Coffee Is My Life

Coffee is a brewed drink prepared from roasted coffee beans which are the seeds of berries from the Coffea plant. The genus Coffea is native to tropical Africa and Madagascar the Comoros Mauritius and Reunion in the Indian Ocean. The plant was exported from Africa to countries around the world and coffee plants are now cultivated in over 70 countries primarily in the equatorial regions of the Americas Southeast Asia India and Africa. The two most commonly grown are the highly regarded Arabica and the less sophisticated but stronger and hardier Robusta. Once ripe, coffee berries are picked, processed, and dried. Dried coffee seeds referred to as beans are roasted to varying degrees, depending on the desired flavor. Roasted beans are ground and brewed with near boiling water to produce coffee as a beverage. Coffee is slightly acidic and can have a stimulating effect on humans because of its caffeine content. Coffee is one of the most popular drinks in the world. It can be prepared and presented in a variety of ways espresso French press cafe latte it is usually served hot although iced coffee is also served. Clinical studies indicate that moderate coffee consumption is benign or mildly beneficial in healthy adults, with continuing research on whether long-term consumption inhibits cognitive decline during aging or lowers the risk of some forms of cancer. The earliest credible evidence of coffee-drinking appears in the middle of the 15th century in the Sufi shrines of Yemen. It was here in Arabia that coffee seeds were first roasted and brewed in a similar way to how it is now prepared.

Coffee seeds were first exported from East Africa to Yemen as the coffee Arabica plant is thought to have been indigenous to the former. Yemeni traders took coffee back to their homeland and began to cultivate the seed. By the 16th century it had reached Persia Turkey and North Africa. From there it spread to Europe and the rest of the world. Coffee trees are pruned short to conserve their energy and aid in harvesting, but can grow to more than 30 feet and 9 meters high. Each tree is covered with green, waxy leaves growing opposite each other in pairs. Coffee cherries grow along the branches. Because it grows in a continuous cycle, it’s not unusual to see flowers, green fruit and ripe fruit simultaneously on a single tree. It takes nearly a year for a cherry to mature after first flowering, and about 5 years of growth to reach full fruit production. While coffee plants can live up to 100 years they are generally the most productive between the ages of 7 and 20. Proper care can maintain and even increase their output over the years depending on the variety. The average coffee tree produces 10 pounds of coffee cherry per year or 2 pounds of green beans. All commercially grown coffee is from a region of the world called the Coffee Belt. The trees grow best in rich soil, with mild temperatures, frequent rain and shaded sun. Coffee was not only enjoyed in homes but also in the many public coffee houses called qahveh khaneh which began to appear in cities across the Near East.

The popularity of the coffee houses was unequaled and people frequented them for all kinds of social activity. Most of the world Robusta is grown in Central and Western Africa parts of Southeast Asia including Indonesia and Vietnam and in Brazil. Production of Robusta is increasing, though it accounts for only about 30% of the world market. Findings have been contradictory as to whether coffee has any specific health benefits and results are similarly conflicting regarding the potentially harmful effects of coffee consumption. Furthermore results and generalizations are complicated by differences in age, gender, health status, and serving size. When that happened the amount of other neurotransmitters do not like nor epinephrine and dopamine actually increases leading to enhanced firing of neurons. Many controlled trials in humans show that coffee improves various aspects of brain function. This includes memory mood vigilance energy levels reaction times and general cognitive function. Caffeine stimulates the nervous system causing it to send signals to the fat cells to break down body fat. But caffeine also increases Epinephrine Adrenaline levels in the blood. This is the fight or flight hormone designed to make our bodies ready for intense physical exertion. Caffeine makes the fat cells break down body fat releasing them into the blood as free fatty acids and making them available as fuel. Given these effects, it is not surprising to see that caffeine can improve physical performance by 11-12% on average 29, 20. Because of this it makes sense to have a strong cup of coffee about a half an hour before you head to the gym. Coffee competitions take place across the globe with people at the regional competing to achieve national titles and then compete on the international stage. World Coffee Events holds the largest of such events moving the location of the final competition each year. The competition includes the following events Barista Championship Brewers Cup Latte Art and Cup Tasters. A World Brewer's Cup Championship takes place in Melbourne, Australia, every year that houses contestants from around the world to crown the World's Coffee King. Coffee can help people feel less tired and increase energy levels. After you drink coffee the caffeine is absorbed into the bloodstream.