Coffee and its effects on health is not something many people think about until their doctor tells them they need to cut back on caffeine or top drinking it totally. There are many hundreds of reports on the effects of coffee on health and they don't all agree. It seems that coffee can be both good and bad for the body depending on how much is consumed at one day. Coffee drinkers would obviously like to know that coffee can be good for health so they don't have to stop drinking their morning java. Many recent studies are showing that coffee can be good for warding off some diseases and illnesses. It is filled with antioxidants that fight free radicals and the damage they can do to the body. Antioxidants are important in helping the body to repair damaged cells and prevent a range of diseases. One of the most recent discoveries and perhaps one of the most exciting is that coffee has been shown to fight Parkinson's disease. Studies show that it reduces the risk of Parkinson's disease by up to 80%. Other illnesses and disease that have shown to benefit from coffee include diabetes, dementia, colon cancer, gallstones and headache relief. Headache relief from caffeine is not a new discovery. Many over the counter headache remedies are made largely of caffeine in combination with acetaminophen. Asthma sufferers may benefit from coffee due to the caffeine content opening up the blood vessels in the body and allowing more airflow. Coffee drinkers don't usually want to know what the negative health effects of coffee are but it is important they understand what could happen if too much coffee is consumed. Caffeine is both a mental and a physical stimulant. It increases the heart rate and blood pressure and can be dangerous when consumed in excessive amounts. In the past, excessive use of coffee has been shown to be linked to heart disease and high blood pressure as well as infertility.
It is a well known fact that coffee can increase anxiety and tension and that insomnia is a common side effect of having coffee right before bed. Heart palpitations and even tender breasts have all been linked to the consumption of too much caffeine. In addition, caffeine is an addictive chemical that is hard to break free of without some painful withdrawal symptoms, particularly extreme headaches. The good news is that much more research is needed to make a final declaration on the effects of coffee on health. Like any other substance moderation is the key to coffee. Enjoying a cup or two of coffee shouldn't be a death sentence but a pot or two of coffee a day should not be consumed. It all comes down to controlling how much coffee is consumed and watching for any negative effects it seems to be having on health. Following a doctors™ advice is of course the most important step a coffee drinker can take in making a decision on how much caffeine is good and how much coffee is bad for health.
