抗氧化的原动力
可能最好的秘密就是，咖啡可以传递更多的抗氧化物，并比目前认为最好的抗氧化物――绿茶更胜一筹。绿咖啡豆会有大约1000种抗氧化物，并在萃取时再增加了300余种，再烘培时又生成有益于健康的混合物。
根据设在瑞士的雀巢研究中心近期在农业和食品化学月刊上发表咖啡含有四倍于绿茶的抗氧化物成分，并且还胜于可可、茶叶及红酒。当然，确切的抗氧化物的含量在不同咖啡豆中是有不同的（尽管在烘培过程中含量都有减少，但Robustas是Arabicas中的两倍），实际含量也与萃取工艺和用量有关。
抗氧化物的益处在发现“自由基”时得以衍生。这些不稳定细胞为了使自己不被亚原子物质俘获而杀死，这一情况被证明使人体过早老化及发生心脏疾病、脑部发育障碍、癌症、白内障、损伤免疫及神经系统和其他健康问题。
Antioxidant Powerhouse
Probably the best kept secret about coffee is that it delivers more antioxidants than even the latest antioxidant bellwether, green tea. Green coffee beans contain about 1,000 antioxidants, and the brewing process adds 300 more. The roasting process, by the way, creates its own set of healthful compounds which, like some antioxidants, are unique to coffee alone.
Coffee, in fact, has four times the antioxidant content of green tea, according to a study conducted in Switzerland by the Nestle Research Center and recently published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. The study found that coffee also outruns cocoa, herbal teas and red wine. Of course, precise antioxidant content varies from cup to cup, depending on the type of bean (Robustas have twice the antioxidants of Arabicas, although the difference is reduced in the roasting process) and the level of “solubles” in the cup, determined by the brewing method, time and amount of coffee used.
The health benefits of antioxidants are broad, since the compounds neutralize errant molecules known as “free radicals.” These electrically unbalanced cells kill healthy cells as they try to stabilize themselves by robbing sub-atomic particles. This process has been implicated in premature aging, cardiovascular disease, degenerative brain disorders, cancer, cataracts, the decline of the immune and nervous system, and other health problems.
II型糖尿病
第三点，长期及多数小型研究都认定咖啡含有可阻止II型人体依赖型糖尿病，最近完成的研究发现女性每日饮用3－4杯咖啡可以减少29％发生糖尿病的可能性，男性在这一数字是27％。并且这一数字与饮用咖啡的数成正比，即女性每日饮用10杯以上咖啡，患糖尿病的风险下降80％，而男性为55％。
来自哈佛大学公共卫生学院研究发现，男性患有II型糖尿病的可能性下降50％，女性为30％，并且与饮用咖啡的杯数成正比。男性每日饮用6杯以上时患糖尿病可能性下降54％，4－5杯时为29％，1－3杯时为7％。女性组显示分别为29％、30％和1％。以上结果也依据其他因素，如年龄、体重和训练情况，发现咖啡是独立因素结果。哈佛的研究与早期杜克的研究有着惊人的一致性结论。
综上，咖啡内的混合物质是有益的。其他含咖啡因的饮料部具有同等抵抗的能力，不含咖啡因的咖啡的抵抗作用较差，不含咖啡因的茶部具有抵抗作用。
Type II Diabetes
Three major, long-term studies, as well as numerous smaller studies, have confirmed coffee's properties for preventing Type II, or “adult-onset,” diabetes. A new Finnish study found that women who drank three to four cups of coffee a day reduced their diabetes risk by 29%. For men, the reduction was 27%. Those who drank more had higher risk reduction levels -- women who drank ten or more cups of coffee daily lowered their risk by 80%, while men had a 55% lower risk.
This study came on the heels of a study at Harvard University School of Public Health that found the risk of developing Type II Diabetes could be cut in half in men and reduced by 30% in women. Again, the protection proved to be directly proportional to the amount of coffee one drinks. Men who drank six or more cups a day reduced their diabetes risk by 54%, four to five cups by 29% and one to three by 7%. In women, the figures were, respectively, 29%, 30% and 1%. Results were adjusted to offset other risk factors such as age, weight and exercise, and so coffee drinking was isolated as the cause of the benefit. The Harvard study, in turn, confirmed an earlier Dutch study that reached the similarly dramatic conclusions.
Results also suggested that unique coffee compounds contribute to the beneficial effect. Other caffeinated beverages did not offer the same level of protection, and decaffeinated coffee provided lesser protection, while decaffeinated tea offered none.
