4 ms·

Having recently (3 months ago) stopped a 20 year daily coffee habit, I would be inclined to say that caffeine is not at all good for your health. Just the stre

Having recently (3 months ago) stopped a 20 year daily coffee habit, I would be inclined to say that caffeine is not at all good for your health. Just the stress on the heart and nervous system alone is enough to offset any supposed benefit (from this perspective I'd say there are none, it's just getting hopped up on another drug, albeit a very much culturally accepted one in most parts of the world). Concentrated sugars taken in on a regular basis are also harmful to one's health. I guess live like the ancients (i.e. before alcohol, coffee, tabacco, white sugar, etc. came into being) is a pretty good recipe for optimal health.

circlefavshape 9y ago
"Daily coffee habit"? How much coffee per day?
- virtualwhys 9y ago
  For about 10 years, 2 per day, basically triple espressos (barring bed ridden state, without exception, every day). The last 5 years I cut back to one per day. Probably like a cigarette smoker giving up smoking, the thought of getting jacked up on caffeine is not at all appealing.
kofejnik 9y ago
There basically never was 'before drugs and alcohol', beer dates back to at least 9500 BC, and coca leaf chewing shouldn't be much younger. As for coffee, according to heart.org, "moderate coffee drinking (1–2 cups per day) doesn't seem to be harmful"
- virtualwhys 9y ago
  > moderate coffee drinking (1–2 cups per day) doesn't seem to be harmful Probably depends on the strength of the coffee, mine were more along the lines of Turkish than Folgers instant. Definitely could feel heart constriction at times. re: before drugs and alcohol, sure, the ancient ones reference is more metaphorical than any historical timeline.
- PhasmaFelis 9y ago
  Early beer was much, much weaker than what we have today. In a lot of times and places beer was the primary means of hydration--safer than dirty water--but people weren't staggering around drunk all the time.
  - wcummings 9y ago
    Alcohols intoxicating effects were almost certainly discovered before its usefulness as a disinfectant.
    - PhasmaFelis 9y ago
      Sure, but you don't need to know about disinfectant to notice that people who drink the water from the stream get sick and people who drink beer don't. (Nor need to realize that it's because the people and animals upstream are shitting in it. Not a big problem for hunter-gatherers, but it would have become an issue once large-scale agriculture became a thing.)
wcummings 9y ago
Animals will eat "rotting" fruit to catch a buzz, there was never a time "before alcohol".

circlefavshape 9y ago

"Daily coffee habit"? How much coffee per day?

virtualwhys 9y ago
For about 10 years, 2 per day, basically triple espressos (barring bed ridden state, without exception, every day). The last 5 years I cut back to one per day. Probably like a cigarette smoker giving up smoking, the thought of getting jacked up on caffeine is not at all appealing.

kofejnik 9y ago

There basically never was 'before drugs and alcohol', beer dates back to at least 9500 BC, and coca leaf chewing shouldn't be much younger. As for coffee, according to heart.org, "moderate coffee drinking (1–2 cups per day) doesn't seem to be harmful"

virtualwhys 9y ago
> moderate coffee drinking (1–2 cups per day) doesn't seem to be harmful Probably depends on the strength of the coffee, mine were more along the lines of Turkish than Folgers instant. Definitely could feel heart constriction at times. re: before drugs and alcohol, sure, the ancient ones reference is more metaphorical than any historical timeline.
PhasmaFelis 9y ago
Early beer was much, much weaker than what we have today. In a lot of times and places beer was the primary means of hydration--safer than dirty water--but people weren't staggering around drunk all the time.
- wcummings 9y ago
  Alcohols intoxicating effects were almost certainly discovered before its usefulness as a disinfectant.
  - PhasmaFelis 9y ago
    Sure, but you don't need to know about disinfectant to notice that people who drink the water from the stream get sick and people who drink beer don't. (Nor need to realize that it's because the people and animals upstream are shitting in it. Not a big problem for hunter-gatherers, but it would have become an issue once large-scale agriculture became a thing.)

wcummings 9y ago

Animals will eat "rotting" fruit to catch a buzz, there was never a time "before alcohol".