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I get asked about coffee by patients so often that I thought it was about time to write an article thoroughly examining it from all angles. Unlike stronger recreational drugs, I think the potential drawbacks of coffee are usually fairly mild. But if you endeavor to achieve great health – and especially if you’re struggling with a health problem – it’s worth being honest with yourself about whether coffee is contributing to or detracting from this goal.
What’s Good About Coffee
So many people worldwide depend on coffee to wake them up, get them motivated, make them feel sharp, promote digestion, and even lift them out of mild depression. Is that so bad? Well, depending on your constitution, maybe not.
Scientific research has shown that coffee consumption appears to reduce one’s risk of developing type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, and colorectal cancer. One constituent that’s especially interesting and abundant in coffee is called chlorogenic acid. Chlorogenic acid is an antioxidant, it seems to slow glucose release after eating (so it may help maintain stable blood sugar), it promotes bile secretion, reduces gallstone formation, maybe reduces the incidence of liver disease, and probably promotes weight loss. Chlorogenic acid is much more abundant in green (unroasted) coffee beans than the roasted ones, which has led to the fad of “green coffee extract” for weight loss.
A drawback of chlorogenic acid is that it may interfere with the absorption of certain minerals – namely zinc and iron – from the intestines. For this reason, it may be best to consume coffee or take green coffee extracts a few hours apart from food. Or consider taking extra zinc (or a multimineral supplement). I don’t generally recommend consuming iron supplements, though, unless you have a known iron deficiency. Incidentally, coffee isn’t the only thing that has the potential to interfere with iron absorption. Many compounds (knows as polyphenols or monomeric flavonoids) can do this, and they’re found in black tea, peppermint, chamomile, chocolate, and other natural foods and drinks.
Due to its flavor, coffee acts as a digestive bitter. Like other bitters, it tends to “activate” the digestive system, stimulating intestinal movement and the production of gastric juices. However, if you add cream and sugar to it – diminishing its bitterness – you probably diminish its value as a digestive stimulant, too.
What’s Bad About Coffee
The energy-boosting, mind-sharpening effects of coffee result from the fact that it’s chock full of vitamins, minerals, and everything else our bodies need for good nutrition. Every cup is like consuming a complete, balanced meal.
Of course, the truth is almost the opposite. Coffee is a stimulant. And we’re stimulant addicts. Let’s just be real about that. The first thing I want to know when a patient tells me about their coffee habit is, “How would you feel without coffee?” If the answer is “tired” or “withdrawn” or “constipated” or anything else unpleasant, then I think it’s worth considering whether or not coffee is the best remedy. There are dozens of possible causes of fatigue, and most of them are not coffee deficiency. These issues are best addressed in a more direct, non-coffee way. If coffee consumption masks them, it means putting off a real solution.
Fatigue: If someone is fatigued because of depletion – and often I think of adrenal depletion (the endocrine glands most directly involved in our stress response) – then coffee is specifically a bad idea. Stimulants just drain these glands of what little energy they have left, and make recovery impossible. Adrenal deficiency can lead to reduced immune function, lightheadedness, sleep problems, anxiety and depression, inflammation, hypoglycemia, and other symptoms. If this sounds like you, see a naturally oriented healthcare provider, and meanwhile, try quitting coffee.
Hypertension: Coffee can raise blood pressure, especially in people who consume a lot of it. Regular coffee drinkers tend to develop some tolerance to this effect.
Digestive Upset: The combination of coffee’s acids, its bitterness, and its strong stimulating effects can cause digestive discomfort, nausea, acid reflux, diarrhea, and exacerbation of ulcers in certain individuals. Those with irritable or inflammatory bowel disorders, ulcers, or GERD should be especially cautious with coffee.
Sleep Problems: Despite our visceral understanding of what coffee does to us, many folks with bad sleep don’t consider that their coffee might be part of the problem. If sleep doesn’t come easily and deeply for you, you should at least avoid coffee after noon. Sometimes even just a morning cuppa is enough to disturb our slumber.
