Coffee
Yes, there's a cup of it sitting right here, adulterated with 2% milk and Splenda. I could wish for a better dose, made from freshly-ground beans, with light cream and real sugar, but it is first thing in the morning and I can't really be too picky about my first relief from addiction. Okay, on to cup number two: at least it was brewed this morning rather than reheated in the microwave.
Caffeine was revisited in the Times this past week:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/05/health/05brod.html
All of us who indulge have probably read something about the health effects of our favorite perky beverage. Does it cause cancer, disrupt our sleep, dehydrate our bodies, promote brain longevity? I like that last one. I was astounded that after years of hearing that coffee is a diuretic and thus doesn't contribute to our daily need for fluids that there has finally been a study; the idea is debunked and we can count our treasured cups of joe as part of our eight glasses per day. To generalize way too much, sometimes conventional wisdom is just a theory that has been repeated way too many times.
One part of this article that directly addresses an issue I raised in my last journal entry:
"Bone loss. Though some observational studies have linked caffeinated beverages to bone loss and fractures, human physiological studies have found only a slight reduction in calcium absorption and no effect on calcium excretion, suggesting the observations may reflect a diminished intake of milk-based beverages among coffee and tea drinkers."
Studying the relationship between drinking coffee and a negative physiological effect initially seemed to show a problem: a correlation was found. However, on closer examination, the actual causal relationship was more complex: perhaps the coffee was being substituted for other beverages and the decrease in milk consumption was the culprit in bone loss, not the drinking of coffee.
Correlations are pesky things.
More coffee!
Caffeine was revisited in the Times this past week:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/05/health/05brod.html
All of us who indulge have probably read something about the health effects of our favorite perky beverage. Does it cause cancer, disrupt our sleep, dehydrate our bodies, promote brain longevity? I like that last one. I was astounded that after years of hearing that coffee is a diuretic and thus doesn't contribute to our daily need for fluids that there has finally been a study; the idea is debunked and we can count our treasured cups of joe as part of our eight glasses per day. To generalize way too much, sometimes conventional wisdom is just a theory that has been repeated way too many times.
One part of this article that directly addresses an issue I raised in my last journal entry:
"Bone loss. Though some observational studies have linked caffeinated beverages to bone loss and fractures, human physiological studies have found only a slight reduction in calcium absorption and no effect on calcium excretion, suggesting the observations may reflect a diminished intake of milk-based beverages among coffee and tea drinkers."
Studying the relationship between drinking coffee and a negative physiological effect initially seemed to show a problem: a correlation was found. However, on closer examination, the actual causal relationship was more complex: perhaps the coffee was being substituted for other beverages and the decrease in milk consumption was the culprit in bone loss, not the drinking of coffee.
Correlations are pesky things.
More coffee!