C is for Coffee

Coffee is a very famous beverage, around which is built a lot of businesses – Starbucks and hundreds of other coffee shops. For some people, it’s synonymous to work and functionality – as in they can’t function properly without a cuppa in their system. For others, it is synonymous to leisure – relaxing and catching up with friends, or getting to know someone for the first time. It’s hard to imagine a world without this dark brew.

Coffee most probably first emerged in Yemen, where some people discovered that a drink produced from the roasted seeds of coffee beans had an energizing effect. These beans actually come from coffee berries from the Coffea bushes. Once ripe, coffee berries are picked, processed and dried. The seeds are then roasted to varying degrees depending on the desired flavor. These are then ground and brewed to produce the base of the drink that we clamor for so much.

Not everyone likes to take coffee in its most basic black form (like yours truly), so people have come up with a myriad of ways to present it. Most people put sugar and cream to sweeten it. Those who like it sweeter than that concocted the cafe mocha – a mixture of coffee and chocolate. It can also be served hot or cold, with ice cubes or the ice blended into it like a smoothie.

And since not everyone could afford to brew their own coffee at home, someone came up with the concept of instant coffee – just add water, as with everything else.

For something so popular, coffee is constantly in the spotlight for its supposed bad effects on health. Some religions ban it and doctors would tell their pregnant patients to steer clear of it. Here are the ABC’s of coffee which contain the good, the bad and the ugly.

A is for Antioxidant
Coffee beans have lots of antioxidants which helps fight cancer. People who don’t eat enough fruits and veggies (and boy oh boy, do we have a lot of these folks out there) can get their essentials from these beans.

B is for good for the Brain
Caffeine is coffee’s reason for being. We ingest coffee to perk up, and this is due to the caffeine. It helps people focus and become energized when they feel lethargic. And studies have shown that coffee helps people retain information over a short period of time (short term memory).

C is for Constipation
Coffee is a diuretic, therefore causing dehydration which therefore can lead to constipation.

D is for Dentist’s nightmare
Due to its dark color, coffee causes stained teeth. Its sweetness also causes cavities.

E is for Enhances the effects of medications
Caffeine can help enhance the effects of analgesic medications like Aspirin, Midol and Excedrin – medicines for headaches.

F is for Flushes an individual’s system
Coffee is a diuretic – it makes people urinate, thereby flushing their system and removing potentially dangerous of unhealthy compounds from the body.

G is for reduces risk of Gallstone disease
Its diuretic properties mentioned above also prevents the calcification of liquid from the gall bladder, helping a person avoid gallstone disease.

H is for bad for the Heart
The negative side to of caffeine is that it causes sleep and anxiety disorders, elevated heartbeat and stress, elevated risks of Parkinson’s disease, and caffeine dependency.

So now it’s up to you to decide, we say enjoy it…in moderation and check some coffee coupons offer.