Seng 1 Deon Seng Prof. Presnell Engl. 1103 27 November 2012 Why Drink Coffee?

The First Time Four days have passed by without any sleep. Im struggling to stay focused and have been drawing straight lines with unsteady hands for weeks. My source of energy is becoming nonexistence since food cannot sustain my well being. I have to find a new source of energy and the only option I have left is to turn to coffee. It was a cold day outside, and I needed to get warm. My friends and I were heading to the Student Union to get something to eat, and as soon as we reached the top of the stairs, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee bombarded my sense of smell like nothing else was in the atmosphere. It smelled unique and exquisite which lured me into Starbucks. It was my first time going into the cafe, and my first experience was like a young child trying to pick what he or she wants off a menu that he or she cannot read. There were multiple names and styles of coffee, but I did not know what any of them were. I was having difficulty choosing, so I asked my friends what would they recommend which led to me ordering a tall Mocha White Chocolate. I turned towards my friends and slowly sipped out of my cup. My first reaction to drinking it was that it had a bitter and sweet taste. My friends were staring at me as they were waiting for a response, but I delayed because it burnt my tongue initially and I was hesitant on whether to actually drink it or not. Ever had a cup

Seng 2 of coffee and wondered what is it doing to you? When I tried that cup of coffee for the first time in my life, the first thing that came into my mind was, Is it good or bad for me to drink this? I liked the taste of it and eventually kept drinking, but the reason why I began doubting on drinking it was because of the rumors I have heard about how bad it was for human health. My sudden interest in the beverage and frequent drinking caused me to want to find the answer to whether coffee is good or bad for me. Several questions entered into my mind such as Why do people actually drink coffee? What made coffee so popular regarding Starbucks and other companies? I mainly wondered, What are the positive and negative effects of the drink, and are there any long-term effects of drinking coffee that could confirm the rumors of coffee inflicting health? I did not have any prior knowledge on the subject, so the desire to discover the truth about coffee would determine if I wanted to continue drinking it.

The Discovery Fundamental Properties I wanted to know what coffee exactly was. I began my research by studying Functional properties of coffee and coffee by-products, by Patricia Esquivel and Victor M. Jimenez, which is a section from The Food Research International in 2012. By studying this scholarly journal of the two authors research, I discovered that coffee is ranked second among all food commodities behind crude oil. It is the main agricultural export product for most subtropical countries. I found out that coffee brew is best known as a stimulant property primarily because of caffeine, but chemical compounds found in the beverage have many beneficial attributes. Esquivel and Jimenez stated that due to its

Seng 3 increasing global importance, the coffee beverage has had research conducted on its chemical composition because of the opportunity of being beneficial and/or detrimental. After reading through their findings on the effect of caffeine in coffee, I understood the reason why coffee has such popularity. The caffeine increases alertness, which is created by stimulating the central nervous system and rising blood circulation and respiration. I also found benefits of this property that surprised me. Caffeine could enhance mood, create a better exercise performance and reaction time, and reduce symptoms that are associated with Parkinsons disease and tremors. However; there were some negative effects discovered about caffeine. It can cause sleeplessness and mild addiction, and high doses can cause anxiety, tension, nervousness, and agitation. I continued studying the journal, and I discovered other properties of the coffee beverage such as flavor and aroma. These properties are developed when the coffee beans are in a series of reactions during roasting that cause modifications to their chemical compositions. These were properties of the beans composition, but I also learned that the coffee brew contains many of important functional ingredients such as flavonoids and caffeic and ferulic acid. Furthermore, what interested me was that coffee is known for the antioxidant properties CGA, hydroxycinnamic acids and melanoidins. Esquivel and Jimenez stated that Melanoidins from coffee showed higher antioxidant activity than those isolated from other sources, such as beer...the antioxidant capacity of coffee is associated to the presence of both natural compounds and substances... This was significant to be because it strengthens the findings that proved that coffee has properties that create health benefits. Also, I read observations that found bioactive amines present in coffee brew that are required for normal development and growth with response to

Seng 4 stress. This is a huge factor that could prove that coffee could be essential to a healthy life, and I was astonished. After reading this journal and learning of the authors findings, I wanted to research more about the benefits from coffee consumption.

