Coffee beans in chocolate
Not everyone knows that coffee does not have to be ground; coffee beans can also be eaten, and their effect will be comparable to a cup of hot drink. This is convenient especially before a long trip, when people try not to drink a lot of liquid.
Chocolate-covered coffee beans are very interesting in this regard, neuropsychologist Irina Khvingia. Such a delicacy, according to her, does not cause brain overstrain, which can be caused by a large dose of caffeine.
“Coffee, due to the caffeine, gives activity to the central nervous system, but excessive consumption has the opposite effect. As a result, attention is impaired and irritability increases. From overstrain, the brain begins to malfunction. Chocolate prevents this overstrain from occurring due to B vitamins,” the specialist explained.
Also, such a delicacy carries less load on the cardiovascular system. Thus, coffee and chocolate, complementing each other, provide maximum benefits. Hvingia named five chocolate-covered coffee beans as the optimal dose.
Why is chewing coffee beans beneficial?
Can you eat raw grains? The clear answer is yes. But this is far from the most pleasant delicacy: green beans are unappetizing, difficult to chew, have a very sour taste and a specific herbal smell.
Caffeine from raw beans acts faster than usual and produces a mild laxative effect. Just 200 mg of caffeine (equivalent to 16 beans or 2 cups of hard liquor) has the same effect as sleeping for half an hour. When combined with exercise and proper nutrition, caffeine speeds up your metabolism, which helps burn excess fat.
Beneficial features
In addition, according to her, chocolate-covered coffee beans are significantly less harmful to the human heart than a regular mug of coffee, because chocolate neutralizes the negative effects of caffeine.
“Coffee and caffeine are bad for the cardiovascular system. Chocolate is the opposite. It lowers cholesterol and is good for the heart. Coffee and chocolate complement each other. They reduce each other’s harmful effects,” explained Irina Khvingia.
At the same time, she reminded of the need to follow a daily routine and get a good night's sleep. Coffee, tea or chocolate-covered coffee beans provide only a temporary effect, but do not replace proper rest, which is so necessary for the healthy functioning of the brain and the whole body.
“Five chocolate-covered coffee beans are more than enough to slightly activate the nervous system and maintain performance for a while. It is important to understand here that even if you consume tons of them, the effect will still not last long. If a person chronically does not get enough sleep and sleeps less than three hours a day, then no grains in chocolate will put him in order. Here it will be necessary to focus on the daily routine, and not on increasing the number of coffee beans,” the expert warned.
Recipes with coffee beans
Green coffee beans are difficult to eat raw, but can be ground into flour and added to homemade baked goods. This will add a slight flavor and make it a powerful source of antioxidants.
There is another recipe: roasted coffee beans are poured with a layer of liquid chocolate and cooled, resulting in a very tasty and healthy dessert. Melt the chocolate in a water bath or in the microwave, pour the grains into it and stir. In this way, you can prepare a bar of coffee chocolate by cooling it in the molds.
To get the dragee, you need to carefully remove the chocolate-covered grains with a fork, then cool them in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours. Similar desserts can be found even in pastry shops. It is advisable to use natural chocolate with a high cocoa content. You can add seasonings, such as pepper or sea salt, to the liquid mixture.
Whole grains are added to some desserts and drinks. For example, the Italian sambuca con mosca (literally translated as “with flies”) contains three coffee beans, symbolizing happiness, health and wealth. After the drink is drunk, they are taken out from the bottom of the glass and chewed - as the Italians say, in order to be happy, healthy and rich.
Numerous studies indicate that drinking coffee in reasonable doses prolongs life. Whole and especially raw coffee beans are rich in beneficial substances, but some precautions must be taken when consuming them.
Coffee and chocolate sales are up this summer
This summer season, sales of chocolate (by 3%) and coffee (by 11%) in the country increased. However, the obvious explanation that this is due solely to the cold summer and prolonged periods of low pressure was not supported by experts. According to them, coffee with chocolate is a classic response of the population to general instability. But, like any medicine, it requires dosed consumption.
Traditionally, at such moments, people try to cheer themselves up with an extra cup of coffee and chocolate, which contain substances that promote the production of serotonin, or the “happiness hormone.”
At the same time, purchases of chocolate and coffee increased in monetary terms - by 4 and 8%. The measurement concerned chocolate products (bars, bars, boxed and loose candies), as well as natural coffee beans and capsules. Last year saw a different picture: chocolate increased only slightly (1%) and coffee decreased by 18%.
From the point of view of obtaining the happiness hormone, chocolate does not help in rainy and cold summers, since serotonin is formed only in conditions of bright sunlight.
— Chocolate at all times and in all countries has been a product that increases the production of dopamine, which is especially necessary for people now. In moments when there is no stability, they switch to carbohydrates. This has been noted statistically since the time of the Great French Revolution, explains the expert
Methods for preparing the drink
Freeze-dried coffee with milk: harm or benefit? When preparing the drink, it is not recommended to add sugar to it; it is better to drink it with honey. The benefit of coffee with milk or cream is that caffeine flushes calcium from the body, and milk replenishes this microelement. The drink retains all the harmful and beneficial properties of natural coffee.
When milk is added to a drink, calcium mineral salts accumulate in the kidneys and stones form.
Natural coffee, the benefits and harms of its use for women and men are manifested in an increase in the overall tone of the body. The negative effects of the drink cause disruption of the heart, liver, and nervous system. Blood circulation increases, which increases the load on the organs of the cardiovascular system. Increased stomach acidity after drinking coffee increases the load on the liver.
