But regardless of whether you are a three cup a day person or once in a while type of coffee drinker, there are several health benefits associated with drinking coffee.

Coffee Reduces Risk for Type 2 Diabetes

A recent study compared non-coffee drinkers to coffee drinkers and found that those who consumed three or more cups a coffee a day were less likely to develop type 2 diabetes. The study concluded that the high levels of magnesium and chromium help the body metabolize insulin, which is integral to controlling blood sugar. You can read the details of that study here.

And for those of us who enjoy our coffee with a little less jolt, decaffeinated coffee has the same effect, leading researchers to believe that it is likely not due to caffeine. And because coffee lowers the risk for type 2 diabetes, it also contributes to lower instances of heart disease and stroke.

Coffee Lowers Risk for Age-Related Cognitive Decline

High consumption of this hot brew is linked to lower risk of Parkinson disease and dementia.

Another study found that those who consumed three to five cups of coffee daily had a 65% reduced risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s. This is said to be because coffee boosts levels of granulocyte colony (the growth factor responsible for staving off brain deterioration). You can check out that study here.

Several other studies have shown that depression can accelerate the deteriorative effects of dementia and Alzheimer’s on the brain, but that women who drink coffee have a lower risk of developing depression than women who don’t.

According to that study, two cups daily amounts to a 15% lower risk and four or more cups daily raises that number to 20%. The reason being is that caffeine affects the brain and modulates the release of mood transmitters.

Coffee is a Cancer Preventative

With instances of cancer on the rise, it’s important for people to know that consumption of coffee can help the body defend itself against this predatory illness. Here’s what a few studies on the subject found:

• High intake levels of coffee are linked with decreased chances of developing liver cirrhosis (which can lead to liver cancer).

• Men who drink six cups daily lower their risk of developing dangerous forms of prostate cancer by a whopping 60%; they can also lower their chances for other types of prostate cancer by 20%.
• One to three cups daily cuts prostate cancer risk by 30%. With instances of prostate cancer on the rise in men, this discovery is huge for our husbands, fathers, brothers, and friends.

The most common cancer in the world is skin cancer, and coffee consumption helps ward off that too!

• Women who consume one or more cups daily lower their risk by 20%, while that same consumption level lowers the risk in men by 9%. Unfortunately, when it comes to cancer, decaffeinated coffee did not display the same positive effects.

Coffee Increases Regularity

Coffee may help you “go” for a great many reasons, including the fact that drinking warm liquids gets things moving.  The fact that it’s a liquid helps as well, since staying hydrated is one way to prevent constipation. And since coffee is a powerful stimulant, it encourages muscle contractions within the digestive tract.

Coffee Can Help You Lose Weight

With the New Year readily upon us, many people find themselves resolving to lose weight, and coffee is the perfect weight loss drink.

Here’s what some studies on the link between coffee and weight loss have found:

• Coffee boosts metabolism and is naturally low in calories, assuming there isn’t the aforementioned whip cream and the like, because those will quickly take this low calorie drink into the caloric stratosphere.
• For those undertaking a new exercise regime, coffee boosts energy levels, which in turn will help maximize exercise efforts. But be sure to stay hydrated as coffee is a diuretic and flushes excess from our systems.

Coffee Aids in Exercise Recovery

Whether you’re a seasoned coffee drinker or simply a dabbler, drinking coffee before a workout has been proven to prevent post-workout soreness. This is due to the fact that caffeine works on a system in the brain and spinal cord (the adenosine neuromodulatory system) that is heavily involved in pain processing.

And since caffeine blocks adenosine, the biochemical that plays an important role in energy transfer, it is speculated that it could also reduce pain.

Coffee Has Anti-Aging Antioxidants

These days the world is consumed with stopping the clock. Coffee is brimming with antioxidants, which work to remove free radicals throughout the body.

Free radicals are responsible for premature aging such as:

• age spot
• wrinkles
• fine lines
• sagging skin

Consuming as little as two cups of coffee daily can have significant effects in how our body ages.

No matter how you look at it, coffee is essential for maintaining and improving the health of our bodies, due in large part to the antioxidants and the caffeine. Both of these substances have health and anti-aging benefits that help repair damage to cells caused by free radicals (which are produced as a byproduct of cells just doing their daily thing).

Coffee can also help in fighting diseases ranging from Parkinson’s Disease, cancer, depression to obesity. Both the antioxidants and the caffeine, each with different potential benefits for improving health and reducing the risk of chronic illnesses, are essential for any healthy living endeavor.

History of the Coffee Bean (and why I’m typing this at 124 words-per-minute!)

