Personal Dork Assistant

Sorting Out Coffee's Contradictions

Ever since I started hitting The Coffee Bean after college all-nighters I've felt vaguely guilty about chugging down all those lattes, mochas, and straight-up coffees. Aside from the ridiculous mark-up, now somewhat assuaged by brewing my own, there was always the niggling worry about the potential adverse effects of the stimulating, yet potentially addictive, beverage. There's plenty of medical research going on, of course, but who has time to keep up with all that jazz?

Thankfully, the NY Times has stepped in and collected the up-to-date information into an easy-to-digest article. Turns out that caffeine and coffee, in reasonable doses, does not increase risk for:

• Heart Disease
• Cancer
• Hypertension
• Osteoporosis

Phew, that just about covers all the bad things I was worried about. Not to mention there are actually benefits, too.

At consumption levels up to 200 milligrams (the amount in about 16 ounces of ordinary brewed coffee), consumers report an improved sense of well-being, happiness, energy, alertness and sociability, Roland Griffiths of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine reported.

A review of 13 studies found that people who drank caffeinated coffee, but not decaf, had a 30 percent lower risk of Parkinson’s disease.

Another review found that compared with noncoffee drinkers, people who drank four to six cups of coffee a day, with or without caffeine, had a 28 percent lower risk of Type 2 diabetes. This benefit probably comes from coffee’s antioxidants and chlorogenic acid.

Okay, so I don't drink enough to get the diabetes bonus, but I'm just happy to know that at least it doesn't hurt me on that front, especially with the family history.