Coffee - Health Benefits and Risks
A cup of coffee in the morning may provide more than just an energy boost.
Researchers suggest health benefits that range from helping prevent diabetes to lowering the risk of cancer and dementia.
Like many folks, I find that getting the day started would feel incomplete without a morning cup of Joe. Coffee beans may seem simple, but they are actually extraordinarily complex fruits, with over 1,000 different compounds within each tiny package. It is estimated that 2.25 billion cups of coffee are consumed every day around the world.
Before becoming the popular morning beverage it is today, coffee was utilized in a variety of different preparations. In its natural and unprocessed state, coffee is a cherry-like fruit that becomes bright red when ripe. The coffee bean is actually the seed found at the center of the red coffee fruit. The history of coffee is quite interesting. No one knows exactly how or when coffee was discovered, but according to popular legend, the discovery of coffee is attributed to an Ethiopian goat shepherd named Kaldi in 850AD. Kaldi sent his goats to graze and when he found them, they were leaping and frolicking around with energy. He noticed that they had been grazing on the red fruits of the coffee shrub, so he decided to try the fruit for himself. After consuming the fruits, he too noticed a similar reaction. A monk who also witnessed the goats’ behavior took some of the coffee fruits back to his monastery and shared them. He and his fellow monks were alert and awake for evening prayer. It is likely they were all reacting to the caffeine content of the coffee fruit. Caffeine is a stimulant that is present in the plants as a natural pesticide. At some later point, the fermented pulp of the coffee fruit was used to make a sort of wine-like drink. In the 1400’s, people began to roast the coffee beans - becoming the first step in the process known today.
Though the quality and selection may vary greatly, coffee can be found at nearly any retail establishment. Health food stores are more likely to carry a wide variety of beans from various geographic regions around the world. Different regions offer growing conditions that contribute to the nuanced flavors of the beans that grow there. Coffee is among the most highly sprayed crops when it comes to pesticides and other chemicals, so choosing an organic variety is extremely important to avoid taxing the body with added harmful chemicals.
Coffee for your Health
There is accumulating evidence on the beneficial effects of coffee on health. The most clear-cut findings about its benefits come from a 20 year study that followed about 128,000 men and women. Published in the May 2, 2006, issue of Circulation, the study concluded that drinking coffee was somewhat beneficial for cardiovascular health.
Coffee appears to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, a risk fact for heart disease. Several studies have observed that people who drink the most coffee have a 23–50% lower risk of developing diabetes. One study showed a reduction as high as 67%. According to a 2009 review of 18 studies encompassing a total of 457,922 people, for each daily cup of coffee there was an associated 7% reduced risk of type 2 diabetes.
Coffee is a potent source of antioxidants and may offer some protection from cancer. A study published in the February 16, 2005, issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute found a 52% lower incidence of rectal cancer among people who regularly drank two or more cups of coffee a day. A more recent 2012 study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition including 489,706 men and women found that people who drank 4 - 5 cups of coffee per day had a 15% lower risk of colorectal cancer
A study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition in August, 2006 followed 676 healthy men for 10 years and measured their overall cognitive function. Those who drank coffee had lower rates of age-related cognitive decline than those who didn’t, with maximum protection seen in men who drank three cups of coffee a day.
Studies have suggested that coffee may protect against Parkinson’s disease. Multiple studies show that coffee drinkers have a much lower risk of Parkinson's disease, with a lowering of risk ranging from 32 - 60% (Herma et al, Hu et al, Ross et al, Ascherio et al). Interestingly, for Parkinson’s disease, the caffeine itself appears to be beneficial, as studies in people who drink decaffeinated coffee do not appear to show a lower risk of developing the disease. A few studies also show that coffee drinkers have up to a 65% lower risk of Alzheimer's disease.
Given that coffee drinkers appear less likely to get many diseases, coffee may help you live longer. Several observational studies indicate that coffee drinkers have a lower overall risk of death. In a 2008 study from the Annals of Internal Medicine, drinking coffee was associated with a 20% reduced risk of death in men and a 26% decreased risk of death in women, followed for up to 24 years. In a 2006 study published in Diabetologia, individuals with diabetes who drank coffee had a 30% lower risk of death.
Coffee can enhance physical performance. Caffeine stimulates your nervous system, signaling fat cells to break down body fat making free fatty acids available as fuel. It also increases epinephrine (adrenaline) levels in your blood (the fight-or-flight hormone) which prepares your body for intense physical exertion. Given these effects, it is not surprising studies have shown that caffeine can improve physical performance by 11–12%, on average. A cup of coffee about half an hour before you head to the gym may not be a bad idea.
The down side of Coffee
Coffee has some well-documented undesirable side effects such as anxiety, insomnia, tremor and irregular heartbeat. It may also irritate the digestive system, bladder and prostate. Interestingly, for one of the more common heartbeat irregularities - atrial fibrillation - research to date has not demonstrated an association between coffee consumption and risk of atrial fibrillation. In fact, some studies have suggested that coffee consumption may have a protective effect. Nevertheless, if you experience any of these side effects, you’re better off avoiding coffee (and decaf, which contains substances that may contribute to the symptoms) no matter what potential health benefits it may have. Assessing the way coffee affects you is the best guide as to whether or not you should be drinking it at all and, if so, how much.
The Bottom Line
Coffee is a highly popular beverage around the world and appears to have a number of impressive health benefits. Not only can your daily cup of Joe help you feel more energized and improve physical performance, it may also lower your risk of several conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. In fact, coffee may even boost longevity.
If you enjoy its taste and tolerate its caffeine content, don’t hesitate to pour yourself a cup or more throughout the day.