Is coffee a connection to good health?

Harvard Heart Letter

October 14, 2008

Some coffee drinkers worry that theirs is a bad habit - not nearly on a par with smoking but in that general direction. Those worries are groundless. In the past few years, coffee drinking has been shown to be safe for heart attack survivors. It offers some protection against type 2 diabetes and gallstones. It is not linked to the development of heart disease.

Now, in the largest, longest and most comprehensive study to date, overall death rates among nonsmoking coffee drinkers were no higher than they were among nonsmokers who didn't drink coffee, and may even have been a touch lower (Annals of Internal Medicine, June 17, 2008).

When drunk black and bitter, coffee is a calorie-free beverage brimming with antioxidants. It eases artery-damaging inflammation and delivers a host of substances that help the body regulate blood sugar and dissolve gallstones.

Of course, coffee isn't a health food. The caffeine it contains is addictive. In some people, it causes the occasional missed or extra heartbeat or a speedup in the heart's rhythm. Espresso and other unfiltered coffee can slightly increase the level of harmful LDL cholesterol. But up to a few cups a day of regular coffee - we don't include Frappuccinos or other coffee-flavored sweets in this category - is fine for you.

...so come on in: shop, let us roast for you, and enjoy a fresh cup of Caffe-Amante Gourmet Coffee!!!