Anxiety: As with insomnia, it shouldn’t be surprising that stimulation can contribute to anxiety. Yet most of my anxious patients consume it and nearly all of them improve when they quit.
If you have insomnia, anxiety, or digestive upset, come up with a scale to evaluate how bad it is, then quit coffee and re-rate it after a couple weeks. When coffee contributes to these problems, it’s due to overstimulation. Frequently, as with adrenal fatigue, there’s a background of “diminished buffer.” It’s like running high voltage electricity through thin wires with not much insulation on them. It’s worthwhile to consider what kind of wiring you have, meaning, how sensitive your nervous system is to stimulation. Thin, stressed, and underslept people tend to be less able than others to handle caffeine and other stimulants well.
Dyslipidemia: Coffee can raise LDL and total cholesterol when consumed in large amounts. However, this may be meaningless in terms of the actual health risk it represents. Also, this effect is thought to be mainly due to chemicals that are very effectively removed with a paper filter.
Inflammation: A 2004 study examined numerous markers of inflammation in the blood of over 3000 Greek men and women. It found that in people who consumed over 200 milliliters of coffee a day (that’s about 6.75 ounces), all indicators of inflammation increased. The funny part is that in their conclusion, they wrote, “A relation exists between moderate-to-high coffee consumption and increased inflammation process.” Moderate-to-high coffee consumption?! Clearly they’ve never been to the United States.
Bone Weakness: High doses seem to be associated with increased osteoporosis and hip fracture in older women.
Dehydration: Coffee is a diuretic – it promotes urination. Medically speaking, sometimes there’s a need for a diuretic, but for most people, this property of coffee just means an increased risk of dehydration. Drink extra water to make up for this effect of coffee.
Pregnancy and Nursing: Coffee, especially in larger amounts, probably slightly impairs fertility in women (perhaps in part by interfering with iron absorption), increases risk of miscarriage, and may contribute to low birth weight. Lots of coffee consumption by nursing mothers may degrade babies’ quality of sleep and make them irritable. Pre-term babies seem to be more affected.
Acrylamides: Roasting coffee produces chemicals called acrylamides which are considered a “probable human carcinogen” by several public health agencies. It may be worthwhile to choose a light or medium roast, which, in my opinion, also produces a better flavor, and is also likely to retain more chlorogenic acid. (Incidentally baking or frying starchy things, such as flour and potatoes, also produces acrylamides, with French fries having the highest content.)
Other Factors to Consider
Dosage: Many of the studies revealing health problems from coffee consumption looked at people who consumed large amounts – like five cups a day. But before you dismiss them because you only have two cups a day, consider that a regular cup of coffee is just 6 ounces. That means your Venti from Starbucks is more than 3 cups. showing negative effects of coffee consumption
Additives: What are you adding to your coffee? It might be worse for you than the coffee. A 16 ounce latte contains about 14 ounces of milk or milk substitute. That’s a lot of milk, especially for an adult. If you use soy milk, keep in mind that it’s bean juice and many people have problems digesting it. If you get your latte from a café, it’s unlikely that they use organic milk or soy, so the soy milk is almost guaranteed to have come from genetically modified beans (and probably also highly sweetened). Dave Asprey, a self-styled “biohacker” advocates the use of “upgraded” mold-free coffee beans to brew your coffee and then, instead of cream and sugar, pureeing this with a combination of butter from grass-fed cows and medium chain triglycerides or coconut oil. Stevia, xylitol, or erythritol can be used as a non-caloric sweetener. He calls it “bulletproof coffee.”
Pesticides: Many coffee producing countries happen to be rather indiscriminate users of agrichemicals, and often the kinds and application of these chemicals are unregulated. Luckily, there are still farmers who grow coffee in the same way they have for generations – all natural. Look for coffee from Yemen, Ethiopia, and Sumatra, or anything that’s certified organic.
