Coffee is a "Health Drink"

WoodenRobot writes "Not that it would stop an Italian or a techie from drinking the stuff, but Chiara Trombetti, of the Humanitas Gavazzeni institute of Bergamo has reported that coffee, especially espresso, is good for you and provides numerous health benefits. All the more reason to tuck into a cup o' Joe - but no more than 3 or 4 cups a day."

I RTFA

[chia_monkey]

I read the article and it's just too damn short. "It COULD do this and it COULD do that". "It has anti-oxidants and that's good". Well duh. It also has caffeine which some health nuts say is good for you (raises metabolism, messes with your appetite, gives you energy to work out) and it can be bad for you (making you dependent on it, screwin' with your metabolism, etc). Coffee also supposedly messes with your cortisol levels (which is partly responsible for giving the fat gathering around the waist area).

My point is, you'll see reports say it's healthy, you'll see reports say it's bad for you. I've seen more detailed reports saying it's bad and just a few "well it could be good for you" reports saying it's good.

Shall we discuss if wine is good or bad for us now?

Re:As a techie who doesn't drink it...

[Gumshoe]

...does this mean I should start? ;) I've never liked the stuff, and I manage to live without caffeine for the most part. (I don't drink soda, either.)

Personally, I find that tea is the way to go, so I hope they have a study that shows it's healthy too.

Tea contains caffeine too [holymtn.com], although not as much as coffee does [stashtea.com]. This is only partly relevent though as the reported health benefits of coffee isn't entirely due to the caffeine.

Re:Obviously...

[dangermouse]

The article says, "It can relieve headaches." Isn't that just plain obvious. Especially considering that the most common headache relieved by coffee is in fact caused by caffeine withdrawl.

Caffeine can relieve tension headaches, which have nothing to do with caffeine withdrawal. They're caused by overdilation of capillaries in your head, and caffeine (like ibuprofen) is a vasoconstrictor.

Re:Tea is NOT higher than coffee in caffeine

[prgrmr]

I stand corrected [stashtea.com]

Actually, there is more to it...

[Anonymous Coward]

I saw a report on NBC not too long ago that people who drink 5 or more cups of coffee per day were 70% less likely to develop type II diabetes. They stated that it was unknown at this point if it's the caffeine or some other substance found in coffee, but that it was definitely significant finding.

Re:Tea is NOT higher than coffee in caffeine

[xaaronx]

That's actually the proper way to brew any tea. When the tea is confined in a bag or mesh container, the leaves can't "bloom" properly and you won't get a really good cup because some of the compounds won't be released. Also, black teas need to be brewed with water that is still boiling as it is poured over the leaves for proper brewing; green, white, red, and oolongs can be a little cooler i.e. 190-200 degrees F. For a really good cup of tea, invest in a Yixing teapot and use it every day. The porous unglazed clay absorbs the flavor of the tea and over time begins to bring out subtle nuances of the tea, assuming you're using high quality stuff.

Oh and teas can have just as much caffeine as coffee but because of its peculiarities, the form of caffeine in tea is absorbed more slowly and produces a gentler, but more lasting effect. Or so the information available suggests; as someone totally unaffected by caffeine, I wouldn't know. And tea almost certainly has more caffeine than your precious espresso (I like those too). Why? The longer roasting time for dark coffee beans destroys a significant amount of the caffeine in said beans and the short extraction time for espresso doesn't allow a great deal of the caffeine present to be extracted.

Yeah, I'm a geek.

Re:As a techie who doesn't drink it...

[Dixie_Flatline]

I remember talking to a biochemistry student, and he said the REALLY interesting thing about the stuff in tea is that while it's a completely different chemical, and excites entirely different neural pathways, the end point and end result turn out to be exactly the same. For most intents and purposes, the stuff in tea may as well be caffeine.

