Coffee has numerous potential health benefits according to recent research. It contains antioxidants that can help prevent cell damage. Studies have shown drinking coffee can increase mental speed, cognition, and alertness in students. Coffee may also decrease the risk of depression and increase mood. Some studies indicate coffee drinking is linked to increased bone density in postmenopausal women and a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers. While more research is still needed, coffee appears to offer various health advantages beyond initial beliefs that it was unhealthy.

1. Sierra Dunbar
3/10/16
FSHN 428
Rejoice Coffee Lovers: Coffee Has More Beneficial Effects Than You May Know
Coffee is one of the most popular drinks in the world and is consumed for many reasons.
Whether it be that quick morning pick-me-up or an afternoon cappuccino with a friend, coffee is
something that so many people encounter every day. For those of you who love coffee, much
like I do, you can relate to Laurali Gilmore, from the popular 90’s TV show “Gilmore Girls”,
who was always criticized for her love of coffee. She was told that it was bad for her health and
that drinking it every day was going to lead to her heart giving out. For years, many have
believed, and even pushed the idea that coffee was bad for you, but today’s research shows that
there can be many health benefits from drinking coffee. From increasing concentration levels to
lowering your risk for heart disease, here are five reasons why coffee can be beneficial to your
health.
Coffee is an antioxidant
Coffee is an antioxidant! Wow, who knew? Many may know that antioxidants come from
colorful fruits such as strawberries and oranges but not many know that coffee contains
polyphenols that act similar to antioxidants. What is antioxidant? It is exactly what it sounds like;
an “anti” “oxidant” aka. a molecule that inhibits oxidation of other molecules. Oxidation of
molecules has the potential to damage cells and lead to a wide array of health problems. Lucky
for us coffee-lovers, coffee is chock full of them.
Drinking coffee increase your mental speed and cognition
In college, it is not an uncommon sight to see a coffee sitting next to almost every student
in the library, no matter the time. Why is this? Coffee has caffeine in it and that gives us energy.
In a study from the Ohio Journal of science, researchers conducted a study looking at the
consumption of caffeine and how it affected cognitive function. To do this they assessed the
patients memory, reaction time, heart rate, etc. What they found supported what all college
students have hoped to be true; caffeine consumption does improve cognition, results in higher
alertness, and in some forms, increases memory (Paulus, Et al. 2015). It sounds as though coffee
has been helpful during all of those early mornings and long nights!
Drinking coffee has been proven to decrease depression and increase mood
Depression is a leading cause of morbidity and about 5% of the world is diagnosed with
some sort of mood disorder (Hall, 2015).With this being so prevalent, I do not think many people
would turn down the opportunity to be happier. Coffee actually has the potential to do just that.
Along with the previously discussed study on increasing cognition and mood, another study
concluded that drinking coffee can decrease your relative risk for depression. There are many
biologically active compounds in coffee, besides caffeine, that play a role in this (Paulus, Roth,

2. Titus, Chen, Bridges, & Woodyard, 2015). Another study, performed in Korea resulted in
findings that said coffee could have a protective effect against depression (Park & Moon, 2015).
Drinking coffee can increase bone density
It’s always been said that drinking milk makes your bones stronger, but who would have
thought that coffee could potentially do the same? Korean scientists conducted an analysis to
research just that. They were able to find a correlation between drinking coffee and potential
benefits on bone health in postmenopausal women (Choi, Choi, Park, Shin, Joh, Cho, 2016).
There needs to be more research done in this aspect, but it seems to be a good start and an
interesting topic.
Drinking coffee is good for your heart
It was once thought that coffee increased your risk for cardiovascular disease, increased
blood pressure and could potentially lead to heart attacks, today much research is showing just
the opposite. Some of the latest studies have suggested that drinking at least three cups of coffee
a day can lower your risk for type 2 diabetes, and liver and colon cancer (Wierzejska, 2016). Not
only that but depending on the strength of the brew and the quality of the coffee, cardiovascular
disease could be prevented.
If you didn’t like coffee before, you may now consider becoming a fellow addict. With
all the new research coming out every day, you never know what new benefits it may have.
Currently, boosting mood and mental cognition, decreasing your risk for depression,
cardiovascular disease, and its many benefits as an antioxidant prove that everyone’s drink of
choice (besides water) is worth your while.

3. References
Choi E, Choi K, Park S, Shin D, Joh H, Cho E. The Benefit of Bone Health by Drinking Coffee
among Korean Postmenopausal Women: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of the Fourth & Fifth
Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys. Plos ONE. 2016; 11: 1-14.
Hall S, Desbrow B,Anoopkumar-Dukie S, Davey A, Arora D, McDermott C, Schubert M,
Perkins A, Kiefel M. A review of the bioactivity of coffee, caffeine and key coffee
constituents on inflammatory responses linked to depression. Food Research
International. 2015; 76: 626-636.
O'Keefe J, Bhatti S, Patil H, DiNicolantonio J, Lucan S, Lavie C. Effects of Habitual Coffee
Consumption on Cardiometabolic Disease, Cardiovascular Health, and All-Cause
Mortality. Journal Of The American College Of Cardiology. 2013; 62: 1043-1051.
Park R, Moon J. Coffee and depression in Korea: the fifth Korean National Health and Nutrition
Examination Survey. European Journal Of Clinical Nutrition. 2015; 69: 501-504.
Paulus R, Roth A, Titus L, Chen R, Bridges M, Woodyard S. Impact of Various Caffeine Vehicles
on Mood and Cognitive, Neurpological and Physiological Functions Over Five Hours.
Ohio Journal Of Science. 2015; 115: 51-62.
Wierzejska R. Coffee Consumption and Cardiovascular Diseases - Has the Time Come to Change
Dietary Advice? A Mini Review. Polish Journal Of Food & Nutrition Sciences. 2016; 66:
5-10.