though coffee makes you feel energized, it eventually stops working. Coffee causes the body to produce adrenaline, and if you drink it constantly, you need more and more caffeine each time for the body to respond to it with the same effectiveness.
You will feel sexier
And again about the thyroid gland. This part of our body is responsible for the hormones that control our libido, such as testosterone. So, once you stop putting caffeine on your thyroid, you'll notice improvements in your sex life.
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