Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Can Coffee Help Ease Muscle Pain After Exercise?

Men with sore muscles after exercise may benefit from sipping some java (caffeine). A study from the April 2009 edition of the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism evaluated 25 college-aged men. The men were given either a placebo pill or caffeine pill one hour before exercise. After exercising and taking the caffeine pill men reported significantly less quadricep muscle pain compared to the placebo pill. Both men who do consume caffeine regularly and men who normally do not drink caffeine received a similar benefit. It is believed that caffeine affects a pain-processing center in the brain and spinal cord, which may reduce the pain sensation. Further research is needed but some interesting initial results we wanted to share…


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Tuesday, August 4, 2009

How much caffeine is in coffee?

The amount of caffeine in any single serving of coffee depends on a number of factors, including the variety of coffee bean, where the bean was grown, how it was ground, manufactured and brewed and the size of the coffee mug. Full-bodied, dark roast coffee may contain less caffeine than coffee made from milder, more lightly roasted beans. In general, arabica beans tend to have less caffeine and taste milder than robusta beans.

Coffee Product Caffeine range (mg) Average caffeine (mg)
Coffee – based on 8 oz cup
Brewed 65-120 85
Instant 60-85 75
Decaff, brewed 2-4 3
Decaff, instant 1-4 3
Espresso, 1 oz cup 30-50 40

Capuccino, Latte, 1oz shot 30-50 40
Moccachino, 1 oz sho 35-55 45


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Hey! Do You Play The Lotteries?

If you play the lotteries as many of us do, you really need to use a lottery system to improve your odds to win, this is just common sense. I have used many systems and have found most are junk, but I recently found one that was developed by a University and their system was tested and proven to give you a very real 30% increase in wins. Just check it out! you will not be sorry. You can even use it while enjoying your morning cup of coffee.
Lottery System

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Is filter coffee better for you than instant coffee?

Blending, roasting and brewing all contribute to coffee’s complex chemical composition. For example, brewing creates hundreds of different compounds. Each one weighs less than 0.3 per cent of the dry weight of the coffee but may still contribute significantly to coffee’s effects, and may act in tandem to enhance the bean’s health benefits. Most instant coffee is prepared by freeze drying and as a result many of these compounds will be retained. “My sense is that there is no appreciable difference between instant and brewed coffee if they are in similar concentration,” says Martin. However, decaffeinated instant coffee has between 30-50 per cent fewer compounds than filtered or caffeinated instant coffee.

Most studies which focus on the effects of caffeine in coffee give volunteers instant decaffeinated coffee and then add caffeine to create a standard dose. This could, of course, alter the results of psychological tests, as Hindmarch point outs: ”Instant coffee doesn’t have the same taste as brewed coffee and the taste can add a lot to the psychological effect. Drinking instant coffee is not like sitting down and having a latte. “ He adds that some of coffee’s properties can be attributed to psychology. “We wouldn’t say, ‘Let’s go to the bar and have a caffeine pill,’” he says, concluding that coffee’s taste, and it’s preparation all contribute to how we react to our daily brew.

Sunday, August 2, 2009

How to store coffee?

One should always store coffee beans in a glass, air-tight container. Air and moisture are coffee's principle enemies. Glass is best because it doesn't retain the odors of the beans or the oils, which could contaminate future beans stored in the same container. However, if you use glass, make sure the container is not exposed to light, as sunlight is believed to reduce freshness.

Buy only what coffee can be consumed in a week to a week and a half from the time it was roasted. This is the only way to have truly fresh coffee.
Do not freeze ground coffee. There are two key problems here. One, the freezing will damage some of subtle tastes in the coffee and two, when the coffee is taken out the container will sweat, exposing your coffee to moisture.

Proper Care Of Your Coffee Maker

It is very important that you wash your coffee maker pot and filter container thoroughly at least once a week. Bitter oils stick to the glass container and plastic filter holder.

I used to wash the plastic filter container and rinse the glass pot. Coffee started to taste bad. When I was told to wash both thoroughly with plenty of soap the flavor improved instantly. Note: To the naked eye rinsed and soap washed pots look the same (clean that is).

