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[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

Be aware of your caffeine intake

          I was in sixth grade when I said I would never drink coffee because drinking one sip of the delicious smelling liquid made me gag. According to The Daily Meal article, “When is it OK for Kids to Start Drinking Coffee,” it states, “Most young children already have plenty of energy without the need for coffee to sustain them throughout the day, so at least until they are 12 years old, it’s best to avoid giving your kids coffee if possible.”

          Even though most articles I read said it was “okay” for kids at the age of twelve to start drinking coffee, I disagree. According to the Live Strong article, “Why is it bad for kids to drink coffee,” it gives five reasons coffee is bad for kids. These reasons include insomnia, cavities, decreased appetite, bone loss, and hyperactivity.

Insomnia

          When children ages 5 to 12 drink coffee, they have a stimulant (caffeine) running through their body up to eight hours of the day. “Coffee is a stimulant that has five times ore caffeine per serving than a soda…contributing to sleep loos, which only serves to perpetuate the cycle.” This is important to know because people who are giving their child coffee at a young age, they teach their child to begin relying on a stimulant to give them bursts of energy when it’s unnecessary.

Cavities

          Coffee is known to be acidic and “acidic drinks can cause damage in the mouth by weakening teeth; this leads to a decline in tooth enamel and an increase in cavities.” Children who drink coffee are more likely to have oral health issues with cavities and loss of enamel. So, unless you would like to pay for dental work, I recommend waiting until your child has lost all their baby teeth before drinking coffee.

Decreased Appetite

          “Growing children need a balanced diet full of protein, whole grains, fruits and vegetables. When kids drink coffee, the stimulant effect is likely to lead to a decrease in appetite and a decline in overall nutrition.” When I was younger, I loved to eat. I couldn’t imagine not eating all the home-cooked meals my parents made me. It’s important for children to continue to grow to be healthy. I believe if a child is begging for coffee, the parents shouldn’t give it to them because of how dangerously delicious coffee can be. A child’s health is more important that giving them something they want.

Bone Loss

          “Coffee is a diuretic -- it increases urine production. Increased urination causes the loss of calcium from the body, which can lead to bone loss. In addition to be a diuretic, it also contains large amounts of caffeine that leach calcium from the body. For every 100 mg of caffeine ingested, 6 mg of calcium are lost. For children, calcium is essential for bone growth.” If children are drinking too much coffee and not enough milk, it is possible for kids to stop growing height wise and they will be unable to reach their full height potential.

          When I was in sixth grade, I remember trying at least a couple cups of coffee. These couple cups were absolutely disgusting for me, but I believe that is what stunted my growth. I had gone to the doctors before I started attempting to drink coffee and my doctor told me I was going to be about 5’ 8” when I was done growing. Well, since I drank at least two cups of coffee, I reached the height of 5’ 4”. I don’t think my height is terrible, but I was excited to be the tallest person in my family. Instead of being the tallest person in my family, I stunted my growth and ended up being the shortest person in my family.

Hyperactivity

          Many kids now days are diagnosed with a type of disorder having to do with their attention span. If children are given coffee, it can create different types of behavioral problems such as hyperactivity, restlessness, and inability to concentrate on the task at hand. “While adults may benefit from this side effect, it can be damaging to school-aged children who are required to pay attention and sit still during instruction at school. The effects of caffeine can last for hours -- as long as an entire school day -- and can have negative effects on peer relations, studying and grades.” It is not suitable for a child to drink coffee and go to school to not pay attention. I think parents should be aware of the amount of caffeine their child is drinking, whether it be coffee or pop, because caffeine can hurt a child who isn’t done growing yet.

          Now, just because a person drinks coffee, it doesn’t mean that it’s unhealthy for them. I drink coffee daily and I feel like I can’t survive without it. Drinking coffee helps me wake up in the morning, it makes me feel rejuvenated when I start feeling like I’m tired, and drinking coffee helps me focus on a task I need to accomplish. These are just some benefits that I get from drinking coffee.

          According to the One Medical website, they published an article called “10 Healthy Reasons to Drink Coffee.” This article was published on September 12, 2017. In reading this article, I learned a lot about the benefits from drinking coffee, which made me feel much better about how much I drink. I will list the first five benefits and at the end of my blog, I will leave the link to the website if you are interested in learning more benefits.

Coffee is a potent source of healthy antioxidants

          “In fact, coffee shows more antioxidant activity than green tea and cocoa, two antioxidant superstars. Scientists have identified approximately 1,000 antioxidants in unprocessed coffee beans, and hundreds more develop during the roasting process.”

