Coffee And Me, A Working Mother

I am a working mother and I am addicted to caffeine. Specifically, coffee is my drink. If you are like me, chances are that you also know little about coffee and how it affects your body. I have finally done some research to answer all of my (and your) questions about this wonderful and magical morning ritual.

Coffee is great in the morning, especially a cold, winter morning. It is great in the morning because it is a stimulant, it comes from beans that are roasted and ground and, for many of us, it's a staple of life. What gives coffee its kick? Caffeine, of course (I actually knew this part already). It's an addictive stimulant drug that operates in the brain the same way amphetamines, cocaine and heroin do (although caffeine is much milder than those drugs). This is believed to be why people (like myself) find coffee so addictive. Your average 6-ounce cup of drip-brewed coffee contains 100 mg of caffeine. A 12-ounce cola soft drink only contains about 50 mg of caffeine.

Lets now turn to a universally asked question: Is Coffee good for you? In the past, the answer has been a definite NO. Lately, most of coffee's purported ill-effects been disproven. It has failed to be linked to hypertension and is now believed to protect the liver and can help in preventing Alzheimer's disease. These results are from more that just small studies or limited observations. These findings are making it clear that we should embrace coffee for reasons beyond the benefits of caffeine, and that we might go so far as to consider it a nutrient.It will be a while before doctors offices are passing out or recommending coffee supplements. Studies still show that the effects of extensive caffiene use are overall bad for your body. For now, most doctors are still recommending that as with most things in life, coffee be consumed in moderation.

After all of my research,it appears that while coffee or caffeine isn't bad for you in small doses, it is wise not to get hooked on it. By that I mean keep your consumption to a mininum. For me, that looks like one or two cups of coffee in the morning and maybe a soda or tea with lunch. Hopefully that will be enough to keep me satisfied and still reaping some of the new found benefits of caffeine, in particular, my beloved coffee. Enjoy, now I am going to go find a cup of coffee!