26 replies to this topic

[cesium]

Coffee 'gives more antioxidants than fruit and veg'
(Filed: 29/08/2005)

Coffee is likely to contribute far more antioxidants to the British diet than fruit and vegetables.

The evidence comes from the United States where scientists measured the antioxidant content of more than 100 different food items, including vegetables, fruits, nuts, spices, oils and beverages. The information was combined with US Department of Agriculture data on the contribution of each item to the average American's diet.

Coffee - caffeinated and decaffeinated - emerged as easily the biggest source of antioxidants, taking account of the amount per serving and level of consumption. Black tea came second, followed by bananas.

"Americans get more of their antioxidants from coffee than any other dietary source - nothing else comes close," said study leader Professor Joe Vinson, from Scranton University in Pennsylvania. He was presenting his findings at the American Chemical Society's annual meeting in Washington DC.

The findings in the US probably reflect a similar trend in the UK, where people drink about 70 million cups of coffee each day. Antioxidants help to rid the body of harmful free radicals, destructive molecules that damage cells and DNA. They have been linked to health benefits, including protection against heart disease and cancer.

Studies have associated coffee drinking with a reduced risk of liver and colon cancer, type two diabetes, and Parkinson's disease.

But Prof Vinson recommended that people drink only one or two cups a day. He said it was important not to ignore the benefits of fresh fruit and vegetables. "Unfortunately, consumers are still not eating enough fruits and vegetables, which are better for you from an overall nutritional point of view due to their higher content of vitamins, minerals and fibre," said Prof Vinson.

Dates were found to be the richest source of antioxidants, but since so few were eaten by Americans, they only contributed a small amount of antioxidants to the average diet.

http://www.telegraph...ml&sSheet=/news

[ajnast4r]

its also extremely acidic, and unless its organic its DRENCHED in pesticides...

how stable are the antioxidents, do you know what a anti-oxident/free radical cascade is? once anti-oxidents react with a free radical, they are now pro-oxidents... not many dietary antioxidents are that stable, to my knowledge...

this article just sounds like people get more antioxidents from coffee than vegetables, because they eat more coffee than vegetables...

[cesium]

Well I would like to see the study itself and the methodology used to determine these rankings. For instance I've never heard of bananas being especially high in antioxidents, yet it comes out high on this list and I wonder if it's only because bananas are one of the most popular fruits in the US, and therefore we get most of our antioxidents from them for that reason.

[lynx]

its also extremely acidic, and unless its organic its DRENCHED in pesticides...

how stable are the antioxidents, do you know what a anti-oxident/free radical cascade is? once anti-oxidents react with a free radical, they are now pro-oxidents... not many dietary antioxidents are that stable, to my knowledge...

this article just sounds like people get more antioxidents from coffee than vegetables, because they eat more coffee than vegetables...

Very good point. I remember reading a study that said the coffee had to be ground, brewed and drunk w/in 20 minutes otherwise it became a prooxidant. So, is the same thing happening in your body even if it is fresh?

[DukeNukem]

Sheesh, this study is going to cause a ton of confusion.

Coffee is NOT a good source of anti-oxidants. But, SADLY, it's apparently the source that best contributes anti-oxidants to the typical sorry-ass American diet of death.

Bananas, too, are a horrible source for anti-oxidants, as we do not eat the skin (where most of the anti-oxidants reside), and they're so high in sugar. And corn is a terribly unhealthy food, and we get far, far too much corn in our sad-ass diets already, same with potatoes, the Unofficial American Vegetable, usually served fried!

Berries, beans, spices, green tea, nuts (not peanuts!), peppers, dark green or rainbow colored veggies, unsweetened chocolate, cinnamon, etc. are still the best sources of diverse, helpful anti-oxidants. Coffee is a net negative, due to its extreme acidity, and caffeine.

[DJS]

typical sorry-ass American diet of death.

[lol]

[ajnast4r]

its also extremely acidic, and unless its organic its DRENCHED in pesticides...

how stable are the antioxidents, do you know what a anti-oxident/free radical cascade is? once anti-oxidents react with a free radical, they are now pro-oxidents... not many dietary antioxidents are that stable, to my knowledge...

this article just sounds like people get more antioxidents from coffee than vegetables, because they eat more coffee than vegetables...