Another trick is every time you use your coffeepot, unless you are making another pot right away, put a couple of drops of liquid dishwashing detergent in the pot and run hot water into the pot. Let this sit on the counter till you need it again, rinse and you are ready to go. This does not replace the weekly or twice-weekly washing but helps keep it cleaner between washings.

Some drip coffee makers require periodic cleansing with a solution of water and vinegar.

If you have a coffee/teapot, the inside of which is stained with oily brown residues - also plastic/metal coffee filters, tea strainers, and stainless steel sinks in caffeine-o-phile houses - they can be restored to a shining, brand-spanking-new state by washing in hot washing powder (detergent).

Get a large plastic jug, add 2 or 3 heaped tablespoons of Daz Automatic or Bold or whatever, and about a pint of hot water - just off the boil is the best.

Swill the jug around until the detergent is dissolved, and then pour into tea/coffeepot, and let it stand for 5 minutes, swilling the pot around occasionally, just to keep the detergent moving. Put the lid on and shake it a few times (care: slippery + hot)

Repeat as necessary. Keep it hot with a little boiling water if needed. If you have a cafetiere, disassemble it, and soak the parts in the mixture for a few minutes, agitating occasionally.

In both cases, the residue just falls off with almost no scrubbing. It does great things with overused filter machine filters, too.

Important: Rinse off all detergent afterwards, use lots of fresh water!

Quality Of Your Coffee

The quality of a brew depends on the following factors (in no particular order):

1-Time since grinding the beans.
2-Time since roasting.
3-Cleanliness with brewing equipment.
4-Bean quality (what crop, etc.)
5-Water quality.
Fact: Unless you are buying some major debris, bean quality is not very important, as compared to 1-3 and 5.

Fact: A coffee can in the supermarket often contains major debris, so be careful when you choose.
Fact: Once you have freshly roasted and ground coffee, filtered water and equipment free of oil residues from the last brew, quality of beans makes a huge difference.

NOTE: A coffee can in the supermarket often contains a blend of Arabica and robusta beans while most coffee houses sell only arabica beans. Arabica beans are usually flavor rich, while robusta beans have more caffeine, less flavor and are cheaper to produce.

When you buy coffee, whether in a coffee house or in a supermarket, you want to get 100% arabica, except for espresso blends, which may be a combination of both. My personal experience says that a 100% arabica espresso blend is better but many people (including many Italians) will disagree on this point, so go with what you like.

For freshness, in a coffee house it is better to buy popular blends that move fast, while in a supermarket vacuum packaged containers with expiration date are your best bet.

Chances are you will not get truly fresh coffee in a supermarket. This is an absolute fact if it is pre-ground. In a coffee house look for a shop that roasts in-house and ask what was roasted that day. If the person behind the counter does not know, ask to talk to someone who cares about coffee. If no one knows, go somewhere else. As a side note, it should be mentioned that coffee is at its best after 12-24 hours, so you might be interested in day-old coffee as well if you plan to brew the same day. Also, grind your own coffee. Buying fresh and then having it ground defeats the purpose. Ground coffee only lasts a few hours or one day tops.

What is the difference between Instant coffee and filtered coffee?

Instant coffee is pre brewed coffee ready to rehydrate with boiling water. It dissolves and is ready to drink with no residue.
Filter coffee is ground roasted beans through which you pour boiling water and the liquid is passed through a filter leaving only the fresh brew. The grounds stay trapped in the filter.

Two of the 50 known species of coffee beans dominate the beverage coffee industry. Coffee arabica varieties, grown primarily in Latin America, India, and Indonesia, are relatively mild in flavor and, consequently, bring a higher price. They are also relatively expensive to harvest, since individual coffee cherries must be hand picked at their peak of ripeness. Coffee robusta varieties, grown mainly in Africa, India, and Indonesia, have a harsher flavor, but they are cheaper to grow since they can be harvested over a range of ripeness and are more resistant to diseases and insects. Because of their more attractive price, the robustas are widely used in the manufacture of instant coffees.

