Coffee is said by some to be the second most consumed beverage in the world—behind water. Every day, 52 percent of Americans older than eighteen (~100 million people) drink a cup of coffee, and another 30 percent consume coffee occasionally. Among coffee drinkers, one source reports that an average of 3.2 cups, each containing 9 oz. of coffee, are consumed daily.
What we know about the discovery of coffee is based upon legend. In one popular rendition, a ninth-century Arabian goatherd named Kaldi observed his goats merrily running instead of sleeping after feeding on coffee plant berries. By the fifteenth century, berries were brewed to prepare coffee. A century later, coffee was exported from the Ottoman Empire, and thousands of coffeehouses sprang up throughout Europe in the 1600s.
Early medical authorities were polarized in their assessment of coffee’s benefits and hazards. Supporters claimed that it relieved kidney stones, gout, and migraine headaches, alleviated hangovers, promoted digestion, strengthened the heart and lungs, and was effective against the bubonic plague. Detractors emphasized that it caused loss of sexual desire, impotence, and weight loss leading to emaciation.
We have had almost 400 years of extensive experience sorting out and evaluating the health vs. hazard claims for coffee. What do we now believe? Coffee decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, breast and liver cancer, and cirrhosis of the liver. It increases mental alertness, improves reaction time, and elevates the mood. On the other hand, coffee increases the risk of osteoporosis and first trimester miscarriages. Moderate consumption is unrelated to the risk of heart disease, colon and rectal cancer, and overall mortality.
What caveats should you consider when evaluating these and other findings? Coffee contains caffeine and hundreds of other chemicals that might contribute to its effects (many of which are dose dependent), and not all coffees contain the same ingredients and proportions. Of critical importance to consider: How many cups of coffee were consumed daily? Were the findings obtained in human or animal subjects? If history is a guide, these findings will likely change with time.
SEE ALSO Tea (c. 2737 BCE), Caffeine (1819).
Coffee beans, which rank among the world’s most widely traded commodities, are grown on small trees cultivated in more than seventy countries, primarily in Latin America, Southeast Asia, and South Asia. The red or purple fruits generally contain two seeds referred to as coffee beans.