          You might be asking yourself, how does this work? Well, antioxidants help fight inflammation, neutralize free radicals (it’s a part of metabolic functions,) and the antioxidants in coffee keep us healthy by protecting our cells from being damaged.

Caffeine provides a short-term memory boost

          Every time I drink coffee, it helps me focus on the task I need to accomplish, and it also helps me remember what I need to do throughout the day. In an Austrian study, researchers gave a group of volunteers a dose of 100 mg of caffeine. This is about as much caffeine served in a single cup of coffee. “Researchers found a surge in the volunteers’ brain activity, measured by functional magnetic resonance imagery (fMRI), as they performed a memory task. The researchers noted that the memory skills and reaction times of the caffeinated volunteers were also improved when compared to the control group who received a placebo and showed no increase in brain activity.”

          This encourages me to continue drinking as much coffee as I have because I get joy out of drinking coffee while feeling productive.

Coffee may help protect against cognitive decline

          This is one of the main reasons I drink coffee. My Grandfather on my mom’s side had Alzheimer’s and dementia right before he passed away in July on 2017. Seeing him go through the pain of being unaware took a huge toll on my family, so I did my research about the benefits of coffee when I started drinking coffee. I also had a few family members talk about the protection against cognitive decline.

          “In one promising Finnish study, researchers found that drinking three to five cups of coffee daily at midlife was associated with a 65 percent decreased risk of Alzheimer’s and dementia in later life. . . There are several theories about how coffee may help prevent or protect against cognitive decline. One working theory: caffeine prevents the buildup of beta-amyloid plaque that may contribute to the onset and progression of Alzheimer’s.”

          To put it in simpler terms, “caffeine has a positive effect on the tau protein. Caffeine is an adenosine receptor antagonist, which means it blocks some receptors in the brain that contribute to the build of and entanglement of tau. Researchers hope their findings will lead to a new class of drugs to treat Alzheimer’s disease.”

          At this point in my life, I would like to prolong the Alzheimer’s and/or dementia gene because I don’t want to get older and have my body be healthy if my mind isn’t there to know where I am at or what is going on. It was really tough watching my Grandfather go through it, I don’t want to have to put my family through it either.

Coffee is healthy for your heart

    This reason makes a person aware of how much they drink because a Dutch study analyzed data from ore that 37,000 people in a 13-year period. This study found that “moderate coffee drinkers (who consumed between two to four cups daily) had a 20 percent lower risk of heart disease as compared to heavy or light coffee drinkers, and nondrinkers.”

    I have days where I drink four cups maximum, and there are other days where I drink six cups. In knowing this information, I am going to be more aware of how much coffee I drink daily. But how is coffee healthy for your heart? It’s healthy because it protects against the inflammation in the arterial wall of the heart.

Coffee may help curb certain cancers

    The author of this article, Nikki Jong, found a new research from the Harvard School of Public Health suggesting, “drinking four or more cups of coffee daily decreased the risk of endometrial cancer in women by 25 percent as compared to women who drank less than one cup a day. Researchers have also found ties between regular coffee drinking and lower rates of liver, colon, breast, and rectal cancers.”

    Jong explains “Polyphenols, antioxidant phytochemicals found in coffee, have demonstrated anticarcinogenic properties in several studies and are thought to help reduce the inflammation that could be responsible for some tumors.”

    Drinking coffee isn’t as bad as everyone makes it seem. It’s worse for children to be drinking coffee than it is for adults, but since I looked at the benefits for coffee in adults, I need to warn everyone about the dangers of drinking too much coffee.

          According to the Coffee Channel article, “The Health Benefits and Disadvantages of Coffee Drinking,” I realize I need to start being mindful of how many cups I drink a day. Drinking too much can cause sleeplessness or insomnia

     “If you drink more than 4 cups or 400 mg. a day, you won’t be able to sleep and you’ll feel restless. You also have to make sure you’re not sensitive to caffeine. Otherwise, you might drink more than what’s recommended for you. Talk to your doctor about this.”

Low quality coffee can make you sick

    “If the coffee you’re drinking has a bad quality, that means it’s impure. If that’s the case, your coffee can be the reason why your head’s turning, and stars have begun circling around your head. One thing’s for sure: Ruined or overripe beans can cause you to feel sick. To counterattack this disadvantage, ensure that your coffee is high-quality. Don’t take the risk; even a single ruined bean can make the entire cup poisonous.”

