We all love our morning coffee. Photo courtesy of blogTO
Coffee has existed since approximately the 15th century – and over these years it has amassed a lot of confusion about its effect on your health. The media has played a role in pushing a negative view towards the effects of coffee. Us coffee lovers have always had a family member or friend comment with an expression of concern regarding our love for coffee. It’s about time coffee drinkers put an end to this narrative!
Well, if you are a huge coffee lover, you will be happy to know that scientists have discovered that there is no connection between coffee and an increased risk of cancer or heart disease. In fact, the Universities of Southampton and Edinburgh published a meta-analysis investigating the effects of coffee on health. Amazingly enough, the paper used an extensive sample size analyzing over 200 papers! They found that drinking three to four cups of coffee a day may actually improve your health. Furthermore, they concluded that those who drank coffee were 17% less likely to die an early death, 19% less likely to die of heart disease and 18% less likely to develop cancer, compared to people who did not drink coffee.
Courtesy of Harvard School of Public Health
How does coffee work? The active ingredient in coffee is caffeine. Caffeine stimulates your brain and increases your alertness. Coffee also contains a lot of antioxidants, which are molecules that prevent damage that can cause cancer. Reactive molecules called “free radicals” attack our body and damage cells. Antioxidants stabilizes the oxidants, thus stopping them from harming our body!
David Heber, director of Center of Human Nutrition, UCLA discusses the effects of coffee.
Okay, now we know coffee can be healthy, but we also know that too much of anything is bad. How much coffee is too much coffee? Health Canada recommends adults limit caffeine intake to no more than 400mg/day. This is approximately three 8-ounce cups of coffee. Surpassing these limits could result in increased heart rate, changes in sleep patterns, heartburn, and more.
Remember that it in order to maximize coffee’s health benefits, minimize the amount of cream and sugar you put in your coffee. Sugar can singlehandedly nullify the positive effects you would get from coffee.
Robert Poole, the lead author of this study, says that these findings are “reassuring for coffee drinkers, as long as they drink in moderation”. Future studies will ideally pinpoint which type of coffee beans will have the greatest health benefit.
By Misam Ibrahimi