Flavored coffee beans are ground and brewed in a Turkish coffee pot. There is no need to dilute the drink with cream or milk so as not to spoil the taste of the additives. The freeze-dried or granulated soluble product is brewed with boiling water. You can add 2 tablespoons of milk to reduce bitterness, and honey instead of sugar.
You can add a slice of lemon to any type of coffee, this will give the drink a special taste and aroma. Citrus zest, cloves, and cinnamon are also used. Drinking lemon will help replenish vitamin C, potassium, phosphorus and magnesium, which caffeine removes. Lemon has a beneficial effect on the condition of blood vessels, while neutralizing the effect of caffeine.
Thanks to the content of potassium and magnesium in lemon, blood pressure is normalized, which increases drinking coffee. Therefore, a drink with the addition of a slice of lemon is less harmful.
Coffee with lemon and honey is also useful in the treatment of colds, since caffeine removes phlegm, and citrus strengthens the immune system, fights viruses, and relieves inflammation. Honey is a powerful antioxidant and reduces the harm from drinking coffee.
To add to a tonic drink, it is best to use linden and buckwheat honeys; they help reduce the bitterness of natural coffee. You need to prepare a drink with honey correctly; the bee product is added to a warm drink (50˚), otherwise all the beneficial properties of honey are lost.
Coffee diet
According to him, people often replace coffee with lunch.
“After all, after drinking one cup of this drink, even without sugar, milk or cream, a person does not feel hungry for an hour and a half,” the nutritionist is sure. — Recently they even came up with a coffee diet, which involves consuming only a few cups of coffee a day.
He also notes that if previously there were coffee machines in almost every office, now companies are abandoning this practice in order to save money, and people are forced to bring coffee with them.
Now people are in an anxious state.
“The population is frightened by the prospects of a new global financial crisis, which is constantly being talked about; people live in conditions of income stagnation,” he notes. — In general, it is a known fact that in unstable times people begin to save on many serious things - for example, they do not buy cars, jewelry, and reduce the consumption of delicacies. At the same time, the demand for chocolate is traditionally growing, since it is an inexpensive but effective way to improve mood, a kind of anti-crisis diet.
Potential health hazards
While consuming coffee beans in moderation is completely safe for health, consuming too much of them can cause problems. Additionally, some people are sensitive to substances in coffee beans that can lead to unpleasant side effects.
Heartburn and indigestion
Some compounds in coffee beans can cause stomach upset in some people.
This is because caffeine and other compounds called catechols present in coffee beans increase stomach acid (,).
This can lead to heartburn, a condition in which stomach acid backs up into your esophagus and causes a burning sensation.
Eating coffee beans may also cause bloating, nausea, and stomach upset (,).
Some studies have noted that using green coffee bean extract in higher doses caused diarrhea and stomach upset in people with sensitive stomachs ().
If you suffer from heartburn or other stomach problems, you may need to avoid or limit your consumption of coffee and coffee beans.
Laxative effect
For some people, drinking coffee has a laxative effect ().
Caffeine does not appear to be the culprit for the laxative effect, as decaffeinated coffee has also been found to increase bowel movements ().
Although rare, even low doses of caffeinated coffee can cause diarrhea ().
People with gut conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) should consume coffee beans with caution.
Sleep disturbance
While the caffeine in coffee beans can give you a much-needed boost of energy, it can also lead to sleep problems—especially for people who are sensitive to caffeine ().
Research shows that people who are sensitive to caffeine or consume too much of it are at greater risk of having trouble falling and staying asleep, which can cause daytime exhaustion ().
The effects of caffeine can last up to 9.5 hours after consumption ().
If caffeine is affecting your sleep, reduce the amount you consume during the day and avoid consuming it very close to bedtime.
Other potential side effects
High caffeine intake is associated with other unpleasant and potentially dangerous side effects, including:
- Increased anxiety symptoms such as rapid heartbeat, nausea, and feelings of stress (, )
- Withdrawal symptoms - including headache, anxiety, fatigue, tremors and poor concentration - if you suddenly quit coffee (, )
- Increased risk of pregnancy problems such as miscarriage, low birth weight, and early birth (, , )
If you are sensitive to caffeine, struggle with anxiety, or are pregnant, it is best to limit or avoid coffee beans.
Likewise, if you are experiencing withdrawal symptoms, try reducing your caffeine intake gradually.
Summary:
Eating too many coffee beans can cause a wide range of negative effects, such as heartburn, indigestion, increased bowel movements, sleep problems, anxiety and pregnancy complications.
Useful dose
The desire to cheer yourself up with a chocolate bar or drink coffee instead of lunch is quite understandable. But nutrition experts warn against excesses in this regard. As Alexey Kovalkov reminds, WHO recommends drinking no more than six cups of coffee per day.
- This does not mean that you need to drink exactly six cups. This is the maximum permissible level. And we are talking specifically about small coffee cups,” the nutritionist noted.
Victor Tutelyan advises limiting yourself to one or two servings of coffee, and people who suffer from hypertension should be especially careful when consuming the drink. He also advises limiting chocolate consumption for those who have problems with insulin metabolism, excess weight, etc., since this product contains a lot of fat and carbohydrates.
However, it is precisely this combination, the expert emphasizes, that promotes the production of serotonin and dopamine.
“But, for example, chocolate without sugar will not contribute to achieving the goal,” he says. — Again, WHO recommends no more than 60 g of carbohydrates per day.
Therefore, the nutritionist points out, it is necessary to calculate how many of them are contained not only in a serving of chocolate, but also in bread, drinks, cereals, etc.
