Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Coffee

Mom sent me an article from her local newspaper in Americus, Georgia, about foods that could potentially be bad for us. One of the bad guys is coffee. Author Joan Mason, the county extension agent for Sumter County, refers in the article to the diuretic effects of coffee. This contributes to the loss of calcium, magnesium and potassium resulting in not so good effects on the nervous system. We all know a cup of coffee can keep us up at night. My friends with osteoporosis tell me they are limited to 1 cup of “real” coffee per day. It’s interesting that the article came the day after a package from my parents with 2 pounds of delicious bold coffee from their local coffee shop.

I also heard the news of the results of a study that men who drink 6 cups of coffee daily, decaf or regular, are more than 60% less likely to get prostrate cancer. It was also reported that men who exercise on a regular basis are 50% less likely to get the dreaded disease. So, men, I guess this means you have a choice. Exercise or drink up!
You might do both and maybe you'll make the news someday.

And just to throw in another bit of information, Joe Schwarch, PhD, says in "An Apple A Day" that coffee is the number one source of antioxodants in the North Amercian Diet. Be mindful that he doesn't say it is the food with the most antioxidants, but the one that we consume the most. There's a lot of information on coffee available; some for, some against. Enjoy in moderation. Just don't drink yourself sick.