结肠癌
咖啡的其他混合物有降低结肠癌的作用。科学家长期以来质疑咖啡和预防癌症的关系。去年秋天，德国科学明确了他们之间的关系。在每一种咖啡中都有一种强抗氧化物－甲基嘧啶，它可促进血酶的转运以预防结肠癌。甲基嘧啶是在咖啡豆烘培过程中自然生成的一种化合物。研究还表明咖啡越纯，此化合物浓度越高，高度烘培是中度烘培的2－3倍。
Colon Cancer
Another coffee compound has been shown to reduce the risk of colon cancer. While scientists had long suspected a connection between coffee and cancer protection, last fall German researchers identified the link. A powerful antioxidant found almost exclusively in coffee, methylpyridinium, boosts blood enzymes widely believed to protect against colon cancer. Methylpyridinium is formed in the roasting process from a chemical found naturally in coffee beans. The stronger the coffee, the study also found, the higher the level of the compound, with darker roasts containing two to three times more than medium roasts.
帕金森氏症
至少6种研究证明饮用咖啡与预防帕金森氏症的关系。研究显示人正常饮用咖啡可降低60％－80％发生帕金森氏症的风险；另有3种研究显示饮用咖啡越多，患帕金森氏症的风险越低。
Parkinson’s Disease
At least six independent studies have confirmed a link between coffee drinking and the prevention of Parkinson’s Disease. The research shows that people who drink coffee on a regular basis are 60 to 80% less likely to develop Parkinson’s. Three of the studies also show that the more they drink, the lower the risk.
激发意志
研究证明，除了预防疾病，咖啡还有积极的作用影响人们的一系列行为。刊登在《当代体育医学报道》上的一个研究指出咖啡种的咖啡因可改善意志及延长耐受力和有激情的训练。少数证明咖啡因可促进短期的运动员高强度训练并有提高注意力，减轻疲劳和高度紧张，主要原因是咖啡因作用于大脑受体，改善其能量释放。
一份来自巴西的研究认为每日饮用几杯咖啡还可提高男性生殖能力。根据《美国大众生殖医学》的科学家证实，含咖啡因的咖啡明显增强精液的“活性”，也就是增加了运动速度。自从精液的过渡活动不易受孕，高度活性增加了个体的受孕。
其他研究显示咖啡及咖啡因都有积极影响意志能力，咖啡可增加敏感性及改善人们的神智功能。
Performance Booster
Research has also proved that, in addition to protecting against disease, coffee has a positive functional impact on an array of human activities. A study published in Current Sports Medicine Reports found that the caffeine in coffee improves performance and endurance during prolonged, exhaustive exercise. To a lesser extent, it also boosts short-term, high-intensity athletic performance, as well as enhances concentration, reduces fatigue and heightens alertness. The reason lies in caffeine’s effect on brain receptors, enabling better energy uptake.
A Brazilian study has determined that drinking a few cups of coffee a day will also increase male fertility. According to scientists at the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, the caffeine in coffee appears to increase sperm “motility,” that is, the speed at which they move. Since sperm “hyperactivity” is critical to fertilization, heightened motility increases the odds of pregnancy.
Other studies have shown that coffee and caffeine also have a positive influence on mental function. Coffee increases alertness and Improves performance on tests of mental function.
其他好处
咖啡、咖啡因与健康每天都在被研究。全世界都有数以百计的新研究成果被发表。实际上，NCA的SAG（一个由科学家、博士和学生组成，以对健康持严谨态度地收集、观察和分析，基于基础研究的科学论文，SAG也吸纳基金以资助有意义的研究得以完成。
专家揭示其他有关喝咖啡的好处。饮用咖啡被证明可以降低80％的患肝硬化的风险，有助于在药物疗法失效时控制气喘病及其发作，适度降低发生冠心病的发生，同时还可抑制头痛、调节心情、预防溃疡、抵消因吸烟和烈性酒精的摄入。
综上，研究显示饮用咖啡的好处大于坏处。Vanderbilt大学咖啡研究所的科研家Tom DePaulis博士说：对大多数人，饮用咖啡只带来很少的坏处，但却有很多好处！
Other Benefits
Research continues every day on coffee, caffeine and health. Hundreds of new studies are published every month by scientists and research institutes around the world. In fact, the NCA’s Scientific Advisory Group (SAG), a committee of scientists, doctors and serious students of health issues, monitors and analyzes the scientific literature on a regular basis. SAG also selectively funds promising research proposals for completion.
The literature reveals many other benefits of coffee drinking as well. Coffee consumption has been proven to cut the risk of liver cirrhosis by 80%, to help manage asthma and even control attacks when medication is unavailable, and in moderation to decrease the risk of developing acute coronary disease. It’s also shown that coffee can stop a headache, boost mood, prevent cavities, and even offset damage of smoking and heavy alcohol intake.
“Overall, the research shows that coffee is far more healthful than it is harmful,” says Tom DePaulis, PhD, research scientist at Vanderbilt University’s Institute for Coffee Studies. “For most people, very little bad comes from drinking it, but a lot of good.”