Very good point. I remember reading a study that said the coffee had to be ground, brewed and drunk w/in 20 minutes otherwise it became a prooxidant. So, is the same thing happening in your body even if it is fresh?

my guess is the oils in the coffee beans oxidise very quickly... i would imagine the roasting process oxidises them a bit also.

the coffee is acidic no matter what you do... which in general isnt that good for the body. its also has a marked negative effect on digestion, and descreases enzyme function. and everyone [should] know that the foundation of optimum health is optimum digestion. so i personally try to limit my coffee intake to my days off, or just when im really tired.

i say this as i sit here sipping a cup of coffee hehe...but its organic coffee, and i grind it fresh before i brew it. organic coffee is really important, as ive read that coffee is one of the most heavily sprayed crops. personally i find it tastes better, and the effects on my body are more mild.

[Mind]

Also remember that they are talking about black coffee here. Your typical starbucks java is loaded with suger, which certainly tilts the nutritional balance into the negative.

Nuts (not peanuts)

I know other nuts are better, but peanuts are not evil. They are a lot better source of fat than lard, butter, or red meat.

[cesium]

I remember reading a study that said the coffee had to be ground, brewed and drunk w/in 20 minutes otherwise it became a prooxidant. So, is the same thing happening in your body even if it is fresh?

I recall that study and wonder what methodology was used in this one which led them to their conclusions. I suspect the whole thing might be a bit flawed, at least for my purposes, but still would like to take a look at the paper itself instead of these secondary sources to glean whatever useful info they may have come up with. They also mentioned dates as having a high antioxident capacity, but noted that they weren't consumed much in our culture. I am just trying to get some scientifically definitive answers here as to which foods are the best antioxidents, and how they might compare to other supplements in this reguard.

[Matt]

So green Tea is definitly more benificial... but Green Tea is not something that the majority of the U.S drink... Thefore even tho it's more benificial its not what americans are getting their antioxidants from. Most people in the western world get their antioxidants from poor sources.

[cesium]

Coffee may be a better antioxidant than most people are aware of:

Antioxidant properties of roasted coffee residues.

Yen WJ, Wang BS, Chang LW, Duh PD.

The antioxidant activity of roasted coffee residues was evaluated. Extraction with four solvents (water, methanol, ethanol, and n-hexane) showed that water extracts of roasted coffee residues (WERCR) produced higher yields and gave better protection for lipid peroxidation. WERCR showed a remarkable protective effect on oxidative damage of protein. In addition, WERCR showed scavenging of free radicals as well as the reducing ability and to bind ferrous ions, indicating that WERCR acts as both primary and secondary antioxidants. The HPLC analyses showed that phenolic acids (chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid) and nonphenolic compounds [caffeine, trigonelline, nicotinic acid, and 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfuraldehyde] remained in roasted coffee residues. These compounds showed a protective effect on a liposome model system. The concentrations of flavonoids and polyphenolic compounds in roasted coffee residues were 8,400 and 20,400 ppm, respectively. In addition, the Maillard reaction products (MRPs) remaining in roasted coffee residues were believed to show antioxidant activity. These data indicate that roasted coffee residues have excellent potential for use as a natural antioxidant source because the antioxidant compounds remained in roasted coffee residues.

PMID: 15796608 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
http://www.ncbi.nlm....6608&query_hl=2

[DukeNukem]

Cesium, coffee may be a good source of anti-oxidants, but overall it's not a healthy drink.

I know other nuts are better, but peanuts are not evil. They are a lot better source of fat than lard, butter, or red meat.

Mind, peanuts are not bad, per se, but they are generally an unsafe crop to eat because they are plagued with aflatoxin, a carcinogenic mold. Brand name peanut butters, especially, have often been sampled and tested positive with aflatoxin, because peanut butter makers use the least expensive, non-whole peanuts.

I'd only eat organic peanuts, but even they can be afflicted. Also, you should eat the skins (not the shell), where many of the key nutrients reside.

Overall, I'd rate walnuts and almonds as far better, safer nut choices.

Edited by dukenukem, 31 August 2005 - 02:27 PM.

[cesium]

dukenukem;

I was responding to your post above where you stated:

Coffee is NOT a good source of anti-oxidants. But, SADLY, it's apparently the source that best contributes anti-oxidants to the typical sorry-ass American diet of death

On the contrary, it appears that coffee is an excellent antioxident. Caffeine has both positive an negative effects, and I'm not sure what you are referring to when you speak of coffee's extreme acidity as being harmful, except perhaps that it can cause feelings of dyspepsia in some. Also just for the record the quote you used about peanuts wasn't from me, I made no comments about nuts on this thread.

[liorrh]

dukenukem - excelent info...

where can we get organic coffee and peanuts now...