It can increase your LDL cholesterol levels

    “Coffee beans have kahweol and cafestol. These two are known to elevate LDL cholesterol levels. To counterattack this drawback, make sure you drink filtered coffee if you have high cholesterol. The two abovementioned ingredients can be found in Turkish coffee, espresso, French press, and Scandinavian style coffee. If your cholesterol level is normal, however, these two found in espresso can be beneficial for your liver.”

Coffee can be your killer

“I know this is harsh, but this is impossible to happen unless your addiction to coffee has gone way too far that even the Guardians of the Galaxy can’t save you. Drinking 23 liters or 80 to 100 cups in one day can kill you. That measurement consists of about 10 to 13 grams of caffeine. I say it’s impossible because you might not even read 23 liters because you’ll have to undergo vomiting sessions when you do this. As a matter of fact, even drinking 23 liters of water can kill you, so it’s not just the coffee.”

          Throughout this post, I have given benefits and disadvantages of drinking coffee as an adult, as well as disadvantages of drinking coffee at a young age. It’s important to know these things because you are given one life and being healthy is beneficial to living a long life. I’m not saying coffee is the worst drink for a person, but I’m not saying it’s the best either. It is crucial for people to pay attention to the intake of caffeine since too much caffeine can kill you. I want my readers to start being aware of how much coffee they drink because after reading all of these facts, I want to live a healthy life and not die of a caffeine overdose.

https://www.thedailymeal.com/entertain/when-it-ok-kids-start-drinking-coffee

https://www.livestrong.com/article/496998-why-is-it-bad-for-kids-to-drink-coffee/

https://www.onemedical.com/blog/newsworthy/10-healthy-reasons-to-drink-coffee-2/

https://www.alzheimers.net/2014-04-09/benefits-of-coffee/

https://coffee-channel.com/health-benefits-disadvantages-coffee-drinking/

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

Here’s a picture of me from 12:15 AM in Spencer drinking my coffee out of my coffee pot.

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

A little bit about me

Hi everyone! Welcome to my blog, “A Healthy Love for Caffeine.” In this blog, you will learn all about a healthy intake of caffeine and how it impacts your body. But first, you might want to learn a little bit about me.

           My name is Theresa, but I preferred to be called Tess. I’m a 19-year-old sophomore at Adrian College in Adrian, MI. I’m studying English as my major with a double minor in Journalism and Music. As an English major, I prefer the writing side because I enjoy writing short stories. With writing short stories, I like to write a little bit everyday in my bullet journal, which is another hobby I enjoy doing. Bullet journaling is a way to stay organized while being creative.

           I enjoy listening to music, hanging out with my friends and my sorority sisters. I am in the local sorority, Delta Nu Kappa. I am the Scholarship and Philanthropy chair in my sorority and I really enjoy being in this chapter because I feel like I’m important and it’s nice. My favorite movie of all time is Peter Pan because I love being a kid at heart, but I’m able to be serious when the time is needed.

           Another hobby of mine is collecting coffee mugs to drink my coffee out of. I have been collecting coffee mugs since about sophomore year of high school, back when I started drinking tea instead of coffee. I have over 100 coffee mugs and I haven’t had a single duplicate mug, which is crazy to think. I enjoy drinking medium roast coffee with sugar free Italian Crème coffee creamer in a big coffee mug. And I think that’s all the important things you need to know about me, I hope you enjoy my blog!

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

Personal Narrative

           I was in sixth grade when I said I would never drink coffee because drinking one sip of the delicious smelling liquid made me gag. Even though I didn’t like the taste, I loved the aroma that coffee brought to my house when my brother made it. The smell made me feel all warm inside, like I was wrapped in a blanket. As a freshman in high school, all my friends began drinking coffee, but my taste buds never acquired themselves to this drink. It was the summer of my junior and senior year of high school when my life turned around.

           Hearing all the stories from all my friends who are older than I, I knew that coffee was soon going to be my best friend. It was a really hot day in June when I decided to go to McDonald’s and try iced coffee. I had no idea what to expect, I just knew I needed to start getting into the habit of drinking coffee.

           “Hi, welcome to McDonalds, what can I get for you today?” the female employee’ voice echoed through the drive through speaker.

           I frantically look at the menu, searching for the coffee, “Uhhh, one second please.”

           “No worries! Go ahead and order when you’re ready.”

