coffee_from_the_ground_up must Coffee from the ground up Chicago Sun-Times 3jun00 [ Coffee and Your Health below] When it first reached Europe early in the 17th century, the already centuries-old beverage sparked what we would today describe as a health_scare. The common_folk loved the tasty new drink. But Roman Catholic clergymen condemned it as the "bitter invention of Satan." The debate got so hot, Pope Clement VIII eventually stepped in. He took a few sips and immediately became a coffee man--even baptizing it and declaring it a Christian beverage. "This Satan's drink is so delicious it would be a pity to let infidels have exclusive use of it," he supposedly said. Nearly 400 years later, the brouhaha is still brewing. Coffee is the nation's No_1_hot_drink --in the coffee_shops and the research labs. A search of a National_Library_of_Medicine database found at least 17,450 scientific papers and articles dealing with coffee, caffeine and related topics have been written since 1966. But increasingly, researchers are agreeing with old Pope Clement and minimizing the risks of a cup of joe and even suggesting it could be good for some people. You might say they are finding the old fears have no grounds. "My reading of the literature suggests that there is no compelling evidence that coffee in moderation does any harm for most people," said Peter Martin, head of the Institute for Coffee Studies, a research center at Vanderbilt_University funded by coffee-producing nations. "However, there are population studies that show certain beneficial effects for certain populations." The latest boost to coffee's image came last month, when scientists at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Honolulu released a study showing coffee drinking might help prevent Parkinson's disease. Previous studies have suggested coffee could help with such diverse problems as depression, colorectal cancer and cirrhosis of the liver. Martin said his institute was formed to figure out how coffee provides such benefits. He said one of the problems is much research treats coffee and caffeine as the same--even though coffee is made up of hundreds of chemicals. The Hawaii Parkinson's study did not make that mistake, said Paul Carvey, an independent researcher in the field and chairman of pharmacology at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center. It included other products with caffeine, such as chocolate, soft drinks and pills, and concluded it was caffeine that helped prevent Parkinson's. "This is very, very strong evidence," said Carvey. The latest good news comes as no surprise to coffee trade groups, which have been disputing the negative charges against the drink for decades. "We are finding more and more papers demonstrating that not only is it safe, but it has a positive impact on health," said Robert Nelson, president of the National_Coffee_Association. "People have been drinking coffee for hundreds of years. And I think that alone demonstrates that consumption of coffee is safe." An Arab goatherd named Kaldi is generally credited with discovering coffee. Legend has it his flock failed to come home one night in about 850 after grazing in the Ethiopian highlands. Kaldi investigated the next morning and found the goats dancing around an evergreen shrub with red berries. Kaldi tried the berries himself, and pretty soon he was dancing too. As the story goes, the wide-eyed goatherd eagerly shared his discovery with some local monks. They roasted the berries on a fire, put them in water and suddenly were finding it easier staying awake during all-night prayer sessions. It is lost to history how long it took for an opposing monastery to release a study warning of the perils of the newfound beverage. And even now, with all the positive press coffee is receiving, no researchers are advising people to start mainlining Starbucks. And some experts still have reservations about coffee. "We certainly have concerns," said Michael F. Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest. "People need to understand that it is not a horribly dangerous drug, but that it is a drug that is not entirely benign." Jacobson worries about the addictive nature of caffeine, people downing coffee in place of nutritional drinks and caffeine's effects on pregnant women--pointing to studies that suggest coffee increases the risk of miscarriages. And the Food and Drug Administration still recommends pregnant women either avoid or moderate their consumption of caffeine. Best-selling self-help author Dr. Michael Roizen goes easier on coffee. In his book RealAge: Are You as Young as You Can Be?, Roizen, chairman of anesthesia and critical care at the University of Chicago, identified 127 lifestyle choices that he argues affect a person's rate of aging. Coffee and caffeine are not among them. "Bottom line is, it doesn't have any effect," said Roizen, an admitted coffee guzzler. "It's like a whole bunch of other things in life. If you enjoy it, do it. If you don't, don't. But don't worry about it." But James Wyatt, a clinical psychologist who studies sleep disorders at Rush, warns that much is still unknown about coffee--particularly how caffeine keeps people awake and alert, how it alters moods and how it affects children. "It's like any other substance that acts on the body," he said. "There are positive effects, potential risks and many unknowns." So, in the end, more research is needed? "Absolutely." