Coffee: Healthy?

I have loved drinking coffee most of my life. As I am sure most of us have or we all just depend upon caffeine to give us our morning, mid afternoon jolts to get us through the day.

For a delicious beverage that most of us would drink regardless of whether it was healthy or not, that's a pretty impressive list.

But here's where things get complicated: can you get all of these health benefits from instant coffee, or is ground coffee the be-all and end-all when it comes to your health?

Instant

For those of you who like the extra kick in the morning freeze dried coffee would not be your preference. A lot of the freeze dried (instant) coffees have a bitter taste that can sometimes be unpleasant. Instant coffee is also faster, cheaper and easier to make than regular coffee.

Instant coffee is high in acrylamide, a chemical compound that has been shown to cause cancer in animals. According to the Food and Drug Administration, acrylamide can also cause nerve damage. Acrylamide happens naturally in certain foods during high-temperature heating. Because the presence of acrylamide in food wasn’t discovered until 2002, scientists still don’t know the full extent of its dangers. The amount of acrylamide is measured in ppb, or parts-per-billion. Certain brands and types of instant coffee have very high amounts, compared with ground coffee.

However, regular and instant coffees have both been proven to have beneficial health rewards. There is a list of good things Men and women who drink 3 to 5 cups a day  will decrease the risk of some breast cancers, diabetes, increase blood circulation, and improves blood sugar.

Ground Coffee

The differences between instant and ground coffee are pretty negligible, but there may be a small difference in terms of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and caffeine levels
One cup of instant coffee contains 60-80mg of caffeine. On the other hand, a ground or brewed coffee contains 60-120mg of caffeine per cup. More caffeine isn't necessarily always a good thing however, as it will impact each individual differently

The positive effects of caffeine include improved physical and cognitive performance, increased mental alertness and decreased fatigue
On the other hand, the negative effects of caffeine include insomnia, jitteriness, nervousness, irritability, rapid heart rate and headaches.

So?

If you have high cholesterol or you are caffeine sensitive, pregnant or a child (or a parent of one), you should pay attention to coffee drinking.

How many coffees should you drink a day? The answer – like pretty much all health questions – is "it depends": your tolerance to caffeine is decided by a huge number of factors including the type of coffee you're drinking, how often you drink it, how big you are, what medications you take and even your genetics.

Reasonable amounts (1-6 cups a day) coffee can be good for you. It can prevent serious diseases, boost your mind and muscles, and even help you with weight loss. Remember, as long as you drink toxin free, speciality coffee and brew it with care, you can and should be enjoying it knowing it's good for you.