Coffee is a highly aromatic stimulant beverage prepared from roasted and ground coffee beans. Coffee beans are the seeds of the Coffee arabica or the Coffee robusta plants.
Coffee is a true drug due to its caffeine content. It meets the criteria set by the World Health Organization (WHO) for drug addiction:
- It creates addiction or dependency;
- Produces tolerance (the dose must be increased to achieve the same effect);
- Its elimination results in abstinence syndrome;
- Its regular use is harmful to health.
Coffee-drinking raises cholesterol levels. However, this effect is eliminated when it is brewed using a paper filter. The substance that raises cholesterol is not caffeine, but rather an aromatic substance in the coffee that remains in the paper filter.
Contents of a Cup of Coffee
Water makes up between 97.8% and 99.3% by weight, depending on the brewing method.
Carbohydrates make up an irrelevant 0.4% to 1.5%. These are composed of sugars and a miniscule amount of starch.
Coffee contains from 58 to 212 mg/100 l of caffeine, which represents 0.058% to 0.212%. Coffee is the richest in caffeine of any beverage. This is particularly so for espresso, which is prepared by forcing steam and hot water through coffee grounds. espresso is more highly concentrated than that prepared with a regular coffee maker by brewing and filtration.
Vitamins and minerals: There are only very small amounts of niacin (0.22 mg/100 g), magnesium (5 mg/100 g), and potassium (54 mg/100 g).
Caffeic and chlorogenic acids, which act as diuretics and irritate the digestive tract.
Essential oil: this is what gives coffee its unique flavor and aroma, but it irritates the mucosa of the stomach and intestine.
The only nutrient that may be found in any significant amount in a cup of coffee is the sugar that may have been added.
Harmful Effects of Coffee
The harmfulness of coffee is the subject of broad debate among researchers. While some feel that moderate amounts (2 to 3 cups a day) is safe, others are equally certain that it produces numerous disorders.
The following illustrates its proven harmful effects, which it has in common with other stimulant beverage.
Myocardial infrarction risk is slightly higher in coffee drinkers, according to a meta-analysis (a compendium of a large body of previous statistics) carried out at Harvard University (USA).
Arrhythmia: Coffee may lead to changes in cardiac rhythm.
Mammary nodules: No statistical relationship has been found between coffee consumption and breast cancer. However, when it is removed from the diet, there is a reduction in the number of mammary nodules in women with fibrocystic dysplasia.
Osteoporosis: coffee fosters calcium loss through the urine. Even though moderate coffee consumption (2 to 3 cups a day) increases calcium loss very little, it does contribute to osteoporosis.
Cholesterol: A study at the university of South Carolina (USA) demonstrated that increasing unfiltered coffee consumption by one cup a day on a regular basis raises blood cholesterol by 20 mg/100 ml.
Changes in intellectual performance: An experiment conducted in the psychology department at Nene College in Northampton (UK) shows that more errors are produced in identifying pairs of equal (for example A/a) or different (for example P/a) letters. Although other studies demonstrate that coffee stimulates mental activity, more errors are produced after drinking it as well. This is possibly due to the fact that caffeine reduces the brain's glucose supply.
Arterial hypertension: when one stops drinking coffee blood pressure drops. This also results from changing to decaffeinated coffee, but not to the same degree.
Acid stomach: coffee increases the production of acid juices in the stomach. It also promotes acid reflux, causing heartburn and esophagitis. This has been well demonstrated at the Bogenhausen Hospital in Munich (Germany).
Urinary bladder cancer: coffee consumption, particularly if combined with alcohol use, significantly raises the risk of this type of cancer.
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