Roasting at temperatures above 300°F (180°C) drives the moisture out of coffee beans. Beans destined for use in instant products are roasted in the same way as beans destined for home brewing, although the moisture content may be left slightly higher (about 7-10%). The beans are then ground coarsely to minimize fine particles that could impede the flow of water through the industrial brewing system.

The Manufacturing Process
Extraction•1 The manufacture of instant coffee begins with brewing coffee in highly efficient extraction equipment. Softened water is passed through a series of five to eight columns of ground coffee beans. The water first passes through several "hot" cells (284-356°F, or 140-180°C), at least some of which operate at higher-than-atmospheric pressure, for extraction of difficult components like carbohydrates. It then passes through two or more "cold" cells (about 212°F, or 100°C) for extraction of the more flavorful elements. The extract is passed through a heat exchanger to cool it to about 40°F (5°C). By the end of this cycle, the coffee extract contains 20-30% solids.
Filtration and concentration•2 After a filtering step, the brewed coffee is treated in one of several ways to increase its concentration. The goal is to create an extract that is about 40% solids. In some cases, the liquid is processed in a centrifuge to separate out the lighter water from the heavier coffee extract. Another technique is to remove water by evaporation before cooling the hot, brewed extract. A third alternative is to cool the extract enough to freeze water, and then mechanically separate the ice crystals from the coffee concentrate.
Recovery of aromatic volatiles
•3 Part of the enjoyment of making and drinking coffee is smelling the aroma. During the several steps of the manufacturing process, volatile aromatic elements are lost; they must be returned in a later step to produce an attractive instant coffee product. Aromatics can be recovered during several stages of the manufacturing process. For instance, gases released during the roasting and/or grinding processes can be collected. Ground, roasted coffee can be heated to release additional aromatic gases. Passing steam or appropriate solvents through a bed of ground, roasted coffee can strip and capture aromatic components. Aromatic oils can be expressed from spent coffee grounds by exerting pressure of at least 2,000 lb per sq in (14,000 kPa). Gases can also be distilled from coffee extract after the brewing process is complete.
•4 To preserve as much of the aroma and flavor as possible, oxygen is removed from the coffee extract. This is accomplished by foaming other gases, such as carbon dioxide or nitrogen, through the liquid before it enters the dehydration phase of the manufacturing process.
Dehydration
Two basic methods are available for converting the liquid coffee extract to a dry form. Spray drying is done at a higher temperature, which affects the taste of the final product, but it is less costly than freeze drying.

Spray drying•5 Cooled, clarified liquid concentrate is sprayed through a nozzle at the top of a drying tower. The tower is at least 75 ft (23 m) tall. Air that has been heated to about 480°F (250°C) is blown downward through the mist to evaporate the water. The air is diverted out of the tower near the bottom, and it is filtered to remove fine particles, which can be recirculated back through the tower or reintroduced during the agglomeration step. The dry coffee powder collects in the bottom of the tower before being discharged for further processing. The resulting powder contains 2-4% moisture and consists of free-flowing, non-dusty particles.
•6 Spray drying may be followed by a step to form the powder into coarser particles that will dissolve more completely in the consumer's cup. The agglomeration process basically involves rewetting the surfaces of the coffee powder particles and bringing the particles into contact, so that they will adhere to each other and form larger, more granular particles. This is accomplished by exposing the powder to steam or a fine mist, while tumbling it in the air.
Freeze drying•7 Freeze drying may be used instead of spray drying. The process involves four steps, beginning with "primary freezing." Coffee extract is chilled to a slushy consistency at about 20°F (-6°C).
•8 The prechilled slush is placed on a steel belt, trays, or drums and further cooled in a series of steps, until it reaches a temperature of -40-(-50)°F (-40-[-45]°C). Quick cooling processes (taking 30-120 seconds) result in smaller, lighter colored products, while slower processes (taking 10-180 minutes) generate larger, darker granules.
•9 The slabs of ice are broken into pieces and ground into particles of the proper size for the drying step. The particles are sieved to ensure proper sizing, and those that are too small are melted and returned to the primary freezing stage.
•10 The frozen particles are sent into a drying chamber where, under proper conditions of heat and vacuum, the ice vaporizes and is removed.
Aromatization•11 Volatile aromas that have been recovered from earlier steps in the manufacturing process are sprayed on the dry coffee particles. This may be done during the packaging operation.
Packaging
•12 Instant coffee particles are hygroscopic—that is, they absorb moisture from the air. Consequently, they must be packaged under low humidity conditions in a moisture-proof container to keep the product dry until purchased and opened by the consumer. Also, to prevent loss of aroma and flavor, the product is packaged in a low-oxygen atmosphere (usually carbon dioxide or nitrogen).