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COFFEE AND YOUR HEALTH Nothing is carved in stone when it comes to coffee research. But here is the current scientific thinking on how coffee--generally caffeine--affects us. HEAD: Moderate coffee drinking, up to three cups, improves intellectual performance--but only if you are fatigued. Studies also suggest caffeine or coffee could help prevent the neurodegenerative Parkinson's Disease, inhibit alcoholics' craving to drink, help migraine sufferers, relieve depression and make depressed people less likely to commit suicide. But caffeine also interferes with sleep and withdrawl can spark headaches. Research also suggests caffeine can trigger panic attacks in people who are susceptible to them. HEART: Studies conflict on whether caffeine is a risk factor in coronary heart disease. The American Heart Association considers the overall results inconsistent, but does not consider moderate coffee drinking harmful. LUNGS: Coffee contains the chemical theophylline, which has been found to help asthmatics breathe. STOMACH: Coffee and caffeine are believed to aggravate stomach ulcers and trigger heartburn in some people. GALL BLADDER: Harvard University researchers last year found that men who drank caffeinated coffee were less likely to have gallstones. LIVER: One recent study suggests coffee could help halt cirrhosis of the liver among heavy drinkers of alcohol. KIDNEYS: Some research suggests coffee can serve as an alarm for diabetics, creating symptoms that warn them in advance when they are in danger of suffering a coma from low blood sugar. But caffeine also can lead to dehydration. BONES: Recent studies suggest coffee can cause bone loss in some postmenopausal women, leading to osteoporosis and fractures. MUSCLES: Because caffeine can cause tremors, it can make tasks involving delicate muscle coordination--such as needlepoint--more difficult. But evidence also suggests it can prevent fatigue of the skeletal muscles and make it easier to do larger tasks, such as cross-country skiing, housework or gardening. CANCER: Some studies suggest coffee can actually ward off cancer--especially in the colon and rectum. Studies in the 1980s that linked coffee to pancreatic cancer and breast cancer have been pretty much debunked. PREGNANCY: A study last year found pregnant women who drink more than five cups of coffee a day were more likely to have miscarriages. But the study found no such link for more moderate consumption. Other studies produced conflicting results. WITHDRAWL: Caffeine withdrawl can cause headaches, drowsiness, impaired concentration, mild depression, irritability and even vomiting. Sources: Interviews with researchers; ``Goodman & Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics (Ninth Edition), ``Drug Action in the Central Nervous System'' by Paul M. Carvey; Institute for Coffee Studies at Vanderbilt University; Consumer Reports and news accounts. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nader calls for referee on studies Consumer advocate Ralph Nader is not familiar with the latest study on coffee, but he said a referee is needed to make sense of all the conflicting reports on various foods and drugs. "You can always be certain if there is a report saying something is hazardous in some medical school study, two more years later, they'll turn it around," Nader said. "There ought to be a referee on these things because you know when you add it all up--if you take this you have a 28 percent less chance of colon cancer or if you don't eat this it is 30 percent more likely--after a while you run out of percentages. They need to be correlated." Nader was asked about the Parkinson's coffee study at a press conference promoting his run for president as a Green Party candidate. "I'm sure it helps the coffee business," he said. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE PUSHERS. IT DIDN'T HURT THEM TOO MUCH Joe DiMaggio To older folks, he was the Yankee Clipper, Joltin' Joe and one of Marilyn Monroe's ex's. But to Baby Boomers he was Mr. Coffee, best known for pitching the filter drip coffeemakers. He died last year at the age of 84. Mrs. Olson She solved every domestic crisis with a cup of Folgers. Actress Virginia Christine, who played the character for 21 years, died in 1996 at age 76. She was of Swedish descent, but the accent was phoney. Juan Valdez The famous cafetero--Colombian coffee farmer--is still picking beans, hang-gliding and lurking in supermarkets. Not bad for a guy created by an ad agency in 1959. Coffee farmer Carlos Sanchez has played him since 1969, the second to portray the symbol of the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- HOW TO BREW A PERFECT CUP OF COFFEE 1. Cool beans: Buy good coffee. Colombian scores high in taste tests. Buy small amounts and store in a cool, dark place. Do not refrigerate. 2. Cold water: Use bottled or filtered if the tap water tastes bad. 3. Steady hand: Use one to two level tablespoons of ground coffee for each six ounce cup of coffee. 4. Hot coffee: After brewing, pour in a warmed mug to maintain ideal temperature of 180 to 185 degrees. 5. Ban the burn: Store extra coffee in an insulated thermos rather than on burner plate if you plan to let coffee sit for more than 20 minutes. 6. Clean machine: Wash equipment with hot water and towel after use. Sources: National Coffee Association, National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia, Consumer Reports -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WARM THAT UP FOR YOU? Nearly eight of ten adult Americans drank coffee at least once in the last year, up from seven of ten in 1996. But overall, per capita coffee consumption dried up a bit over the last 40 years. Here is the average number of cups of coffee each American consumes a day, from the peak of consumption in 1962 to today. 1962: 3.12 1970: 2.57 1975: 2.2 1980: 2.02 1985: 1.83 1990: 1.73 1995: 1.67 2000: 1.66 http://www.mindfully.org/Food/Coffee.htm 091225 what's it to you? who go blather from