Questionable Coffee Health Risks

Coffee has gotten a bad rap among health conscious consumers. While there are few drawbacks to drinking large amounts of coffee, there are just as many myths and misconceptions.

It has long been thought that coffee, as a stimulant, leads to forms of heart disease.  The recent studies, however, suggest that coffee when consumed in moderate doses is perfectly safe for the drinker’s heart.

There is a widely held belief that unfiltered coffee increases health risks, such as an increase in “bad” cholesterol and/or homocysteine levels. The truth is there just isn’t enough definitive research to suggest whether this is true or not, so why panic?

Another specious belief is that excess stomach acid caused ulcers, and drinking coffee would contribute to the stomach acid. But the Helicobacter pylori bacteria cause most ulcers, and those ulcers can be cured easily with antibiotics. At the worst, coffee may aggravate existing ulcers.