Avoiding headaches

[the_twisted_pair]

I've found that pre-migraine consumption of coffee helps me avoid the worst of it. Seriously, when I start getting mild 'aura' - that impending sense of doom that differs from mere headache - a two or three shots of espresso in time can actually avoid a migraine. This has worked for me multiple times over the last 6 years at better than an 80% hit rate I'd say. In fact it's the one time I break my 'no-caffiene' rule. I love coffee, but caffiene on the whole really doesn't suit me.

Keep watching on coffe packagers

[Maljin Jolt]

There are basicaly two varieties of coffee on the world market, Robusta and Arabica. Arabica is much higher quality than Robusta.

It is essential for drink quality and final effect to use a 100% Arabica, not a cheaper Arabica-Robusta mix nor plain Robusta. Check your package for note about what variety it's made from, if it does not have any it's just a cheap Robusta.

I use to drink about 6-7 pots daily and 4-5 pots nightly, so really I CAN feel the difference!

Re:Coffee is boring

[ipxodi]

Starbucks deserves accliam for their marketing methods and their ability to take over the marketplace. (much like our favorite whipping boy, Bill Gates.)
However, the reason most people think Starbucks is great coffee is because A) it's consistant (like McDonalds), B) it's expensive, and C) it is a reasonable quality. (though not top quality.)
Also they have "converted" most of the country into "west coast roast" (heavily roasted) afficionados, and very few people appreciate the "east coast" (lighter roast) style that actually allows more of the nuances of flavor through.
One of the best old-time "east coast" coffee purveyors was Boston's Coffee Connection, which Starbucks bought in the early 90's, and promptly did away with. (That was great coffee -- I was so bummed...)

Re:Cheers

[twenex]

He actually has a point. There are quite a few people (myself included) that caffeine is toxic to - even in the dosage that decaf gives you.

This is often misdiagnosed and having gone through years of treatments for other unrelated (and nonexistant) ailments, it's worth getting the word out about this.

There's a number of sites on the web with more information.

nope, sorry

[sbma44]

Theobromine occurs in cocoa products, primarily. It's chemically similar to caffeine but is generally considered to produce a "mellower" feeling. It does occur in tea, but in miniscule amounts. Theophylline does occur in tea at larger amounts -- it's also related to caffeine, but again, produces fewer jitters. Its main claim to fame is being used for treatment of asthma. While it does show up in tea, it does so in tiny amounts -- 1 mg vs 50 mg of caffeine (source [spurious.biz]).

The "tea is different!" confusion generally comes up because caffeine can also be called theine -- it's the same chemical, though. Tea's got a lot of healthy stuff in it, but its stimulant properties work exactly the same way as coffee's -- via caffeine. The only significant difference is the average dosage.

In addition to RTFA...

[marcello_dl]

... i found Caffeine FAQ [coffeefaq.com] which discusses some of the myths typical of any discussion about coffee.

Caffeine Awareness month....

[UNOStudent]

An interesting side note which encourages my growing disdain with my native state. Nebraska's Gov. Johanns recently declared March as "Caffeine Awareness Month" in an effort to promote "awareness, detection and prevention of caffeine addiction in Nebraska....to educate businesses and consumers about the threat of caffeine addiction and to raise awareness about the impact it has on society." Hmm....like PRODUCTIVITY?

www.theindependent.com [theindependent.com]

I hope someone else finds this as funny as I do.

Coffee Quotes & Recipes

[FePe]

• Coffee Quotes [att.net]
• Coffee Recipes [nwlink.com]
• More Coffee Recipes [recipesource.com]

I have tried some of them. They are another good reason for drinking lots of coffee.

Tea has less caffeine, period

[fnj]

"Some Tea's are higher in caffeine than coffee, so you may not be as caffeine-free as you thought."

While it's certainly possible to create a cup of tea and a cup of coffee, with the cup of tea having more caffeine than the cup of coffee, that's not how it works in actual daily life.

