Five cups of Coffee

In today's modern world, to imagine a life without a beverage seems indispensible. Each day the common man consumes an average of 2-8 cups of his favorite beverage. Coffee is an ancient beverage that has been used for eons. Lately, however, it has gained popularity especially among the youngsters. Most of them are the freshers or the new working class cadre, that consider coffee to be a perfect stress-buster. Drinking

coffee is fine when it's done in moderation. But if you drink too much coffee, you might start having some unpleasant side effects.

               Coffee contains caffeine, a mild but harmful stimulant. If intaken in large amounts from any source, it can lead to depletion in a person's energy. It prevents one from entering into a state of rest and relaxation. Caffeine from any source is associated with anxiety, irritability, tremors, dehydration, and rebound fatigue and exhaustion. Our body does not function properly on stimulants, although it does help in keep one awake.

                Drinking one or two cups of coffee a day, has been proved to be beneficial in helping to remove some diseases. Recent studies suggest that the incidence of heart disease, cancer, cirrhosis, Parkinson's disease and gallstones may be lower among coffee drinkers than among those who don't drink coffee. However to avail these benefits, one must limit his coffee to 2-3 cups a day.

                However, excess intake of coffee has numerous side-effects. One being dehydration. Drinking more than two cups, always leads to severe dehydration of the body and hence one should keep up with drinking lots of water. Also, there is found to be a co-relation between diabetes and excess intake of coffee. Women who are pregnant may want to moderate their consumption of coffee or discontinue it altogether. Studies have suggested that pregnant women having excess intake of coffee are more prone to miscarriages and stillbirths. Coffee contains some lead, cadmium, aluminum and perhaps other toxic metals.  A cup of coffee now and then is not going to add a lot of toxic metals to the body; however, we must limit our intake.  Large amount of coffee a day can lead to rheumatoid arthritis and cause nervousness and nausea and also may increase risk factor for osteoporosis because caffeine absorbs calcium, which is very important for the bones.  Coffee, particularly if it is strong, is an irritant to the stomach, and perhaps to other organs as well.

                One of the major concerns here, is that caffeine leads to its addiction. It's very easy for people to get addicted to coffee, and increase their intake gradually. Hence, keeping a check is of primary importance.

                Hence, studying the pros and cons of coffee, it's safe to conclude that coffee as a beverage is very beneficial only if the intake is limited to one to two cups a day. Five or more cups of coffee a day will have an adverse effect on our body, due to it's stark stimulating effect. As they say, excess of everything is bad. Coffee is no exception!

Rewin Koul