Life is Short, Enjoy Your Coffee
Every morning when my alarm starts to beep I reluctantly roll over in my bed and hit the top of my phone to stop the noise. When I finally pull myself out of bed I walk like a zombie to the kitchen with only one thought on my mind, “coffee.” That’s right coffee, the sweet drink that I cannot seem to start my day without. When we were younger I know most of us cringed at the sight and smell of our mothers’ drinking their morning coffee and we swore that we would never be the same way, yet look at us now, we’re just as reliant on it as our mothers’ are.
Regardless of how good a Iced Mocha Frappuccino from Starbucks tastes or how an Iced Caramel Latte from Dunkin’ Donuts really hits the spot, too much coffee can hurt you more than it can help you. Caffeine is a drug, it is found not only in coffee but soda products like Coke and Pepsi and in energy drinks like Monster and 5 Hour Energy. Caffeine is a mild central nervous system stimulant, and it tends to make the people who drink it daily dependent on it.
The “Pros”:
1) Improved mental performance – Caffeine in coffee is a well-known stimulant. Coffee promotes alertness, attention and wakefulness. The cup of coffee can also increase information processing.
2) Alertness – It is well known fact that a cup of coffee in the morning acts as a good stimulant, and gets you ready for the day ahead. This can be a good thing, especially if you are not a morning person. It can help you get ready mentally for the day ahead, and get started with a bit of energy on your first task.
3) Antioxidants – A little known fact about coffee is that it’s loaded with some impressive antioxidants. This can help get rid of all the harmful toxins that fill our bodies, and help to make our skin look healthier and more dynamic.
4) Asthma – If you suffer from asthma, then you will be pleased to hear that caffeine can help to improve asthma symptoms. This is because it is very similar to an old medication that used to be taken by asthma sufferers.
The “Cons”:
1) It Stains Your Teeth – Have you ever looked in the inside of a cup after it has had coffee in it? If you have, then you would have seen how the cup very easily stains and takes a bit of scrubbing to wash off. The same thing happens to your teeth if you drink a lot of coffee.
2) Bad Breath – If you drink a lot of coffee then it is unavoidable that it will cause a few nasty smells in your mouth. A lot of coffee brands are also high in acidity, which is a major cause of heartburn and acid reflux.
3) Stress Levels – Drinking too much coffee results in the stimulation of adrenal glands, which has been proven to send your stress levels through the roof. This is very true if you work in a high stress environment, like a college student juggling exams, homework, class, boys, a social life and her extracurricular activities. It is particularly dangerous if you do not realize that you are becoming more and more stressed.
Just do your best to keep your coffee and caffeine consumption in moderation. A cup or two a day will not do you much harm, but if you do feel yourself getting dependent maybe it’s time to take a break from the Starbucks and Dunkin’ runs.