Traditional Thinking: Although coffee is widely and indiscriminately consumed by everyone who likes the taste or wants a boost, it may be worth applying the wisdom of traditional medical systems, which tend to view it as more of a medicine than a food. That is, it has specific properties – stimulating, drying, and heating, for example – that make it appropriate only for certain people. Just as one wouldn’t assume that everyone could benefit from an antibiotic, it might be shortsighted to assume that everyone’s body and mind should benefit from coffee.
In conclusion, if you choose to drink coffee, here’s my advice: Consume it in moderation, meaning one or two cups (six to eight ounces each) per day. Remember to rehydrate – drink as much extra water as the volume of coffee you consume. Consider using a paper filter to remove some of the unhealthy constituents. Skip the sugar and minimize the milk/cream. Avoid artificial powdered creamers. Choose clean, good quality, light to medium roast beans. If you use a coffee maker, clean the water reservoir (which harbors bacteria) with vinegar at least once a month. Know how your body and mind respond to it (the big picture, please), and if they don’t like it, respect their wishes.
Be well,
Dr. Peter Borten
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[post_content] => Many traditional systems of medicine consider our digestion and nutrition to be central to the maintenance of health and (when imbalanced) the development of disease. If you look up almost any health problem in a textbook of Chinese Medicine, one of the possible causes will nearly always be “improper intake of food and drink.” This covers a lot of things - eating too fast, consuming very cold drinks, overeating, eating the wrong kinds of foods for one’s constitution, skipping meals, eating while upset, and more.
I appreciate that Chinese Medicine explains the origin of health problems in this way, because it highlights the most fundamental issue - and shows us the way to get the maximum results by changing our behavior. Whereas someone suffering from acid reflux (heartburn) might simply take an acid-blocking drug and think that’s the end of it, such an approach would not get to the real cause – which might be a food sensitivity, overeating, eating too fast, a structural imbalance, stress, or something else. Addressing the cause is better medicine; anything else is just a band-aid.
While “improper intake of food and drink” is a very common root cause of health problems, I think we can actually go one step deeper. If we’re eating and drinking in a way that is damaging to our health, much of the time
we know this, but there’s a mental disconnection occurring. The disconnection takes one of two forms – a split within the mind, or a split between the mind and body.
When the mind is split, we allow ourselves to ignore what we know to be true. We might do this consciously, such as in telling ourselves, “I know I shouldn’t eat this whole container of ice cream, but I had a really bad day.” Eating the whole container of ice cream is harmful to us and we know it, but we justify it with a belief that having done something good or endured something bad entitles us to this indulgence. We may also do it unconsciously, by simply avoiding thinking about how our eating choices are likely to affect us. In either case, there’s a part of us that knows how to care for our body properly, and another part that pretends not to know. Playing this game never feels good.
When the mind and body are disconnected, we tune out the feedback we get from our body during and after eating. It is this split that allows us to overeat, to eat too fast. All bodies give clear negative signals when we do this. When we don’t pay attention to how our body responds to different foods and ways of eating, we miss out on valuable physical information. Not only does our body tell us when we’ve eaten in a manner that it dislikes, it also tells us when we’re treating it well. Unfortunately, the concept of “listening to your body” strikes many as some kind of kooky New Age practice. I would guess that the great majority of modern humans ignore all but the most dramatic messages from their bodies.
A good way to start healing these disconnections is through a practice of doing nothing but eating for one meal each day. Engaging in other activities while eating makes it easy for our consciousness to stray from the vital and enjoyable act at hand. It’s hard enough for many of us to eat consciously even when it’s the only thing we are doing. Why complicate it by trying to multitask while eating?
Relax your mind: let go of worries before you start a meal. If this is hard to do, try making a deal with yourself – tell yourself you can worry all you want at a later time in the day and put it in your calendar. Turn off the TV, put away reading material, keep conversation minimal and light, and turn off any music (or keep it soft and light). Relax your body: no driving, standing, or walking while eating, and no exercise for at least half an hour after eating.
