today to a Super Food status. For a long time, there was a lot of misinformation about the ill-effects of drinking coffee, but now there is a growing realisation that coffee beans are good for you, and that the health benefits far outweigh the ill-effects.History of Coffee
The earliest evidence of coffee drinking was found in the 15th century in the Sufi shrines of Yemen. Now it is grown in over 70 countries, with the largest amounts being exported as wholesale coffee beans from Latin America. Today, each nation brews and serves coffee in a different fashion, ranging from the plungers in France, the instant coffees in Asia, the espressos of Italy, and the Americano of USA. The advent of coffee-makers and percolators have made the serving of brewed coffee easier at home, and the mushrooming of cafes all over the place have helped to make coffee a much loved beverage all over the world.
Green Coffee Beans
Green coffee is made from unroasted raw coffee beans. They have no coffee aroma and they taste slightly bitter. These are now steadily gaining popularity due to their weight-loss properties and also because of the fact that they are believed to unlock the fat from the body. Unroasted green coffee beans in laboratory experiments burnt fat in mice faster and they also helped to speed up the metabolism. In a study published in March 2009, it was also discovered that green coffee reduced blood sugar levels and increased the body’s insulin sensitivity, thus being of immense use in Diabetes 2 cases.
Roasted Coffee Beans
The world at large consumes large quantities of roasted and brewed coffee because they love the aroma and the taste, without realising that their daily coffee fix also provides them with some health benefits. Coffee is high in anti-free-radical oxidants. They help to energise the body, speed up the body metabolism, and provide the spurt that is needed to begin the morning energetically.
Health Benefits
Even though coffee will not cure or prevent any disease, it can help the body fight the disease and, in some cases, also alleviate the symptoms. In a 30-year follow-up of the effects of coffee on the body, researchers have found that coffee drinking decreases the chances of getting Parkinson’s disease.
In February 2005, The Journal of the National Cancer Institute published a study which showed that coffee drinking had a beneficial effect on people and those who consumed five or more cups of coffee a day had lower chances of getting liver cancer. The antioxidants and minerals found in coffee were also responsible for the lower rates of prostate cancer. In a large study of over 45,000 men, conducted over a period of 12 years, it was concluded that coffee drinking can also reduce the incidence of gout.
About the Author
James Smith is a blogger and coffee enthusiast from London, England.