[lifemission]

You can cold brew coffee by grinding and adding 1 pound to 9 cups clean water. And soaking for 10-12 hrs before draining.
This makes a concentrate with 50-67% less acid and oil. IMO it tastes better, is smoother and never upset my stomach. Just add 1-2 tbs. of the concentrate to hot water.
It uses a bit more coffee than the normal drip brewing, but since the refrigerated concentrate keeps for about 2 weeks you never have to throw any brewed coffee away like I usually do when I brew too much hot coffee.
It's usually referred to as "toddy". You can find the simple toddy makers for pretty cheap. Just do a search. It's basically just an oversized filter basket with a stopper that you pull after 10-12 hrs to drain into the glass jar that it comes with. If you're handy you could make your own.
take care
Beau

[scotthello]

So then..what food is the best source of antioxidants in the U.S?

[lemon]

Prunes and blueberries are good sources.

[Pablo M]

So then..what food is the best source of antioxidants in the U.S?

Do you mean what is the best source, period, or what is the source that Americans get?

The ORAC rating provides a measure of the antioxidant capacity of food. Chinese goji berries are first, followed by blueberries and then other berries. I forget the top one for veggies, but it might be kale. Tea (especially white tea) and green rooibos are excellent sources as well. Pomegranete, herbs and spices-- turmeric and rosemary jump to mind. That's all can think of right now.

[lemon]

Yeah gojis are packed with nutrients. I'm growing my own. Goji berry plants can be bought at:

http://www.timpanogo...8760/page/45030

[scotthello]

yea, the best period..

[icyT]

What this article is actually saying, is that we drink so much more coffee than we eat fruits and vegetables (and consider that most are not at their full organic nutritional potential due to genetic modification, bad soil, lack of freshness and being coated in waxes) that we get more from coffee.

Not that I'm not using this study as a self-deluding excuse to drink coffee again or anything

[rfarris]

I remember reading a study that said the coffee had to be ground, brewed and drunk w/in 20 minutes otherwise it became a prooxidant.

I often roast my organic coffee beans, grind them, brew them, and drink the coffee within 20 minutes. I always do everything in the chain starting with grinding within 20 minutes. Cup, by cup. I never keep coffee around that was roasted longer than a week ago.

By the time roasted coffee is two weeks old the coffee oils are generally rancid. If you ever get used to drinking freshly roasted coffee, you'll be able to taste the rancid oil when it gets older than about two weeks. It is very rare for commercial grocery store coffee to be fresher than six months.

One thing that I didn't see mentioned in this thread is that specialty coffees are generally arabica species, as opposed to robustica. Robustica is almost always used for commercial (think Folgers) coffee. Arabica has less than 1/2 as much caffeine as robustica does. Sometimes 1/4 as much.

If you're interested in drinking organic coffee, in particular if you'd like to roast your own coffee (easy and cheap), check out www.sweetmarias.com. They have everything from instructions showing how to roast with air poppers, to dozens of organic coffee beans.

-- Rick

[icyT]

Most things don't change from one to the other... my best guess is that the anti-oxidant vitamins or flavonoids or whatever degrade after preservation or being out too long, and that the prooxidant ingrediants don't, so that's what could make it pro-oxidant.

IF it is. I'm not so sure, where'd you hear that? The main study of this thread implies it always has antioxidants.

I've read a complex book on antixidants and know there are many types, any inkling which one is in coffee and if it's in other foods I can compare it to?

[aurora]

Where can you buy these in Australia?I have not seen these before.Can someone tell me where I can purchase the Goji berry here?I currently only have blueberries, raspberries and strawberries.Should I not worry about the antioxidants in coffee, as I already drink alot of green tea everyday.Advice needed.Help please....

[icyT]

Whatever antioxidants are in coffee (notice how they don't say what they are?) can most likely be found somewhere else. IF someone would tell me what the name of them are, I'll find an alternative source.

[rfarris]

Whatever antioxidants are in coffee ... can most likely be found somewhere else. IF someone would tell me what the name of them are, I'll find an alternative source.

What source could be easier and cheaper than coffee? To say nothing of it being a great beverage.

-- Rick

[icyT]

The problem with coffee is I can't seem to enjoy it without heaping amounts of sugar. Even though I switched from white to brown, it's still a heck of a lot of sugar.

The caffeine is also bad for the nerves. If you're naturally non-energetic I guess it's better than being bad, but even then you're still jittery. Since I already exercise and stuff I'm already energized in the morning, so when I have 6 cups of coffee with 3 tsp of sugar in each then it gets me really riled up and my heart beats too fast.