Try to keep a portion of your attention (like ten percent) on how your body feels before, during, and after the meal. With practice, we can learn to perceive which foods our body likes and dislikes - often from the moment they touch our tongue. As we stay connected to our body, it becomes harder to eat more than our body wants. Think like an Okinawan. They are some of the longest lived people on the planet and they embrace a practice called Hara Hachi Bu, which means, "eat only until you're 80 percent full." You'll feel lighter and more energized as you leave the table.
Emotions can strongly affect our digestion and the ability to stay focused on the act of eating. The nervous system is densely “wired” into the digestive tract. It’s why so many people experience nausea, appetite changes, diarrhea, constipation, or other forms of digestive upset when they’re stressed. The
sympathetic division of the nervous system excites us, it raises our level of arousal, and it’s responsible for the “fight or flight” survival mechanism. When the sympathetic nervous system is activated – whether or not we’re in actual danger – blood is diverted away from the digestive tract (because digestion is less important to our immediate survival) and is sent instead to our lungs, heart, and sense organs. For this reason, thinking about the bills we need to pay, a recent conflict, or politics is best saved for a time other than during or just after a meal.
Another reason to avoid being unsettled or engaged in other activities while eating is that it degrades something that should be a thoroughly enjoyable event. The frequency with which we do it doesn’t make eating any less special an act. When we eat, we are doing for ourselves what our mother did for us in the womb, and then while cradled in her arms. Later, she or another family member cooked meals for us and offered them with love. Eating reconnects us to these deep memories of being nourished and engaged with family. We put life-giving sustenance into our bodies and it keeps us alive; it makes us feel good; it gives us energy; it physically connects us with the earth, sun, plants and animals. So, when we eat while talking on the phone, while driving, or while working, we
miss out on something important – a level of sustenance that goes beyond the food itself.
Why not try this week to have one meal of
just eating each day?
Be well,
Dr. Peter Borten
Want to know more?
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When Samuel Thomson (1769-1843) was four years old, he happened upon an herb called lobelia growing near his New Hampshire home. Curious about the seed pods, he chewed some and promptly threw up. “Afterwards,” he later wrote, “I used to induce other boys to chew it, by way of sport, to see them vomit.” By “afterwards,” he meant for the next twenty years.
In his early twenties, he was out mowing a field with a group of men when he was happy to spot some lobelia. He tricked one of his coworkers into eating it, and the man immediately turned pale and began sweating and trembling. As he puked his guts out, the man told Thomson that he believed he was about to die. But after taking a nap, he ate lunch, did a full afternoon of labor, and, “told me that he never had anything do him so much good in his life; his appetite was remarkably good, and he felt better than he had felt for a long time.”1
Thomson went on to become the founder of a system of natural medicine based largely on using lobelia to purge the body of toxins. It had great appeal to the gritty, anti-elitist, and sometimes puritanical sensibilities of many early Americans.
While it may sound trendy and modern to hear that a certain celebrity is “doing a cleanse” it’s actually an old and enduring tradition. About 70 years after Thomson’s death, Arnold Ehret published the acclaimed Rational Fasting, with a similarly empowering do-it-yourself and clean-yourself-out message. 1939 brought Jethro Kloss’s Back to Eden – often regarded as a kind of bible of natural medicine – also focusing chiefly on the idea that disease comes from too much garbage in the body. Such philosophies have even older roots in Europe and Asia.
It’s an attractive idea to consider: maybe you can simply undo all your crappy eating habits. Maybe you don’t need supplements or surgery – you just need to get the evil out of you. Maybe you’re not lacking anything – you feel ill because of something bad that you’re carrying around or keep exposing yourself to. And maybe there’s some crossover with your religious upbringing – you need to repent for your sins and perhaps this is the way to do it. So, does it work?
As with many D-I-Y health trends, there’s a lot of hope that it’s going to fix everyone. But sometimes a cleanse is the right thing and sometimes it’s not; it can be difficult to discern. I’ve had patients report that all their symptoms – pain, insomnia, digestive upset, skin problems, fatigue, ADD, anxiety, depression, and more – disappeared when they did a cleanse. Most of the time, though, people say they aren’t sure if anything useful happened. And occasionally, they tell me they felt bad – achy, tired, foggy, depressed, etc. – which could be part of a healing process, or might just mean the cleanse wasn’t ideal for them.