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Potential Risks of Excess Coffee Consumption

1. Sleep pattern changes
2. Increased anxiety
3. Staining of the teeth (my dentist always bugs me about this one.)
4. Effects on pregnancy and menopause
5. Cholesterol (French Press method can use trap cafestol and kahweol which may raise LDL levels that paper filters capture)


Overall, coffee offers many benefits and very little side effects to the average consumer of this beverage. You’ll reap more rewards by drinking it in moderation. That’s 1-2 cups per day. Overconsumption of caffeine does have its drawbacks.

Blood pressure and Coffee

Caffeine has previously been implicated in increasing the risk of high blood pressure; however, recent studies have not confirmed any association. In a 12-year study of 155,000 female nurses, large amounts of coffee did not induce a "risky rise in blood pressure".Previous studies had already shown statistically insignificant associations between coffee drinking and clinical hypertension. Effect of coffee on morbidity and mortality due to its effect on blood pressure is too weak, and has not been studied. Other positive and negative effects of coffee on health would be difficult confounding factors.

Coffee A Great Antioxidant

Coffee contains the anticancer compound methylpyridinium. This compound is not present in significant amounts in other food materials. Methylpyridinium is not present in raw coffee beans but is formed during the roasting process from trigonelline, which is common in raw coffee beans. It is present in both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee, and even in instant coffee.

Coffee Laxative Diuretic

Coffee is also a powerful stimulant for peristalsis and is sometimes considered to prevent constipation. However, coffee can also cause excessively loose bowel movements. The stimulative effect of coffee consumption on the colon is found in both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee.

Practitioners in alternative medicine often recommend coffee enemas for "cleansing of the colon" due to its stimulus of peristalsis, although mainstream medicine has not proved any benefits of the practice.

Contrary to popular belief, caffeine does not act as a diuretic when consumed in moderation, and does not lead to dehydration or to a water-electrolyte imbalance; current evidence suggests that caffeinated beverages contribute to the body's daily fluid requirements no differently than pure water does.

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Coffee Laxative Diuretic

Coffee is also a powerful stimulant for peristalsis and is sometimes considered to prevent constipation. However, coffee can also cause excessively loose bowel movements. The stimulative effect of coffee consumption on the colon is found in both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee.

Practitioners in alternative medicine often recommend coffee enemas for "cleansing of the colon" due to its stimulus of peristalsis, although mainstream medicine has not proved any benefits of the practice.

Contrary to popular belief, caffeine does not act as a diuretic when consumed in moderation, and does not lead to dehydration or to a water-electrolyte imbalance; current evidence suggests that caffeinated beverages contribute to the body's daily fluid requirements no differently than pure water does.

Cognitive performance

Many people drink coffee for its ability to increase short term recall and increase IQ.
Likewise, in tests of simple reaction time, choice reaction time, incidental verbal memory, and visuospatial reasoning, participants who regularly drank coffee were found to perform better on all tests, with a positive relationship between test scores and the amount of coffee regularly drunk. Elderly participants were found to have the largest effect associated with regular coffee drinking.Another study found that women over the age of 80 performed significantly better on cognitive tests if they had regularly drunk coffee over their lifetimes.

Daily caffeine 'protects brain'

Coffee may cut the risk of dementia by blocking the damage cholesterol can inflict on the body, research suggests.