Check the Caffeine FAQ [coffeefaq.com]

From one list, for 7 oz servings:
Drip coffee = 115-175 mg of caffeine
Espresso = 100
Brewed coffee = 85-135
Instant coffee = 64-100
Brewed tea = 40-60
Instant tea = 30
Iced tea = 41 (i.e., 70 for 12 oz)

Other lists from other sources are there, and they are similar.

Green tea is even lower than black tea. From Stash Tea [stashtea.com], we have:

5 oz cup of coffee = 80 mg
One bag of black tea = 40
One bag of green tea = 20

Health wise, green tea r00lz! But black tea is good for variety, and gives benefits as well.

Of course, the amount you actually get depends on how long you brew the tea. I tend to prefer tea brewed for a much briefer time than many people: I like around 2 minutes, and shudder a bit when 5 bits is recommended, let alone when I see people leave the bag in the cup for 10 minutes or more. Yech. When you brew too long, you are adding mostly acid and yucky taste.

Re:As a techie who doesn't drink it...

[probbka]

What you have to try is Chai Latte. Green tea + milk + spices. Oh emm eff gee, I less than three it.

Tea vs espresso

[fnj]

"And tea almost certainly has more caffeine than your precious espresso."

The Caffeine FAQ [coffeefaq.com] disagrees with you.

Espresso = 100 mg caffeine per 7 oz
Brewed tea = 40-60 mg caffeine per 7 oz

So does Stash Tea [stashtea.com].

5 oz cup of coffee = 80 mg
One bag of black tea = 40
One bag of green tea = 20

Re:Coffee and espresso is fricken great!

[murray_420]

The "Big Tim" cup is awesome! It holds 60oz of the most addictive coffee in North America (Tim's) anybody who argues has never experienced Tim's withdrawal(Severe Migraines). Lucky for me I live in the Tim Horton capital of the world, Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada.

You know, it's funny...

[Senjutsu]

how coffee effects different people differently.

It makes you want to do all that, and all it make me want to do is take a crap.

Re:Tea is NOT higher than coffee in caffeine

[orasio]

Hey!!
Mate is not a tea.

Tea is an infusion while mate is a maceration (or whatever you english speaking people call it:)

Meaning that tea is supposed to be prepared with boiling water, in a relatively short time, then drank.

Mate is a cup [thinkgeek.com] of wet "yerba mate" leaves, where we pour hot (not boiling) water, and keep drinking and refilling, until it tastes like clear water.

It takes some time learning to prepare it, and to drink it (through the bombilla), because it is very hot, and can be very bitter for example if you use boiling water. The good part is that it can keep you awake all night if you want with no side effects, and it is easy on your stomach and your nerves, compared to coffee (I think it might be because we drink it with so much water).
Everybody in Uruguay* drinks it, specially students, and I am drinking it right now, at an evening coding session (this is the good stuff [yerbamate.cc], 2.5 grams of caffeine per kilogram, just like cofee).

*mate is the traditional beverage of Uruguay, which is the biggest consumer of yerba mate, produced in neighbour country Brazil.
South Brazilians, Argentinians and Paraguayans drink it too, but not massively, and they drink a mellower kind of blend, that I dont think has the stimulating properties of yerba, the preferred brand in Uruguay, that is available in the U.S., mostly in Miami and New York, or wherever you can find a uruguayan.

And it's not tea, it's Mate!!!!!!!!!

Health benefits from coffee or caffiene

[Precipitous]

Many of the health affects of coffee are not associated with caffeine. Some of the studies haven't separated caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee drinkers. Others that have done so, but noted no difference in benefits between the caffeinated and decaff coffee. The benefits come from other chemicals (sorry, tea drinkers).

Sciam has had very interesting articles about coffee, which get more into the science then this blurb. Sadly, the best one isn't free - so I'll link to the list of coffee articles.

Miscellaneous coffe articles [sciam.com]
Lower Diabetes Risk [sciam.com]