From the perspective of Five Element philosophy, this would be the most appropriate time of year for a cleanse. We’re emerging from winter – the season of storage, rest, and inertia – and entering the “resurrection” of spring. (There’s a reason Easter was combined with pagan symbolism of spring – the “rebirth” we witness after the “death” of winter – flowers, eggs, chicks, bunnies, etc.) It’s a phase of new plans and rapid growth, and there’s a certain shedding that happens now. If you have cats and dogs, you’re well aware of what’s coming. We humans shed our bulky layers of clothing and extra “insulation.” Symbolically, it’s a good time to release an outdated image of yourself – to shed the limitations of your former life even – so that you can create yourself anew. Given these different expressions of shedding, a spring cleanse might take the form of a physical cleaning out, a psychological release, or a spiritual process (or all three).
We usually think of a cleanse as a deliberate expulsion of the unhealthy – an act of purging, scrubbing, or active detoxification – and it can be this, if necessary and appropriate. But more importantly, I believe it should entail a simplification and reduction of what you’re putting into the body (and mind). The body knows how to get rid of waste, but it may have a hard time doing so if it’s continually struggling to keep up with what you’re adding to it. So, as a general principle, aim to consume less and to reduce your consumption to things that will be gentle and easy to assimilate.
Unless you’re doing a more active detoxification or water fast, it’s enough to just supply your body with its nutritional needs in a simple, digestible format while cutting out anything that might be an irritant or harder to digest. The goal is to cause the body to expend a minimum of energy on digesting the food so that its resources can be dedicated to cleaning house.
During a cleanse, it’s also important to reduce your activity level. Again, the idea is to maximize the resources that are available for the cleansing process. The more intensive the cleanse, the greater the need to be really devoted to it. Besides doing less physically, it’s worthwhile to conserve mental energy. Likewise, while limiting physical consumption, it’s also advisable to limit mental consumption – take a break from news and other media so there’s less to digest on all levels.
Always stay well hydrated during a cleanse. Movement in the body occurs via liquid pathways, and the metabolism and excretion of toxins works better with sufficient water in you. Figure out how many pounds you weigh and divide that number in half. Then aim to drink that many ounces of water evenly over the course of each day. Ideally this water should be room temperature. You can drink more if you wish, but don’t have so much at once that you feel bloated or “sloshy” inside.
Next week I’ll discuss some specific kinds of cleanses and common simple diets for cleansing. Meanwhile, if you’re up for a cleanse, I recommend taking some time to ponder and write about what exactly you intend to release (physical and/or mental) and what will be liberated, revitalized, or birthed through the process. Set a clear intention. If you resonate with moon symbolism, you might consider beginning your cleanse with the new moon (the next one is April 5th).
Be well,
Peter
[1] Thomson, S. (1835). A narrative of the life and medical discoveries of Samuel Thomson: containing an account of his system of practice, and the manner of curing disease with vegetable medicine, upon a plan entirely new. Columbus, OH: Jarvis Pike.
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I get asked about coffee by patients so often that I thought it was about time to write an article thoroughly examining it from all angles. Unlike stronger recreational drugs, I think the potential drawbacks of coffee are usually fairly mild. But if you endeavor to achieve great health – and especially if you’re struggling with a health problem – it’s worth being honest with yourself about whether coffee is contributing to or detracting from this goal.
What’s Good About Coffee
So many people worldwide depend on coffee to wake them up, get them motivated, make them feel sharp, promote digestion, and even lift them out of mild depression. Is that so bad? Well, depending on your constitution, maybe not.
Scientific research has shown that coffee consumption appears to reduce one’s risk of developing type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, and colorectal cancer. One constituent that’s especially interesting and abundant in coffee is called chlorogenic acid. Chlorogenic acid is an antioxidant, it seems to slow glucose release after eating (so it may help maintain stable blood sugar), it promotes bile secretion, reduces gallstone formation, maybe reduces the incidence of liver disease, and probably promotes weight loss. Chlorogenic acid is much more abundant in green (unroasted) coffee beans than the roasted ones, which has led to the fad of “green coffee extract” for weight loss.
