14 DAY TRIAL // Can you feel any relief before you drink your daily cup of coffee?
Well, that's not only because of craving for caffeine, but also because coffee helps you ...poop.
A new research found that brewed coffee contains soluble dietary fibers, which help the body absorb vital nutrients, keep a lid on cholesterol and more importantly, whose lack in the alimentation provokes constipation.
The cellulose fibers are abundant in cereals and all kinds of fruits and vegetables.
It was well known that coffee beans are rich in fibers, but now, Fulgencio Saura-Calixto and Elena D?az-Rubio, food scientists at the National Research Council in Madrid, have found for the first time that brewed coffee also contains cellulose. "It is logical to think that a significant part of the fiber passes from the powder into the beverage. It is hard to believe that the scientific community, especially scientists working in dietary fiber, [assumed] that coffee and other beverages do not contain fiber", Saura-Calixto says.
The team checked the fiber content in three common coffee types (espresso, drip and freeze-dried). All three types of coffee compassed 0.47-0.75 grams of fiber per 100 ml. "Freeze-dried coffee came out on top, most likely, because its high-temperature preparation process ensures that large amounts of soluble fiber are extracted from the beans", said Saura-Calixto.
Men have to ingest on average about 38 g of fiber a day and women around 25 g; but 50 % of Americans consume 15 grams or less daily. 82 % of adults in the U.S. drink an average of 3.2 cups of coffee daily.
A traditional 240 ml cup of coffee could deliver as much as 1.5 g of fiber (3.2 cups means 5 g of fiber). A "grande" (medium size) cup of 480 ml can contain 3 g of fiber, about the same as a raw apple. "But that does not mean you should drink coffee in lieu of veggies and whole grains to up your fiber intake," said Katherine Tallmadge, spokesperson American Dietetic Association.
"There are so many other sources of fiber [that are healthier]. Should you drink tons of coffee to get those benefits? No. It is far better to get fiber from a variety of foods that do not contain caffeine and are also packed with other healthy compounds, such as protein and vitamins," said Tallmadge, who does not advise more than two cups of coffee a day.
"The results are surprising," says Victoria Drake, a research associate at the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University in Corvallis, implicated in researches on coffee's health effects. "There is consistent evidence that habitual [caffeinated] coffee consumption decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus, that develops in obese and elderly patients," she says.
Other researches revealed that caffeine may help decrease the risk of developing Parkinson's disease and depression, linked to suicide. "The news is exciting but people need to keep in mind that "fiber is not the be all and end all." In other words, it may be an unexpected benefit of sipping a latte, but it is not a reason-or an excuse-to load up on coffee. Instead, people should get fiber and other nutrients from a variety of healthier choices like whole grains, nuts, fruits and vegetables," said Tallmadge.
Moreover, some researches found that high coffee consumption (more than three cups per day for years) increases loss of bone mineral density. The coffee's effect on cardiovascular health are also very tangled: some say it is good for the heart, others that it is a risk factor.