The drink has already been linked to a lower risk of Alzheimer's Disease, and a study by a US team for the Journal of Neuroinflammation may explain why.

A vital barrier between the brain and the main blood supply of rabbits fed a fat-rich diet was protected in those given a caffeine supplement.

UK experts said it was the "best evidence yet" of coffee's benefits.

Caffeine is a safe and readily available drug and its ability to stabilise the blood brain barrier means it could have an important part to play in therapies against neurological disorders

Dr Jonathan Geiger
University of North Dakota

The "blood brain barrier" is a filter which protects the central nervous system from potentially harmful chemicals carried around in the rest of the bloodstream.

Other studies have shown that high levels of cholesterol in the blood can make this barrier "leaky".

Alzheimer's researchers suggest this makes the brain vulnerable to damage which can trigger or contribute to the condition.

The University of North Dakota study used the equivalent to just one daily cup of coffee in their experiments on rabbits.

After 12 weeks of a high-cholesterol diet, the blood brain barrier in those given caffeine was far more intact than in those given no caffeine.

'Safe drug'

"Caffeine appears to block several of the disruptive effects of cholesterol that make the blood-brain barrier leaky," said Dr Jonathan Geiger, who led the study.

"High levels of cholesterol are a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease, perhaps by compromising the protective nature of the blood brain barrier.

"Caffeine is a safe and readily available drug and its ability to stabilise the blood brain barrier means it could have an important part to play in therapies against neurological disorders."

A spokesman for the Alzheimer's Society said that the barrier seemed to work less efficiently in people who went on to develop Alzheimer's or suffer strokes, and the cholesterol link might explain this.

"This is the best evidence yet that caffeine equivalent to one cup of coffee a day can help protect the brain against cholesterol.

"In addition to its effect on the vascular system, elevated cholesterol levels also cause problems with the blood brain barrier."

She called for more research into whether the same effect could be seen in humans.

Boost to Athleticism

It's also caffeine -- and not coffee, per se -- that makes java a powerful aid in enhancing athletic endurance and performance, says physiologist and longtime coffee researcher Terry Graham, PhD, of the University of Guelph in Canada. So powerful, in fact, that until recently, caffeine in coffee or other forms was deemed a "controlled" substance by the Olympic Games Committee, meaning that it could be consumed only in small, designated amounts by competing athletes.

"What caffeine likely does is stimulate the brain and nervous system to do things differently," he tells WebMD. "That may include signaling you to ignore fatigue or recruit extra units of muscle for intense athletic performance. Caffeine may even have a direct effect on muscles themselves, causing them to produce a stronger contraction. But what's amazing about it is that unlike some performance-enhancing manipulation some athletes do that are specific for strength or sprinting or endurance, studies show that caffeine positively enhances all of these things."

How does this brew affect growing minds and bodies? Very nicely, it seems, says DePaulis. Coffee, as you probably know, makes you more alert, which can boost concentration. But claims that it improves a child's academic performance can be exaggerated. Coffee-drinking kids may do better on school tests because they're more awake, but most task-to-task lab studies suggest that coffee doesn't really improve mental performance, says DePaulis.

But it helps kids' minds in another way. "There recently was a study from Brazil finding that children who drink coffee with milk each day are less likely to have depression than other children," he tells WebMD. "In fact, no studies show that coffee in reasonable amounts is in any way harmful to children."

On the flip side, it's clear that coffee isn't for everyone. Its legendary jolt in excess doses -- that is, more than whatever your individual body can tolerate -- can increase nervousness, hand trembling, and cause rapid heartbeat. Coffee may also raise cholesterol levels in some people and may contribute to artery clogging. But most recent large studies show no significant adverse effects on most healthy people, although pregnant women, heart patients, and those at risk for osteoporosis may still be advised to limit or avoid coffee.

Coffee: The New Health Food?

Coffee, the much maligned but undoubtedly beloved beverage, just made headlines for possibly cutting the risk of the latest disease epidemic, type 2 diabetes. And the real news seems to be that the more you drink, the better.

