News – NCA Coffee Blog

A Matter of Health

Consumers are buffeted daily with confusing, if not conflicting, information about the foods and beverages they consume. Yesterday, whole eggs raised your cholesterol levels, while today they’re a source of healthy, non-saturated fat. Once it was thought that wine could damage your liver, while now it’s widely recognized as a cardiovascular boon.

Coffee is no stranger to the undulations of health messaging. Remember the stubborn old myths – like coffee stunts your growth, makes you dehydrated or is bad for your heart? Not only has science proven them wrong, but coffee now has a good and genuine story to tell.

Hispanic-Americans and Coffee

Hispanic-Americans make up 16.1% of the U.S. population, according to the 2012 U.S. Census, and their numbers are expected to grow to 24.4% by 2050. That’s a current total of 50 million Americans, an increase of 43% since 2000. By any measure, that’s a huge market of consumers whose tastes impact product strategies and bottom lines.

And, they drink coffee. In fact, more so than other Americans. New research reveals that Hispanics outpace non-Hispanics in overall consumption, as well as taste for premium coffee varieties. In Ethnicity and Coffee, an NCA report in the National Coffee Drinking Trends market research series, data show that 74% of Hispanic-Americans drink coffee daily – that’s a full 12 percentage points ahead of non-Hispanics. On a less frequent basis, they also drink more – 80% versus 72% for past-week consumption and 84% versus 77% for past-year.

The NCA Scientific Affairs Program

Remember when coffee was buffeted by myths about health risks? You got negative messages from your colleagues, doctor, family and maybe even the little voice in your own head.

Well, the weight’s now off our shoulders. The word is out, and it’s loud and clear. Scientists have found that coffee is a healthy beverage. The product of a natural plant, it’s no real surprise that coffee packs a salubrious punch, with thousands of antioxidants and other natural compounds.

The good news about coffee and health is everywhere. It’s practically part of coffee’s cultural DNA. By now, we’ve all heard about how coffee helps protect against diabetes, liver damage, colon cancer, gallstones, and even cognitive decline. We now know about coffee’s ergogenic properties, helping us run faster, jump higher, and do so with less leg pain.

Federal Food Agency Tests Waters on FSMA Food Safety Plans

The wheels of government often grind slowly, but can still deliver a hefty pinch. After a yearlong delay, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued draft regulations that put significant new responsibilities on manufacturers for ensuring food safety.

Last week, the FDA issued a “proposed rule” to implement the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) provision for “preventive controls,” essentially a series of backstops against potential contamination. Generally speaking, the 680-page document is the regulatory equivalent of an operating manual, spelling out proposed regulations implementing the statutory provision.

Coffee v. Kidney Stones

Scientists have confirmed an association between coffee and a reduced risk of kidney stones. Examining the effects of liquids on kidney stone development, they found varying impacts among different liquids. Integrating results from three large clinical trials, their analysis showed that some sodas and punch appeared to increase the risk, while coffee and wine reduced it.

The coffee effect appears to increase with consumption. Participants who drank one or more cups of coffee a day had a 26% lower risk of developing kidney stones, as compared with those who drank coffee less than once a week. The protection was incremental, with relative risk reduction increasing with consumption levels: 3% for those who consumed coffee once a week, 6% for those who drank two to four times a week, and 16% for five to six times a week.

Defining Sustainability

With climate change and environmental disasters such as the Fukushima reactor meltdown and the Gulf oil spill making international headlines, “sustainability” has become a media buzzword. It’s also bandied about in connection with agricultural methods that preserve the land, market conditions that enable producers to support their families and cultures, and technologies that foster a healthy supply of quality products.

It’s also being discussed in probably every boardroom of every major corporation in the U.S. and beyond. There is enormous pressure on industries to demonstrate a commitment to sustainability as a key element of responsible corporate citizenship. As the public becomes ever more aware of cultural, environmental and socioeconomic issues in the developing world, the pressure to deploy sustainable programs and strategies continues to ramp up.

New Report: Coffee Cuts Endometrial Cancer Risk

A newly released scientific report links coffee with a protective effect against endometrial cancer. The report, published this week by the American Institute for Cancer Research and World Cancer Research Fund International, says that coffee drinking is one of several lifestyle and diet changes that can help women prevent the disease, also known as uterine cancer.

Analyzing results from eight independent scientific studies, the report concludes that one cup of coffee per day is associated with a 7% decreased risk of developing the disease. All of the analyzed studies found a decreased risk for higher versus lower levels of coffee consumption.

Coffee for the Ages?

Are you with it? Do you keep up with your peers? If we’re talking coffee, there’s an easy way to find out.

If you’re a “Millennial,” you’d be one of the 78% who say they drink coffee. You may also be among the 47% who say they do so each day.

Your peer group is bigger if you’re part of Generation X. Eighty-five percent say they’re coffee drinkers, 68% of them sipping daily. Among Baby Boomers, 86% say they enjoy coffee, 72% of them each day. If you’re a more mature consumer, then you may be one of the 90% who tip a mug to coffee or even among the 80% who do so daily.

Is Coffee Liver’s Firewall?

The research is rampant with evidence about coffee’s protective effects on the liver. Numerous studies from around the world have come to the same conclusion – coffee somehow shields the liver from inflammatory damage and the diseases that can result.

Over the last decade, researchers have found that coffee reduces the risk of chronic liver disease, cirrhosis, fibrosis and liver cancer. Reduced risk of liver disease also carries through for higher risk individuals, such as those with diabetes, iron overload, obesity, viral hepatitis and high alcohol consumption. Researchers also found that coffee reduces the risk of liver cancer, including among those with risk factors such as pre-existing cirrhosis or hepatitis.

Information or Knowledge?

Smart business people keep up with best practices. It’s a competitive must and emblem of personal and professional pride. There’s always something new to learn. And, increasingly, there are more and more ways to seek it out. It’s a long and growing list that includes conferences, online courses, e-seminars, podcasts, and more. Just check your email inbox, and you’ll probably find more than one a day.

But information alone is not always enough. Facts, figures and presentations can make you more informed. But, information doesn’t always become knowledge. Often, it’s not what you know that counts, but how you put it to work to make changes, reach goals and solve problems.