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Is Coffee Good Or Bad by Jason
Hunter
The Arabs in the sixteenth century spread the habit of consuming coffee. In
the United States alone, more than one million tons of coffee grains are
consumed annually.
Coffee as grown on the tree undergoes a process of fermentation and roasting
before its use.
The constant consumption of coffee provokes physical and psychological
dependence, and also has toxic effects, thus coffee is regarded as a drug.
Just like other drugs, such as opium, coffee's active ingredients (caffeine)
may be useful in the treatment of certain afflictions on a one-time basis.
However, its regular use produces addiction and in many cases, several
disorders.
The most important active component of coffee is an alkaloid:
trimethylxanthine, or caffeine, which constitutes between 1% and 2% of the
grain. It also contains an essential oil which gives coffee its typical aroma,
and whose action on the digestive system is irritant, as well as cafeic and
chlorogenic acids, with a diuretic effect, and diverse fatty and nitrogenated
substances which oxidize and denature during the fermentation and roasting
process.
Caffeine is an alkaloid of the xanthine group, chemically very similar to
purine. And responsible for most of the effects of coffee.
After an intake of caffeine, more intellectual effort is possible; however
the ability to comprehend and assimilate that which has been learned diminishes.
When typists drink coffee they work quicker, but make more mistakes. The mental
agility and dynamics which are achieved are followed by a sensation of tiredness
and dejection some hours later which induces the person to take another dose. A
cup of coffee does not contain any of the nutritive substances the brain
requires to work adequately, such as glucose, B vitamins, lecithin, or mineral
salts (phosphorous, calcium, etc.). Coffee excites but does not nourish, and in
high doses it irritates and tires the nervous system.
Coffee increases heart contractions and slightly increases blood pressure.
However, one must bear in mind that continuous doses cause irritability of the
coronary nerves, which causes tachycardia and alterations of the heartbeat
(arrhythmia). Caffeine, by increasing the level of adrenaline in the blood,
predisposes the body to heart attacks.
Coffee causes an increase in the secretion of gastric juices, which may ease
digestion at certain times. But continuous use produces excessive acid,
gastritis, and favors the appearance of gastric ulcers as well as colitis, due
to the irritant action of the essential oil coffee contains. The liver also
suffers overloading when coffee is taken continually.
The continuous use of coffee has been related to bladder and colon cancer, as
well as to the increase of cholesterol in the blood.
However, coffee does have some therapeutical use whenever there is no other
treatment with fewer side effects.
Coffee may neutralize, though only incompletely, the depressing effects of
alcohol on the nervous system. It may be used as a home remedy to partially wake
up people intoxicated by alcoholic beverages.
Due to physical exhaustion and tiredness. Coffee may provide a provisional
stimulus, though it never cures. It is better to apply suitable treatment in
these cases.
Coffee clears the head and produces a subjective easing of influenza
symptoms. In these cases, correct treatment consists of applying the natural
agents which stimulate organic defenses and have preventive action. It can also
ease the effects of migraines and headaches.
Although coffee have some good uses, it must never be used continuously, not
even as a medicine.
About the Author
Jason Hunter is a natural health advocate. He is webmaster of a natural
health web site called Home Health and Natural Remedies, which he gives tips on
reversing and curing some of today's deadliest lifestyle diseases. Visit his web
site at http://www.hhesonline.com.
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