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The Health Benefits of Coffee
A Simple Cup of Coffee
A simple cup of coffee is a powerful thing! It can mend fences and save friendships. They say that the pen is mightier than the sword, but it could be that a simple cup of coffee is more powerful than both of them put together.
It had been a tough week in the neighborhood. It was cold, and the kids had been underfoot indoors at one house or the other all week. My neighbor and I had been close friends for several years, but our relationship had gotten seriously strained over this past week. She had called me twice to complain about how my Bobby was tormenting her Shawn. She had sent him home, too, more than twice.
Now, the boys played at my house as often as they played at her house, and I was fully aware of the fact that her Shawn wasn't the little darling that she thought he was. Our relationship and our friendship were nearing the breaking point; there really wasn't much doubt about it.
On Thursday morning, I took the boys to the "Mother's Day Out" program at a nearby local church for the morning. It was my neighbor's turn to drive, but I offered to run the "taxi" service and she accepted.
When I returned from dropping the boys off, I looked across the street at my neighbor's house, and it had the deserted look that most homes have during midwinter. In fact, it looked sad. I looked at the pile of laundry that was waiting for my attention. I looked at the as-yet-unmade beds. Then I looked at my coffee maker and made the decision. I picked up the phone and called my neighbor.
I said, "I know we both have a long list of things that we need to do while the little darlings are gone, but how about coming over for a cup of coffee?" She was there almost before I had time to hang up the phone. We drank a cup of coffee, and we talked about how we were both so tired of being cooped up with rowdy kids. We laughed and we cried, and we mended our broken fences and saved our friendship -- all over one simple cup of coffee.
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Wake Up and Smell the Coffee
Coffee To Go
Has anybody seen those old "Leave it to Beaver" reruns on late night TV? There is June (the mother) in full makeup and high heels without a hair out of place serving breakfast to her family at the breakfast table. Ward, the father, wearing a suit and tie, all showered and shaved, and the two boys are gathered around the breakfast table for their morning meal. June pours coffee from a coffee carafe into Ward's waiting coffee cup as they discuss their upcoming day. It just cracks me up! I'm sitting there thinking, "Yeah…right! When pigs fly!"
I figure most households operate pretty much like mine does. The words "busy, hectic and insane," come to mind. Mornings are done on the fly. Breakfast is a bowl of cold cereal (every man, woman, and child for themselves) and coffee is "to go" as we all rush around trying to get to work and school on time. My wife and I each have our own "to-go" spillproof mug so that we can drink our morning coffee as we drive.
And, yes, some mornings we have to stop by the nearest McDonalds and BUY a coffee to go if we have coffee at all because SOMEBODY forgot to set the automatic timer on the automatic coffee maker the night before.
Fortunately, technology caught up with "real life," and those well-insulated, spillproof coffee mugs made of unbreakable space-age materials are
available. I'd hate to try to drink my coffee out of the fine china coffee cup like Ward used while I drive the minivan loaded with kids through rush hour traffic while organizing the family schedule (soccer practice, piano lessons, etc.) that is more complicated than a rocket launch at NASA.
Coffee to go is a necessity in our busy world. It's either coffee to go, or no coffee at all. |
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Is Coffee Good or Bad for You?
The question of whether coffee is good for humans or bad for humans all depends upon which of the many reports, research papers, and studies that you choose to believe. There has been a great deal of research, but certainly no consensus of agreement on the subject.
Some studies, reports, and research suggest that because coffee is a stimulant, and because it has been proven to be somewhat addictive, it is a bad thing. Coffee does increase the heart rate, but there has never been any proof of any kind that coffee contributes to heart disease or causes heart attacks. Coffee does stimulate the kidneys, but there has never been any proof that it contributes to kidney disease.
Other studies, reports, and research suggest that because coffee is a stimulant, it is a very good thing. Coffee is known to "relieve boredom, decrease depression, increase alertness, increase physical stamina, and increase performance on boring or repetitive tasks." Well, those things sound like rather positive aspects.
It is generally agreed that coffee -- or rather, the caffeine in coffee -- is somewhat addictive. Going "cold turkey" when giving up caffeine can cause some withdrawal symptoms, such as headache. Headache is the most common caffeine withdrawal symptom, but another symptom is grouchiness, which is not conducive to healthy personal relationships.
The bottom line here is that there just isn't any scientific information that firmly establishes whether coffee is good for you or bad for you. "Moderation in all things" is a good motto to live by. Drinking 25 cups of anything wouldn't likely be conducive to good health unless it was just pure water. Drink your coffee and enjoy every sip -- just don't drink too much of it.
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