SPILL THE BEANS...

Coffee is one of the most popular and oldest drinks around, but the caffeine in it can have both positive and negative effects on wellbeing.

Our passion for caffeinated drinks, and coffee in particular, appears to know no bounds, and coffee bars now dominate every high street, airport and train station. Indeed, a recent report by the British Coffee Association estimated that we now drink approximately 98 million cups of coffee per day in the UK alone!

Caffeine is a mind-altering substance that occurs naturally in more than 60 plants and trees and is one of a group of compounds called methylxanthines, which act directly to stimulate certain neurotransmitters in the central nervous system. There are many schools of thought around caffeine's effects on our health, but much of the research focuses on its negative impact. This

is partly because many studies fail to distinguish between daily coffee and tea drinkers and those who drink caffeine on a more irregular basis. This matters because while a dose of 250 milligrams given to a regular coffee drinker will have little effect on their blood pressure, heart rate, respiration, metabolic rate, blood cholesterol and anxiety levels, someone not so used to caffeine may see a temporary rise in these measures.

The reality is that caffeine can have both positive and negative effects on the body, depending on the drinker’s caffeine sensitivity, body weight, physical condition and general anxiety levels and of course the amount they consume.

BENEFICIAL EFFECTS

While we are often warned about drinking too much coffee, in moderation it has been linked to a number of health benefits. For example, caffeine wards off drowsiness, increases alertness, shortens reaction time and helps people to wake up and feel better in the morning. It improves reading speed and may enhance people's performance in maths and verbal tests, generally increasing capacity for sustained intellectual effort. It may also increase the effectiveness of aspirin as a painkiller.

In the world of sport, meanwhile, professional coaches and athletes have reported a number of beneficial effects on endurance, with caffeine thought to help the body break down fats for use as energy, thereby sparing glycogen for later use and delaying exhaustion. However, studies are often contradictory about the benefits of caffeine on performance and its effect certainly varies from person to person.

It has been suggested that drinking coffee is associated with a lower risk of type two diabetes, as it contains magnesium and chromium, which can help to regulate insulin, which in turn controls blood sugar. Meanwhile, a study of 100,000 cases over 26 years showed a lower risk of death from oral cancer among coffee drinkers, with the results thought to be related to its antioxidant properties.

According to some research, coffee drinkers are at 40 per cent lower risk of developing liver cancer and caffeine may have an even greater protective effect in lowering the risk of developing? alcohol-related cirrhosis. This, again, is linked to its protective antioxidant characteristics.

Caffeine has also been associated with reducing the risk of prostate cancer in men (if more than four cups are drunk per day), as it boosts levels of adiponectin, a protein shown to stop malignant cells flourishing.

A study back in 2012, meanwhile, suggested that drinking three cups of coffee a day reduces the risk of Alzheimer's, with caffeine appearing to decrease abnormal levels of the protein beta-amyloid, which accumulates in the brains of those with the disease. Caffeine has also been linked to a reduction in the risk of depression and even heart disease. A combined study or meta analysis on heart health involving 150,000 cases found that people who drank one or two cups of coffee a day were 11 per cent less likely to develop heart failure. Again, this is thought to be Inked to its antioxidant protective effect.

ADVERSE EFFECTS

Unfortunately, the effects of caffeine on health and wellbeing can easily tip from good to bad when consumed excessively of you are predisposed to react. It can, for example, temporarily step up your heart rate and increase stomach and secretions and urine production.

The term 'coffee nerves' is often used to refer to the trembling, nervousness, veomnia, muscle tension, headaches, mitability and disorientation that caffeine can induce.

In some 'caffeine reactive” people, caffeine can cause changes in heart rhythms and even premature contractions of the ventricles, the largest chambers in the heart. Children run a special risk of coffee nerves, since one cola for a small child has the equivalent effect of two to four cups of coffee for an adult.

There has also been a huge rise in caffeine ‘Energy drinks’ - which if used correctly do benefit certain individuals - but a more alarming issue is they are used by a younger generation as a casual drink.

It is wise to refrain from drinking coffee after around 5pm, especially if you have a tendency to be caffeine reactive, as it can negatively affect your sleep patterns. Caffeine levels peak in your body within an hour of consumption, with more than half the caffeine metabolised in three-to-seven hours, so the later you drink it the more likely it is to keep you awake.

COFFEE OR TEA?

A cup of brewed tea contains on average 40 milligrams of caffeine, less than half that of a cup of coffee. However, the exact amount depends on the type of tea and how long it is brewed for. The famous phrase 'builder's tea’, left to brew for a long time, will certainly contain more, while green teas generally have a much lower caffeine content than black teas. De-caffeinated coffees and teas may still have a small amount of caffeine in them, but it is much reduced.

While some feel the real flavour is lost in de-caf drinks, they may be a wise choice if you feel your caffeine intake is too high and is having an adverse effect on you, and when you want a cuppa closer to bedtime.?

Be well, Dorian

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