Coffee has been a regular staple the daily routine of human beings for a long time. So long, that its origins are steeped in legend.

The story goes that in Ethiopia, around 850 A.D., a goatherd observed that his livestock were exceptionally alert and frisky after eating a certain bright red berry. Inside those berries were coffee beans and the rest, as they say, is history. Coffee beans have traveled the world and become a constant in many a household and culture.

Coffee Smoothie

• 1 cup brewed, organic coffee
• ½ cup nut milk, hemp milk, or soy milk
• Crushed ice

Place everything in a blender and give it a whirl, then enjoy.

Nutritional Benefits of Coffee

Scientists and medical professionals have studied coffee for well over a century. And what they have found, as with anything, is there are many benefits and few risks. It is commonly held that the benefits of coffee consumption outweigh the risks.

After taking a peep at Pubmed (a medical research database), I found that coffee has significant benefits and could even be considered a Superfood by some.

Type 2 Diabetes: coffee may very well reduce the risk of this disease’s onset. Why is not exactly known, but studies indicate that habitual consumption of this beverage significantly lowers the threat.

Theories include coffee’s abundant antioxidant power, and chlorogenic acid content (which reduces glucose concentration).  Oddly enough, coffee’s caffeine component is negligible in this capacity as decaf coffee shows the same benefits.

It seems the more coffee, the better for prevent diabetes. Researchers found that 4-6 cups a day reduced risk by 28%. And more than 6 cups a day reduced the risk by 35%.

That’s  in comparison to two or less cups a day. However, read a little further before you go jaunting off to your local coffee shop for your 7^th cup of coffee.

Heart Disease: there was a 25% reduction in mortality rates for women for drinkers of 2-4 cups a day, the same study found.  However, more than 4 cups a day did nothing further to decrease that risk.

The study involved healthy women who don’t over consume alcohol or tobacco, and who are a normal weight for their height. Simply put, women who don’t consume coffee at all were found to have a higher risk of heart disease.

Alzheimer’s Disease: or any type of dementia can be reduced as a result of coffee consumption by up to 65%.

Parkinson’s Disease: a reduction of up to 80% was found. It’s still unknown why, but researchers think it has to do with the caffeine.

Colon and Liver Cancer (also Cirrhosis): ranges from 25% reduced risk to 80%. These results seem to be related to coffee’s anti-inflammatory powers.

Also indicated where headache relief, asthma relief, and cavity protection. The former are due to the caffeine consumption and the latter due to anti-bacterial compounds found within the brew.

Antioxidants: Americans and the Norse obtain their primary source of antioxidant power from coffee.

Coffee was found to contain more antioxidants than some fruits.  However, fruits such as grapes, blueberries, raspberries, cranberries, and oranges have additional nutrition that coffee does not. So keep them in your diet!

Coffee’s antioxidant power is also linked to anti-aging effects.

Weight Loss Friend: Coffee is exceptionally low in calories. An 8 oz cup of black coffee has only two calories. Adding cream or sugar mitigates the calorie friendliness, but a cup can still be relatively guilt-free if you measure your additions.

On the other hand…

High Blood Pressure: if you suffer from high blood pressure, it is best to keep a low roar on your coffee intake. Consume no more than 2-3 cups a day as more can increase your blood pressure levels dramatically.

Caffeine Metabolism and Heart Disease: a subset of the population, but a fairly common one, has a genetic mutation that hinders their ability to breakdown caffeine. As a result, two or more cups of coffee a day can increase the risk of heart disease in such folks.

High consumption: for the average person, 4-7 cups a day can cause anxiety, irritability, sleeplessness, and restlessness in some individuals. It is best to keep coffee in moderation and stick with 2-3 cups in the morning. Coffee can also affect those who exercise at a high altitude by decreasing the flow of blood to the heart.

It is generally not recommended to increase your coffee consumption to reduce the risk of any disease. The increase could contribute to the development of other issues. However, if you are currently a coffee drinker, and do not suffer from any of the above, do by all means carry on.

Don’t feel guilty about meeting your friends for a cuppa – enjoy!

Let’s break down these ingredients and then you can decide for yourself if you’d like to continue using them for your coffee.

On nutrition labels, the ingredients are listed in order, from the greatest amount contained in the product to the least amount.  The principal ingredients in all non-dairy creamers are sugars and vegetable oils.  In powdered “milk”, the first ingredient is corn syrup solids.  This is dried corn syrup, the same ingredient found in soft drinks and processed food that is one of the causes of obesity in children and adults.  This ingredient accumulates in the liver and has a direct effect on our triglycerides, sending them straight up.  A good boost first thing in the morning, no?  NO!