           I see the line of cars pile up, so I picked a coffee item and ordered, “Hi, can I get a French Vanilla Iced coffee, please?”

           “Will that be all?”

           “Yes.”

           “Alrighty, your total will be $1.79 at the first window.”

           “Thank you!” I say as I begin to drive away towards the first window.

           Slowly turning the corner towards the window, I keep my eyes on the road as I fumble for my wallet inside of my blue and black fossil purse. As I approach the first window, I hand the McDonald’s employee my MSU debit card as I wait to get it back. She hands back my card with my receipt and tells me to have a nice day. Driving at two miles an hour, I make my appearance at the second window looking for my iced coffee.

           “French Vanilla Iced coffee?” Another McDonald’s employee said opening the window.

           “Yep!” I say a little too enthused, at least I thought it was

           “Have a nice day,” he says handing me my coffee.

           “Thanks, you too,” I grab the cup and place it in the left cup holder in the center council of the car as I slowly inch my way to the exit of the McDonald’s restaurant and onto Dixie Highway.

            This was the day that changed my life and love of coffee forever.

           I’m sitting here at 12:15 AM, writing this personal narrative for my coffee blog, drinking medium roast coffee out of a 12-cup pot from my coffee maker. I enjoy drinking my medium roast coffee with sugar free Italian Crème coffee creamer. In case you need some proof, I’ll be sure to post a picture about it later. Coffee has now been in my life for about four years and I think it’s been one of the best decisions of my life because I have no idea how I survived without it.

           I drink about four cups of coffee daily, which is normal for most Americans. I drink about two cups of coffee in the morning during my 9 AM classes. Then after my morning classes, I will go back to my room in Estes and get more coffee. My coffee maker has a feature where it will stay on for two hours after the pot has been brewed.

           You’re probably at this point in my personal narrative and wanted to know what’s the point of everything I’ve said. And to be honest, me too. I started writing this coffee blog because I wanted to start being aware of the amount of caffeine I’m intaking. I wanted to know how caffeine can help and hurt my body. In writing this blog, I’m reaching out to everyone who drinks as much coffee, if not more, as I do because I have one body and I need to start taking care of it.

           As you read into my blog, I hope you start being cognizant of how much caffeine you in take as well as knowing that drinking coffee isn’t as bad as everyone makes it seem.

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

Every positive has a negative. Check out the “20+ Harmful Effects of Caffeine” article. After reading this, maybe you’ll lower your amount of caffeine intake.

https://www.caffeineinformer.com/harmful-effects-of-c=affeine

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

I believe humans get a lot done, not because we're smart, but because we have thumbs so we can make coffee.

Flash Rosenberg

http://www.sayquotable.com/

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

Drinking coffee is healthy for you! Take 4 minutes and 23 seconds of your day to find out 9 benefits of drinking coffee and the amount of caffeine you consume.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txxlNeSWYYk

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

About Authority Nutrition: “It is an evidence-based nutrition website that was acquired by Healthline in 2017. The daily articles on Authority Nutrition are based on scientific evidence and written by experts. The team of licensed nutritionists and dietitians strive to be objective and present both sides of the argument.”

About Kris Gunnars: “Kris is a nutrition researcher with a Bachelor's degree in medicine. He has spent years reading books, blogs and scientific studies on nutrition. Evidence-based nutrition is his passion and he plans to devote his career to informing people about it. He stays fit by lifting weights, taking walks and eating real food.”

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/top-13-evidence-based-health-benefits-of-coffee

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

Here is a photo from the Harvard School of Public Heath article “Pros and Cons of Coffee Consumption” from Octover 25, 2015.

http://www.dailyinfographic.com/pros-and-cons-of-coffee-consumption

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

Facts about coffee/caffeine from the Health Research Funding

1. The United States is the country with the highest amount of caffeine consumption (971 tons) followed by Brazil (969 tons).

2. 54% of Americans over the age of 18 consume caffeine on a daily basis.

3. 68% of coffee drinkers have their first cup of coffee within 1 hour of waking up.

4. 65% of the total consumption of caffeine occurs during the hours around breakfast.

5. 30% of the total amount of coffee in the world is imported from Brazil.

https://healthresearchfunding.org/remarkable-caffeine-consumption-statistics/

T.H.

[justyourtypicalcoffeeaddict]

Here is a medical article written by Hannah Nichols and reviewed by Deborah Weatherspoon, PhD, RN, CRNA. Here is a rundown over the impact that caffeine has on your body.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/285194.php

T.H.