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The British Coffee Association reports that 1.4 billion servings of coffee are consumed every day, and you can bet there's a spoonful of guilt in every cup.
Coffee has long had an image as being unhealthy - not that it kept people from drinking it.
So, a blurb in the August edition of Better Homes & Gardens proclaiming the health advantages of a daily cup of coffee got our attention. Drinking coffee, it said, could reduce the risk of colon cancer and kidney stones and might help curb the symptoms of asthma.
Could it be true?
Martha Grodrian, the outpatient dietitian with Good Samaritan Hospital in Dayton, says she often hears people say how unhealthy they believe coffee is.
People have tried to pin negative things on coffee,'' Grodrian says.The truth is it isn't as unhealthy as most people think it is.''
Coffee beans, like tea leaves, have natural nutrients that are transferred to the coffee we drink, Grodrian says.
These nutrients help inhibit certain types of cancer, she says. And for those who can't give up the fully loaded coffee version, there's some good news. The nutrients are not found in decaf coffee, only in caffeinated coffee.
I think people need to realize that coffee and caffeine are two separate things,'' Grodrian said.They work together to produce the nutrients, but one without the other does not produce those nutrients.''
It's the caffeine, really, that gives coffee a bad rap, Grodrian says.
I recommend moderation,'' she says.A cup of half-decaf and half-caffeinated supplies the healthy nutrients as well as keeping the caffeine intake low.''
People who drink coffee regularly are less likely to have kidney stones because coffee is a diuretic, says Grodrian.
``Of course, water does the same thing,'' she notes.
Betty Rudy, a respiratory therapist at Good Samaritan Hospital as well as its asthma educator, says coffee can help people with asthma.
Coffee naturally relaxes the muscles around the bronchial tubes,'' Rudy says.It works the same way caffeinated tea does.''
But she warns that coffee can't cure asthma.
It's important to understand that coffee cannot be the sole solution to asthma,'' Rudy says.It can be part of the solution, but it can't be the only solution.''
So for those who must have their daily dose of coffee, help yourself. As long as you drink in moderation, you can leave out the guilt.
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c.2003 Cox News Service