Reducing Disease Risk
After analyzing data on 126,000 people for as long as 18 years, Harvard researchers calculate that compared with not partaking in America's favorite morning drink, downing one to three cups of caffeinated coffee daily can reduce diabetes risk by single digits. But having six cups or more each day slashed men's risk by 54% and women's by 30% over java avoiders.

Though the scientists give the customary "more research is needed" before they recommend you do overtime at Starbuck's to specifically prevent diabetes, their findings are very similar to those in a less-publicized Dutch study. And perhaps more importantly, it's the latest of hundreds of studies suggesting that coffee may be something of a health food -- especially in higher amounts.

In recent decades, some 19,000 studies have been done examining coffee's impact on health. And for the most part, their results are as pleasing as a gulp of freshly brewed Breakfast Blend for the 108 million Americans who routinely enjoy this traditionally morning -- and increasingly daylong -- ritual. In practical terms, regular coffee drinkers include the majority of U.S. adults and a growing number of children.

"Overall, the research shows that coffee is far more healthful than it is harmful," says Tomas DePaulis, PhD, research scientist at Vanderbilt University's Institute for Coffee Studies, which conducts its own medical research and tracks coffee studies from around the world. "For most people, very little bad comes from drinking it, but a lot of good."

Consider this: At least six studies indicate that people who drink coffee on a regular basis are up to 80% less likely to develop Parkinson's, with three showing the more they drink, the lower the risk. Other research shows that compared to not drinking coffee, at least two cups daily can translate to a 25% reduced risk of colon cancer, an 80% drop in liver cirrhosis risk, and nearly half the risk of gallstones.

Coffee even offsets some of the damage caused by other vices, some research indicates. "People who smoke and are heavy drinkers have less heart disease and liver damage when they regularly consume large amounts of coffee compared to those who don't," says DePaulis.

There's also some evidence that coffee may help manage asthma and even control attacks when medication is unavailable, stop a headache, boost mood, and even prevent cavities.

Top Nutrition Facts for Coffee

Here’s some interesting nutrition facts for coffee that may be of interest to you. Especially those on a health quest which includes the bodybuilder looking to build muscle.

Most people think of coffee as the beverage to get your caffeeine addition taken care of for the day. Worldwide numbers run as high at 85% of all caffeeine consumed comes from coffee. This figure alone makes the #1 reason people drink coffee is for stimulation.

The actual caffeine content can vary greatly depending on the beans and method of brewing used. But here’s a quick breakdown of the average caffeine in coffee. If you need more nutrition facts for coffee on a particular brand or coffee house creation, it’s best to check out that vendor’s website. Adding in sugars and additional shots can change your standard cup of joe into something entirely different.

Average Caffeine Content in Coffee:

* Drip coffee: 115–175 mg
* Espresso: 100 mg
* Brewed: 80–135 mg
* Instant: 65–100 mg
* Decaf, brewed: 3–4 mg
* Decaf, instant: 2–3 mg

Possible Benefits of Drinking Coffee (in no particular order):

1. Reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease
2. Reduced risk of gallstone disease
3. Reduced risk of Parkinson’s disease (80% less likely to develop for those regular coffee consumers)
4. Enhanced cognitive performance
5. Analgesic enhancement (increases the effectiveness of certain types of pain killers)
6. Reduced risk of Type 2 Diabetes
7. Antioxidants in coffee (many people get their only source of antioxidants from coffee)
8. Cardioprotective
9. Reduced risk of cancer (oral, esophageal, and pharyngeal cancer)
10. Reduced asthma attacks

Potential Risks of Excess Coffee Consumption:

1. Sleep pattern changes
2. Increased anxiety
3. Staining of the teeth (my dentist always bugs me about this one.)
4. Effects on pregnancy and menopause
5. Cholesterol (French Press method can use trap cafestol and kahweol which may raise LDL levels that paper filters capture)


Overall, coffee offers many benefits and very little side effects to the average consumer of this beverage. You’ll reap more rewards by drinking it in moderation. That’s 1-2 cups per day. Overconsumption of caffeine does have its drawbacks.