Partially hydrogenated soybean oil is next.  This is a trans fat.  Even though the label states “0g of trans fat”.  The labeling laws say if a product has less than .5g of trans fats per serving, the manufacturer can claim there are NO trans fats in it.  Manufacturers make their serving size small enough so they can claim “no trans fats”.  This would benefit the food industry, not your health.  Not only do these chemicals boost your triglycerides, but also increase your chances of cancer, heart disease, high cholesterol, and liver disease from hydrogenated soybean oil, the most highly processed, genetically modified oil on the market.

Sodium caseinate is a milk protein, but does not contain lactose.  According to Vegparadise News Bureau, “The sodium caseinate’s purpose is to provide a hint of dairy flavor as well as to create a thickening and whitening for a creamy look and feel.  Sodium caseinate is obtained from fresh and pasteurized skim milk by acid coagulation of the casein, neutralization with sodium hydroxide, and drying in a spray dryer.”  Even though the label reads “non-dairy”, the label also reads, “milk derivative” and states it “contains: milk, soy“.  Sodium caseinate is actually a glue used to put a label on a bottle of beer.  Also the glue that holds together wood furniture.  Your body sees this casein as a foreign protein and you produce histamines that end up as mucus.

Not convinced yet to read more of your food labels?  Dry, non-dairy creamers are also flammable.  The powdered substance becomes dispersed in the air and a small spark can set fire to it.  The rest of the label is hardly pronounceable.  We all know that if we can’t pronounce it, it probably isn’t good for us.  Oh, and the shelf life of these products?  Two years!  Be a label reader.  Be proactive.

Just found this song by Third Eye Blind, the chorus is, “So what’s it going to be?  Are you real to me?  Or are you nondairy creamer?”

So, in addition to its incredible taste, clearing the fog of sleep, and making everything good come your way, what exactly can coffee do to assist in a healthy lifestyle? I’m glad you asked. For starters it can lower your risk of diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, and colon cancer. It can lift your mood, treat headaches and even lower your risk of cavities.

Sound too good to be true? Well researchers with very big brains at Harvard don’t think so. After analyzing data on 126,000 people for as long as 18 years, they determined that one to three cups of caffeinated coffee daily can reduce diabetes risk by single digits AND having six cups or more each day slashed men’s risk by 54% and women’s by 30%. And that’s just one of hundreds of studies suggesting that coffee may be something of a health food — especially in higher amounts.

Over six studies have shown that people who drink coffee on a regular basis are up to 80% less likely to develop Parkinson’s, with three showing the more they drink, the lower the risk. Other research shows that compared to not drinking coffee, at least two cups daily can translate to a 25% reduced risk of colon cancer, an 80% drop in liver cirrhosis risk, and nearly half the risk of gallstones. There’s also evidence that coffee may help manage asthma and control attacks when medication isn’t available.

Is it a miracle? I think so. But there are scientific reasons for all this good as well. Oddly enough many of coffee’s benefits are a direct result of its high caffeine content. There is very strong evidence that the risk reduction for Parkinson’s disease is directly related to caffeine and in fact, based on this evidence, some Parkinson’s drugs are now being developed that contain a derivative of caffeine. Caffeine is also what helps in treating asthma and headaches and it can also be a powerful aid in enhancing athletic endurance and performance. It stimulates the brain and nervous system making you more alert and boosting concentration. A study in Brazil even found that children who drink coffee with milk each day are less likely to have depression than other children.

Be cautious however and pay attention to what your own body says. In some, coffee can increase nervousness, hand trembling, and cause rapid heartbeat. Coffee may also raise cholesterol levels and contribute to artery clogging. But most recent large studies show no significant adverse effects on most healthy people. (Pregnant women, heart patients, and those at risk for osteoporosis may still be advised to limit or avoid coffee.)

Another reason for all these incredible health benefits comes from the fact that coffee is loaded with antioxidants, some of which become especially potent during the roasting process. A certain group of antioxidant compounds called quinines, when administered to lab rats increased their insulin sensitivity which partially explains why studies have shown that those drinking decaf coffee but not tea beverages also showed a reduced diabetes risk (though it was about half as much as those drinking caffeinated coffee). Another Italian study showed that another compound called trigonelline, which gives coffee its aroma and bitter taste, has both antibacterial and anti-adhesive properties which is what helps to prevent dental cavities from forming.

Halleluja! I think I’ll have another cup.

Be Well,

Juicy Josh

877MyJuicer.com