The Ultimate Coffee Debate – is it healthy or not?

As an avid coffee lover myself I was very excited when the idea of writing a short post on the caffeinated beverage occurred to me. I mean, of course, I had some basic knowledge about its effects, however, the question still stood – are they right? Do I have the correct information? I wanted my facts checked before conveying anything to you guys, so I did a little research, and I wasn’t disappointed at all. Hope you won’t be either.

According to most sources, coffee has been discovered in Ethiopia around 800 AD, but the National Coffee Association of U.S.A. expands this information with a short story of a shepherd realizing his goats get energized after consuming some berries and afterwards there was no stopping – the berries conquered trade markets all across the Arabian Peninsula in no time. They arrived at the Western World in the 17^th century and despite the initial resistance, they were there to stay.[1] Until the 19th century, the exact effect they have on human health was not examined and a multitude of contradictory studies have been published ever since, so it’s only natural the question pops up in one’s mind – is it healthy or not?

Coffee beans have more than 800 compounds, but caffeine and chlorogenic acids are the two that can be found in most quantities.[2] Out of these obviously, caffeine is the most popular one but I bet not everybody is aware of its possible risks or benefits, so allow me to indulge you in some casual facts you can throw around later on when the topic comes up in a conversation.

Caffeine was first isolated by Ferdinand Runge in 1819, but the first use of the word is attributed, to Pierre Joseph Pelletier in 1821. For a long time, only a few facts were available to people about it, such as its ability of quick absorption (it passes through membranes easily) and digestion (leaves the system in 2-4 hours).[3] Later on, more thorough studies were conducted, and here’s a quick summary of the major findings:

• moderate coffee consumption (3-4 cups, meaning 300-400mg of caffeine) does not lead to CVD (cardiovascular disease), excessive consumption (>4 cups) might be associated with it, but significance was shown only under the age of 55. This debunks the common belief that coffee inevitably causes heart issues.
• coffee has beneficial effects against metabolic disorders, most significantly type 2 diabetes (though this involves heavier consumption, meaning 4-6 cups).
• other health issues it’s good against include liver diseases and IBD[4]
• heavy coffee consumption is still ill-advised and believed to be detrimental[5] when it comes to pregnancy, however, more and more doctors allow 1-2 cups per day (the latter part is based on experience in my immediate environment).
• for the next result, I’d like a drumroll first, please… it improves text reading and global perception[6]. Yes, you read it right. Coffee is beneficial for reading.

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With all this said, we can conclude that coffee indeed possesses beneficial traits which affect not only one’s physical health, but they also induce psychological improvements. I think this is worth celebrating by brewing a fresh cup, so excuse me while I slip into my kitchen and prepare one. If you weren’t sure if you should have another one today, this is your sign to do so. Cheers!

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