The debate continues. We’ve previously posted about the many health benefits that appear to be derived from consuming coffee: everything from the boost of mental alertness from the caffeine to the anti-inflammatory protections from the antioxidants in coffee. You can add to that the results of a brand new study published in Nature Metabolism. There is a natural compound found in some plants and foods called trigonelline which is also found in high concentrations in coffee (foods with trigonelline include barley, soy, onions, and tomatoes). What researchers discovered was that this compound is positively correlated with muscle strength and function. In fact, low levels of trigonelline appear to correlate with sarcopenia. Previous research also connects trigonelline with improvements in memory and learning. So this may be one more reason to make sure coffee is your companion in the morning. To find out more, grab a mug and look here.

However, the caffeine content in coffee continues to pose potential problems for some people. While there’s no doubt that caffeine from coffee (or such other sources as tea, chocolate, or energy drinks) can increase your mental alertness and temporarily reduce fatigue, there are such potential harms as sleep disturbance, increased heart rate, anxiety, or restlessness. Caffeine can become habit-forming and even rise to the level of toxicity if too much is consumed. You may have read that lawsuits have recently been launched against the Panera bread company alleging that two deaths and another serious case of injury have arisen from drinks containing extremely high levels of caffeine (along with sugar) and patrons were unaware of the levels of caffeine they were consuming. There is such a thing as caffeine intoxication when people consume far more caffeine than the daily recommended amount of not more than 400 mg per day (which is the equivalent of about 4 small cups of coffee). Apparently, once you reach levels of about 1200 mg a day, you can experience everything from increased blood pressure to vomiting to seizures and even death. Furthermore, for people with certain underlying conditions, ingesting caffeine, especially in large quantities, can be harmful. For example, for those with severe hypertension, two or more cups a day of caffeinated coffee can increase your risk of death from cardiovascular disease by 2x. So, understanding the amount of caffeine you’re consuming and your tolerance level is important as you embark on your daily beverage consumption. NPR recently ran a story (including an audio version) describing how you can have a healthy relationship with caffeine, including suggestions for understanding your own tolerance and sensitivity, recognizing that caffeinated beverages are not a substitute for sleep or healthy eating, and strategies for cutting back, if you think you’re overdoing it.

Some may think that the better choice is to just switch to decaf coffee. That, however, is not completely caffeine-free, nor free of its own controversy. STAT recently reported that there are health advocates who are currently trying to have an additive removed from decaf coffee that has been linked to cancer in lab rodents. According to this article, almost all decaf coffee contains methylene chloride. While this chemical is virtually undetected in decaf coffee, and there is very little evidence to support a cancer risk in humans, some are advocating for the removal of the chemical in the decaf process, which would mean other, more expensive methods to decaffeinate the coffee would need to be used. It’s not clear how this will end up, so stay tuned. And in the meantime, if you’re trying to decide what your next interesting coffee concoction should be, take this quiz posted by The Washington Post to match your coffee preferences with the best options available.