A drawback of chlorogenic acid is that it may interfere with the absorption of certain minerals – namely zinc and iron – from the intestines. For this reason, it may be best to consume coffee or take green coffee extracts a few hours apart from food. Or consider taking extra zinc (or a multimineral supplement). I don’t generally recommend consuming iron supplements, though, unless you have a known iron deficiency. Incidentally, coffee isn’t the only thing that has the potential to interfere with iron absorption. Many compounds (knows as polyphenols or monomeric flavonoids) can do this, and they’re found in black tea, peppermint, chamomile, chocolate, and other natural foods and drinks.
Due to its flavor, coffee acts as a digestive bitter. Like other bitters, it tends to “activate” the digestive system, stimulating intestinal movement and the production of gastric juices. However, if you add cream and sugar to it – diminishing its bitterness – you probably diminish its value as a digestive stimulant, too.
What’s Bad About Coffee
The energy-boosting, mind-sharpening effects of coffee result from the fact that it’s chock full of vitamins, minerals, and everything else our bodies need for good nutrition. Every cup is like consuming a complete, balanced meal.
Of course, the truth is almost the opposite. Coffee is a stimulant. And we’re stimulant addicts. Let’s just be real about that. The first thing I want to know when a patient tells me about their coffee habit is, “How would you feel without coffee?” If the answer is “tired” or “withdrawn” or “constipated” or anything else unpleasant, then I think it’s worth considering whether or not coffee is the best remedy. There are dozens of possible causes of fatigue, and most of them are not coffee deficiency. These issues are best addressed in a more direct, non-coffee way. If coffee consumption masks them, it means putting off a real solution.
Fatigue: If someone is fatigued because of depletion – and often I think of adrenal depletion (the endocrine glands most directly involved in our stress response) – then coffee is specifically a bad idea. Stimulants just drain these glands of what little energy they have left, and make recovery impossible. Adrenal deficiency can lead to reduced immune function, lightheadedness, sleep problems, anxiety and depression, inflammation, hypoglycemia, and other symptoms. If this sounds like you, see a naturally oriented healthcare provider, and meanwhile, try quitting coffee.
Hypertension: Coffee can raise blood pressure, especially in people who consume a lot of it. Regular coffee drinkers tend to develop some tolerance to this effect.
Digestive Upset: The combination of coffee’s acids, its bitterness, and its strong stimulating effects can cause digestive discomfort, nausea, acid reflux, diarrhea, and exacerbation of ulcers in certain individuals. Those with irritable or inflammatory bowel disorders, ulcers, or GERD should be especially cautious with coffee.
Sleep Problems: Despite our visceral understanding of what coffee does to us, many folks with bad sleep don’t consider that their coffee might be part of the problem. If sleep doesn’t come easily and deeply for you, you should at least avoid coffee after noon. Sometimes even just a morning cuppa is enough to disturb our slumber.
Anxiety: As with insomnia, it shouldn’t be surprising that stimulation can contribute to anxiety. Yet most of my anxious patients consume it and nearly all of them improve when they quit.
If you have insomnia, anxiety, or digestive upset, come up with a scale to evaluate how bad it is, then quit coffee and re-rate it after a couple weeks. When coffee contributes to these problems, it’s due to overstimulation. Frequently, as with adrenal fatigue, there’s a background of “diminished buffer.” It’s like running high voltage electricity through thin wires with not much insulation on them. It’s worthwhile to consider what kind of wiring you have, meaning, how sensitive your nervous system is to stimulation. Thin, stressed, and underslept people tend to be less able than others to handle caffeine and other stimulants well.
Dyslipidemia: Coffee can raise LDL and total cholesterol when consumed in large amounts. However, this may be meaningless in terms of the actual health risk it represents. Also, this effect is thought to be mainly due to chemicals that are very effectively removed with a paper filter.
