Eating For Health

Caffeine – who doesn’t enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning?   Whether a K-cup, Starbucks or Mr. Coffee, most people enjoy starting their day with a cup of coffee.   According to the FDA , about 80% of adults in the US have some caffeine every day.     How does all this caffeine affect our health? What beverages and foods have caffeine? Coffee and tea have caffeine as does chocolate.   Energy drinks such as Red Bull contain caffeine.   How much caffeine is safe to drink? FDA notes that for most people, caffeine can be part of a healthy diet.   “But too much caffeine may post a danger to your health.”   FDA says healthy adults can consume up to 400 mg of caffeine a day which equates to about 4-5 cups of coffee a day, or 10 cans of soda , or 2 “energy shot” drinks.   But this varies as some people are more sensitive to caffeine and some people metabolize it faster or slower.   Pregnant or breastfeeding women should consult with t...

So much good information is coming out about coffee that some health professionals are wondering if they should recommend coffee for good health.   So what are some of these great health benefits and how much do you need to drink to get these benefits?   Health Benefits of Coffee      Reduced risk of many diseases including cardiovascular (heart) disease, dementia, Parkinson’s disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes – all these benefits for just drinking coffee. Reduced risk of skin cancer - about 3 cups of coffee a day reduced risk of skin cancer Reduced risk of depression , at least in women – 2-3 cups a day, helped lift one’s mood according to a Harvard University Research study Why is drinking coffee healthy?   Phytochemicals – coffee contains more of the phenolic phytochemical than tea or red wine, other phytochemicals in coffee are flavanols Antioxidants – these prevent damage to the cells in your body.   Coffee provides these be...