Health Benefits I read an article from a 2004 post on the Harvard Health Publications titled Coffee Health Risks: For the moderate drinker, coffee is safe says Harvard Womens Health Watch. Reading this article made me realize that due to past research that discussed negativity towards the beverage such as the ability of stunting growth and increasing blood pressure, people still avoid caffeinated coffee because of the worry of the effects on health. Although, recent research on the subject proves that a few cups a day is actually safe because the beverage does offer health benefits. Studies have confirmed that moderate coffee consumption can lower the risk for type 2 diabetes as the rate of death was lower among regular coffee drinkers than those who dont drink it. Coffee has also been proven to reduce risks of liver damage and improve cognitive function. Also, for the people that drink coffee daily, their alertness increases especially when fighting sleep deprivation, but moderately which is considered from 2-4 cups a day. By discovering these facts from this article, my perspective on drinking coffee became clearer, and I was leaning towards drinking it more often due to the benefits that I was learning of. This was a good finding, but from the research in the previous source, I also know that coffee can have a negative impact, so I wanted to find out if coffee could cause death or affect sleeping patterns before I made a decision.

Seng 5 Can it cause death? Surprisingly, I found an article from the Syracuse Examiner (NY) written by Harold Mandel who is well-known writer on the subjects of health and natural health as he has a medical degree from Pennsylvania. Mandel stated that a new study shows that drinking coffee offers a natural way to lower your risk of death. The NIH, National Institutes of Health, conducted studies revealing that those who drink coffee have a lower risk of death. Later, the National Cancer Institutes (NCI) found that older adults had a lower risk of death overall by drinking coffee than those who did not drink at all; they were found to be less likely to die from heart disease, respiratory disease, stroke, injuries, diabetes, and infections. That statement just amazed me. To learn that coffee could have such a positive impact like that made me want to drink it. I knew that the information provided in that article added on to the positives of coffee consumption. I began to gradually feel more comfortable with drinking coffee, and I had less doubts about it.

The Effects on Sleep Furthermore, to learn more about the effects coffee has on sleep, I researched a study conducted on the sleep movements and disturbances during a period of sleep. The study I found was The Effects of Coffee on Sleep by Leo Stanley and Gordon Tescher, and it was a part of the Western Journal of Medicine (1931). The study discovered that humans with relation to drinking coffee before sleep and drinking other beverages such as water or milk have displayed disturbances during periods of sleep. As I reviewed the data that the scientists collected, I discovered that drinking coffee before sleeping actually caused people to have less amount of movements during a period of sleep

Seng 6 compared to those who drank hot water. That result surprised me because I believed that coffee would have created more movements since it causes individuals to stay alert and awake. I actually found that the observations concluded that the average amount of movements per hour is about 10.42. Seven men were put through several trials experimenting the effects of coffee on sleep, and the results were astonishing since there was a drastic decrease in movement of 2.38 with coffee, while hot water showed only a decrease of 2.35. With this discovery, it was determined that coffee does not have a harmful effect on sleeping patterns and the amount of disturbances of periodic sleep. After learning that coffee did not cause sleeping disturbance and harm, I knew that drinking coffee would probably be a part of my daily routine from now on.

To Drink Coffee or to Not Drink Coffee? With my extensive research and discovery of the beneficial effects compared to the negative effects, I believe that coffee has a higher chance of being a good choice of beverage when in need than others. Dr. Jalaja Ramaswamy provided a global sense of coffees influence in her article To Coffee or Not? Coffee has been a part of the daily routine for thousands of Indians as a part of their breakfast. This proves the significance it has had on families worldwide. Coffee is defined as a complex mixture of chemicals, including significant amounts of caffeine. The beverage also contains many minerals such as potassium and protective antioxidants. These antioxidants protect against viral infections and the effects of free radicals that are cancer causing particles. Also, coffee can significantly benefit the mood and performance of an individual. The summation of its significance and possible value of being a beneficial beverage persuaded me that

Seng 7 finally ending the avoidance of consuming coffee was the right decision. I ultimately decided to continue drinking coffee as a part of my daily routine but only keeping it at a minimum with one to two cups of it during the day.

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Works Cited

Esquivel, Patricia, and Victor M. Jimenez. "Functional Properties of Coffee and Coffee By-products." Food Research International 46.2 (2012): 488-95. Web.

Harvard Health Publications. "Coffee Health Risks - Harvard Health Publications." Health Information and Medical Information - Harvard Health Publications. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Oct. 2012. <http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/coffee_health_risk>.

Mandel, Harold. "Coffee drinkers found to have lower risk of death - Syracuse natural health | Examiner.com." Welcome to Examiner.com | Examiner.com. Syracuse Natural Health Examiner, 20 May 2012. Web. 2 Nov. 2012. <http://www.examiner.com/article/coffee-drinkers-found-to-have-lower-risk-ofdeath>.

Ramaswamy, Jalaja, Dr. "The Hindu (English): To Coffee or Not?" (n.d.): n. pag. Access World News. Web. 2 Nov. 2012.

Stanley, Leo, and Gordon Tescher. "The Effects of Coffee on Sleep." Western Journal of Medicine 34 (1931): 359-361. US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health. Web. 29 Oct. 2012.

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