The health effects of coffee.
A quick disclaimer that what you read in this blog post should not be considered medical advice.
The question of whether coffee offers health benefits is a fascinating one to me. I drink coffee every day, so ensuring that I have some idea about the impact of a psychoactive chemical on my health is important.
Cutting to the chase... it appears that coffee DOES offer some health benefits (phew!). The sources which I will be summarising are:
- the Mayo Clinic
- Johns Hopkins
- Harvard School of Public Health
Moderate coffee intake (read 2-5 cups per day) is linked to reduced likelihood of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, liver and endometrial cancers, Parkinson's disease, and depression.
There appear to be specific health benefits arising from coffee consumption for women, with a reduction in likelihood of death from coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and kidney disease, and a reduced likelihood of contracting colon cancer, Alzheimer's disease and suffering a stroke.
There are, however, potential side effects from coffee: heartburn, nervousness and insomnia.
Please raise a cup of coffee to your health!