What Is It About Coffee Astrid Doesn’t Like?

There’s just no understanding some people. Every day it seems the news comes out about another health benefit of coffee. But even so, there are the occasional writers who either ignore those announcements or discount them, and then offer the opposite point of view and build a case for avoiding coffee. Astrid Bidanec is one of those writers who has a grievance against coffee. Everyone has a right to an opinion of course, a point she made herself. Opinions are one thing but facts are quite another. Her points against coffee can be refuted or at least questioned, and opinion has nothing to do with it.

Her first complaint is that Americans spend too much money on coffee, using the example of a $5 Starbucks drink. Since caffeine is classified as a stimulant, it creates a physical dependency and leads to more expensive coffees. While it helps the economy it is detrimental to health. Well, it might be so if all of the 400 million cups of coffee consumed daily cost $5 a pop, but many brew their own at much less cost.

Another complaint is that caffeine in coffee leads to weight gain, as appetite is stimulated once the caffeine high wears off. This contradicts the experience of many coffee drinkers who drink it to help them lose weight. She doesn’t give a source for these statements, but goes on to state that it’s almost impossible to maintain a healthy eating schedule with all the food cravings caused by coffee. Plus all the sugar and creamer we use… many drink their coffee black, and others may use less fattening additions than creamer.

Astrid also doesn’t like the caffeine crash that follows the caffeine high. Coffee does not have to cause these highs and lows. Most coffee drinkers reach a plateau where, if they drink the same amount every day, their body adjusts and the caffeine no longer affects them to such extremes. The same pattern applies to withdrawal headaches. Mostly those who have a greater consumption of coffee suffer from withdrawal headaches. As long as people drink coffee in moderate amounts, say less than four big cups a day, they should be able to avoid these kinds of extremes. All coffee drinkers will have their own opinions about Astrid’s points. Since opinions should be backed up by facts, know your facts. And brew on, knowingly.