Coffee and health
A coffee a day keeps the doctor away
Over the last two centuries, few substances have been studied as widely as coffee and the vast majority of clinical testing shows many very positive health benefits associated with drinking coffee. The latest studies have discredited some popular old beliefs: in reasonable amounts, coffee does not disturb sleep, nor is it detrimental to heart-health.
Coffee has a very high antioxidant content and is, in fact, the greatest source of antioxidants in the U.S. diet according to University of Scranton professor Dr. Joe Vinson. Antioxidants have been widely linked to a number of potential health benefits including protection against heart disease and cancer.
In addition to coffee’s well-known ability to increase performance on mental and physical tasks, coffee drinking has been strongly linked to lowering the risk of colorectal and liver cancers, asthma, type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.
Caffeine is a well-known mild stimulant of the nervous system and its consumption elevates neural activity in the brain. It can postpone fatigue and in many studies, has been shown to enhance cognitive performance and increase the body’s capacity for exercise and physical endurance.
Coffee has also been shown to help relieve headaches and to boost the action of painkillers by 40%.