As a beverage, coffee has no nutritive value but it is, nevertheless, and invaluable and refreshing stimulant which finds a definite place in helping to maintain out modern speed of life.
This is due to the presence of 1.2% - 1.9% of caffeine, which exists in the raw beans and survives the roasting process with little loss. The chemical also present in human diet in the form of beverages like tea, soft drinks and energy drinks.
This crystalline alkaloid is tasteless and being moderately soluble in waters, is normally extracted in the production of coffee beverage.
Caffeine stimulates the cortex of the brain, thought processes quickly improve, becoming more effect, albeit temporarily.
Memory improves and reaction time decreases. Caffeine can reverse some of the behavioral deficits in humans that result from fatique, boredom or lack of sleep.
Other benefits include easing of asthma, relieving of painful bouts of gallstones and weight loss.
In large doses in nontolerant individuals, it increases blood pressure and heart rate.
In view of the demand for caffeine free coffee, this alkaloid may be extracted from the dry bean, either before or after roasting, by non polar solvents without detriment to the flavor.
Several patents exist for this process and about 1/6 of the instant coffee sold in the world is now decaffeinated.
A survey conducted by Consumer Reports found that decaffeinated coffee has some degree of caffeine.
Decaffeinated coffee originated in Germany over hundred years ago. The US Food and Drug administration requires that coffee must have 97 percent of the caffeine removed from the untreated green beans to qualify as ‘decaffeinated’.
Caffeine and Decaffeinated Coffee
