I'm Worthless Until I've Had My Coffee

Are you one of those people who have quite a coffee habit?  Do you drink coffee several times a day? Do you stop at a local coffee shop drive-through for a fix on a regular basis?

You  might be interested to know:

• Light-colored coffee beans have more caffeine than dark-colored ones.
• Coffee was originally eaten, not brewed into a beverage.
• Coffee was first introduced to the Americas around 1723.
• Coffee beans start their lives as a cherry. These are said to taste like peach or watermelon. The berries are dried and stripped until only a green seedpod remains, then they are roasted; that's how they turn brown and dry.

• Hawaii is the only state in the U.S. that grows coffee.
• Brazil grows the most coffee. 
• Coffee is grown in 65 countries; those countries are close to the equator--coffee plants only grow in tropical environments. Sometimes, fruit trees are grown amongst coffee plants.
• Coffee has been used for over 700 years as a drink.
• Over 500 billion cups of coffee, it is estimated, are consumed every year. The U.S. drinks the most coffee, about 150 billion cups a year.

• As to caffeine: Espresso is the coffee with the highest level of caffeine. 
• Coffee was the first food to be freeze-dried. The method was invented by someone named George Washington, a Belgian man (not the American president).
• There are over 50 species of coffee bean, but only two kinds are harvested and sold on a large scale: Arabica and Robusta. About 75% of coffee we drink is the Arabica variety.
• Coffee produces $60 to $90 billion every year in profits.
• Seattle, Washington, has the most coffee shops.
• Coffee, or the caffeine in it, will not make a drunk person sober.
• If you spend $4 a day on coffee at a coffee shop and you buy it five days a week, you are spending $1040.00 each year on your morning fix.
• Black coffee has only 8 calories in a cup.
• Cream and sugar are often added to black coffee to combat its bitter taste.
• Cappucino has about 130 calories
• Latte has about 180 calories
• Mocha has about 330 calories
• Peppermint chocolate coffee has about 560 calories-total daily calorie intake should be about 2500 for a man and 2000 for a woman

*It has a lot to do with what you add to the coffee, like sugar, whipped cream, and flavorings.

*People who are in the habit of drinking coffee regularly will sometimes have withdrawal symptoms when they stop:

• Headache ( caffeine narrows the blood vessels in your head. When you stop, the blood vessels enlarge. This can cause a headache)
• Fatigue (caffeine is a stimulant. When you're used to having it, then stop, it can cause fatigue.
• Anxiety, lack of ability to concentrate, being depressed, and/or being irritable or angry. These are all a result of having a stimulant on a regular basis (caffeine) and then taking it away or withdrawing it. If you have caffeine daily, it only stays in your system for a few hours and then you'll want more.

• If you are getting caffeine from soft drinks (most dark colored drinks, but a few light color ones have a lot of caffeine in them, such as Mountain Dew), then the sugar rush you experience along with the caffeine is a combination that's hard to stop. Pepsi One, for instance, has a super-high content of caffeine even though it's supposedly only one calorie and not sweetened with sugar. Here is a list of various colas and their caffeine content: https://www.caffeineinformer.com/caffeine-amounts-in-soda-every-kind-of-cola-you-can-think-of
• Caffeine can also be found in some teas, certain chocolate, and anything with coffee as a flavor such as coffee ice cream, energy drinks like Red Bull, as well as some medications and over the counter drugs such as Excedrin and Anacin. Some people feel that (ironically) caffeine helps migraines. You can purchase caffeine in a supplement, as well. Read labels to see how much you're taking in.
• If you start feeling unwell, try cutting back or cutting out your coffee/caffeine consumption. Your coffee habit may make you less able to absorb the iron and calcium you need, and it may be affecting your ability to sleep well. You may feel much better without caffeine. It can increase cysts in breasts, high blood pressure, and various other conditions. Some other findings about caffeine: https://www.caffeineinformer.com/harmful-effects-of-caffeine

As with all things you take into your body, moderation is key.

Now that you know more about coffee and caffeine, you might think about cutting back.