Did You Ever Think of Coffee as a Healing Herb? Part II: Warnings

In an earlier article [Part I: Benefits], I wrote about the health benefits of moderate coffee drinking. Coffee is not all good, however, despite what you might think as you stumble around the kitchen trying to get that first morning cup of coffee. Once again, the culprit is caffeine. The real harm that this drug can do might surprise you, though.

Interestingly, most of the warnings that we have heard over the years regarding the harm that coffee; i.e., caffeine, can do have either been completely debunked or at least modified. For example, coffee drinking was thought to contribute to high blood pressure and heart disease. True, if you have never drank coffee and have that first cup, there will be a jump in your blood pressure. This is only temporary, though; and your blood pressure will return to normal in a short period of time. Various studies, however, have shown that moderate coffee consumption will not cause blood pressure to rise in those who have normal blood pressure. (Of course, if you already have high blood pressure and are on medication, you will want to limit your coffee intake, as you would anything containing caffeine.) In regard to heart disease, Harvard studies indicate that drinking up to as many as six cups of coffee per day does not increase the risk of developing heart disease.

At one point in time, a Scandinavian study did show that drinking coffee raised cholesterol levels. The coffee, however, was boiled. It turns out that the way coffee is prepared determines the amount of caffeine each cup will contain. Espresso, for example, has a whopping 350 milligrams of caffeine. (No wonder espresso is served in such little cups.) Drip coffee, on the other hand, has 100-150 milligrams of caffeine, while instant coffee only has about 65 milligrams. In addition, boiling releases harmful compounds in the coffee that can lead to a rise in cholesterol levels. Using the drip method of making coffee was found to inhibit the release of these same compounds, resulting in little if any change in the cholesterol levels of the coffee drinkers.

Now, you may ask, how is coffee really all that harmful? If you are a woman, pay attention.

Fertility
If you are having trouble getting pregnant, consider how much coffee you are drinking. Johns Hopkins University conducted a study, which found that the more coffee a woman drank, the longer it took her to get pregnant. In fact, just drinking three cups of coffee per day can reduce a woman's ability to get pregnant by 26 percent. Once again, it is apparently the caffeine that causes the problem, meaning that you might want to cut out not just coffee but anything else containing caffeine, as well.

Premenstrual Syndrome
If you have severe PMS symptoms, cut out the coffee. Even just 2-4 cups per day can increase the symptoms by five times that of non-coffee drinkers.

Fibrocystic disease
If you have fibrocystic disease; i.e., benign lumps in the breasts, coffee -- indeed anything that contains caffeine -- is not your friend. Excessive consumption of coffee can cause these non-cancerous lumps to enlarge and become quite painful. Limit your intake of coffee. If that does not cause the lumps to shrink and the pain to subside, you might want to consider switching to decaf.

Stress incontinence
Women, and older women in particular, may find themselves suffering from stress incontinence. This is urine leakage -- Whoopi Goldberg on The View calls it a "spritz" -- that can happen when you cough, laugh, or sneeze. It seems that drinking coffee can contribute to a weakening of the muscles that hold the urethra closed. Women who drink 5 cups of coffee per day have been shown to suffer from this condition more than two times that of women who consume very little or no coffee.

Coffee has become one of the most popular beverages in the United States. If you cannot go without your morning cup of coffee, that is fine. However, moderation is the key. Try to limit your consumption to only a cup or two per day. (By the way, I said a cup or two not a pot or two!)

Reference:

Castleman, Michael. The New Healing Herbs. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Inc., 2009.