Inflammation: A 2004 study examined numerous markers of inflammation in the blood of over 3000 Greek men and women. It found that in people who consumed over 200 milliliters of coffee a day (that’s about 6.75 ounces), all indicators of inflammation increased. The funny part is that in their conclusion, they wrote, “A relation exists between moderate-to-high coffee consumption and increased inflammation process.” Moderate-to-high coffee consumption?! Clearly they’ve never been to the United States.
Bone Weakness: High doses seem to be associated with increased osteoporosis and hip fracture in older women.
Dehydration: Coffee is a diuretic – it promotes urination. Medically speaking, sometimes there’s a need for a diuretic, but for most people, this property of coffee just means an increased risk of dehydration. Drink extra water to make up for this effect of coffee.
Pregnancy and Nursing: Coffee, especially in larger amounts, probably slightly impairs fertility in women (perhaps in part by interfering with iron absorption), increases risk of miscarriage, and may contribute to low birth weight. Lots of coffee consumption by nursing mothers may degrade babies’ quality of sleep and make them irritable. Pre-term babies seem to be more affected.
Acrylamides: Roasting coffee produces chemicals called acrylamides which are considered a “probable human carcinogen” by several public health agencies. It may be worthwhile to choose a light or medium roast, which, in my opinion, also produces a better flavor, and is also likely to retain more chlorogenic acid. (Incidentally baking or frying starchy things, such as flour and potatoes, also produces acrylamides, with French fries having the highest content.)
Other Factors to Consider
Dosage: Many of the studies revealing health problems from coffee consumption looked at people who consumed large amounts – like five cups a day. But before you dismiss them because you only have two cups a day, consider that a regular cup of coffee is just 6 ounces. That means your Venti from Starbucks is more than 3 cups. showing negative effects of coffee consumption
Additives: What are you adding to your coffee? It might be worse for you than the coffee. A 16 ounce latte contains about 14 ounces of milk or milk substitute. That’s a lot of milk, especially for an adult. If you use soy milk, keep in mind that it’s bean juice and many people have problems digesting it. If you get your latte from a café, it’s unlikely that they use organic milk or soy, so the soy milk is almost guaranteed to have come from genetically modified beans (and probably also highly sweetened). Dave Asprey, a self-styled “biohacker” advocates the use of “upgraded” mold-free coffee beans to brew your coffee and then, instead of cream and sugar, pureeing this with a combination of butter from grass-fed cows and medium chain triglycerides or coconut oil. Stevia, xylitol, or erythritol can be used as a non-caloric sweetener. He calls it “bulletproof coffee.”
Pesticides: Many coffee producing countries happen to be rather indiscriminate users of agrichemicals, and often the kinds and application of these chemicals are unregulated. Luckily, there are still farmers who grow coffee in the same way they have for generations – all natural. Look for coffee from Yemen, Ethiopia, and Sumatra, or anything that’s certified organic.
Traditional Thinking: Although coffee is widely and indiscriminately consumed by everyone who likes the taste or wants a boost, it may be worth applying the wisdom of traditional medical systems, which tend to view it as more of a medicine than a food. That is, it has specific properties – stimulating, drying, and heating, for example – that make it appropriate only for certain people. Just as one wouldn’t assume that everyone could benefit from an antibiotic, it might be shortsighted to assume that everyone’s body and mind should benefit from coffee.
In conclusion, if you choose to drink coffee, here’s my advice: Consume it in moderation, meaning one or two cups (six to eight ounces each) per day. Remember to rehydrate – drink as much extra water as the volume of coffee you consume. Consider using a paper filter to remove some of the unhealthy constituents. Skip the sugar and minimize the milk/cream. Avoid artificial powdered creamers. Choose clean, good quality, light to medium roast beans. If you use a coffee maker, clean the water reservoir (which harbors bacteria) with vinegar at least once a month. Know how your body and mind respond to it (the big picture, please), and if they don’t like it, respect their wishes.
Be well,
Dr. Peter Borten
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