coffee

Spiders Blown Away! Look at the effect of different drugs on the performance of spiders spinning their webs, according to NASA research reported in New Scientist, 27 April 1995. Spiders on marijuana are too laid back to finish the job, while those dosed with the sedative chloral hydrate drop off to sleep before they can […] The post Caffeine Toxicity Surprisingly More Toxic Than Drugs appeared first on Dr. Keith Scott-Mumby.

But That’s Not All… (part 1 of this article is here if you missed it…) Coffee and hot tea consumption were found to be protective against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).[35] While it remains unclear whether the beverages have systemic antimicrobial activity, study participants who reported any consumption of either were approximately half as likely to have MRSA in their nasal passages. The Downside I already mentioned the negative effect on blood pressure and Huntington’s chorea. There are more negatives, notably the tendency of caffeine to cause or worsen anxiety, insomnia, and tremor and potentially elevate glaucoma risk.[38] Also, given the potential severity of symptoms, caffeine withdrawal syndrome is under consideration for inclusion in the forthcoming DSM-5.[39] Am I Saying Start Drinking Coffee?

But That’s Not All… (part 1 of this article is here if you missed it…) Coffee and hot tea consumption were found to be protective against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).[35] While it remains unclear whether the beverages have systemic antimicrobial activity, study participants who reported any consumption of either were approximately half as likely to have MRSA in their nasal passages. The Downside I already mentioned the negative effect on blood pressure and Huntington’s chorea. There are more negatives, notably the tendency of caffeine to cause or worsen anxiety, insomnia, and tremor and potentially elevate glaucoma risk.[38] Also, given the potential severity of symptoms, caffeine withdrawal syndrome is under consideration for inclusion in the forthcoming DSM-5.[39] Am I Saying Start Drinking Coffee?

Caffeine gets a hard rap sometimes; and coffee isn’t supposed to be a health food! However, facts is facts (don’t write to me about my grammar, thank you). There is a large bunch of studies, which keeps growing, showing coffee to have benefits or protect from a wide variety of illnesses, from Alzheimer’s to cancer. Or more exactly, coffee-drinkers benefit and seem to suffer less than tea or juice only drinkers. So it isn’t necessarily cause and effect—it might mean coffee drinkers have some other health benefit, that leads them to drink more coffee than average. So coffee drinkers do well, but not because they drink coffee. That’s an important caveat. That said, here we go:

Caffeine gets a hard rap sometimes; and coffee isn’t supposed to be a health food! However, facts is facts (don’t write to me about my grammar, thank you). There is a large bunch of studies, which keeps growing, showing coffee to have benefits or protect from a wide variety of illnesses, from Alzheimer’s to cancer. Or more exactly, coffee-drinkers benefit and seem to suffer less than tea or juice only drinkers. So it isn’t necessarily cause and effect—it might mean coffee drinkers have some other health benefit, that leads them to drink more coffee than average. So coffee drinkers do well, but not because they drink coffee. That’s an important caveat. That said, here we go: