The untold benefits of coffee
Coffee is often seen in the media as an instant source of energy used by sleep-deprived college students completing their assignments. It is also widely contended to be very unhealthy if consumed regularly and/or in high quantities.
One research, however, suggests that the oh-so tormented coffee users can breathe a sigh of relief with the new scientific consensus from Queen Mary University of London:
The research from the Queen Mary University of London has shown that drinking coffee, including in people who drink up to 25 cups a day, is not associated with having stiffer arteries.
The research, led by Professor Steffen Petersen, was presented today at the British Cardiovascular Society (BCS) Conference in Manchester and part-funded by us.
Arteries carry blood containing oxygen and nutrients from your heart to the rest of your body. If they become stiff, it can increase the workload on the heart and increase a person’s chance of having a heart attack or stroke.
The study of over 8,000 people in the UK debunks previous studies that claimed to drink coffee increases arterial stiffness. Previous suggestions that drinking coffee leads to stiffer arteries are inconsistent and could be limited by lower participant numbers, according to the team behind this new research.
Coffee consumption was categorized into three groups for the study. Those who drink less than one cup a day, those who drink between one and three cups a day, and those who drink more than three. People who consumed more than 25 cups of coffee a day were excluded, but no increased stiffening of arteries was associated with those who drank up to this high limit when compared with those who drank less than one cup a day.
The associations between drinking coffee and artery stiffness measures were corrected for contributing factors like age, gender, ethnicity, smoking status, height, weight, how much alcohol someone drank, what they ate, and high blood pressure.
However, as with all new science, the above citations must be taken with a grain of salt. Just don’t salt up your coffee! The ‘excessive’ amount of coffee may perhaps not be unhealthy for the heart, but it may be unhealthy for other bodily functions. As with all things, moderation of things is always the best thing to go by.
Coffee is rich in caffeine which can give you appropriate amounts of energy but over-consumption of caffeine can be harmful and can even lead to addiction which can, in turn, lead to several problems. Drinking 25 cups will certainly lead to bloating and gastric issues in the long run even when keeping your heart healthy.
So go on with your assignments and drink that coffee up. Coffee, the quintessential college drink is healthy both for your assignments and your heart. Just make sure that you don’t upset your stomach too much.
Sources and further reading: bhf
