The Method of Brewing Is the Main Factor
 French Press (Unfiltered) Coffee | Heart disease is the #1 killer in the US. Did you know that how coffee is brewed determines whether it raises Cholesterol? For some, this is a serious problem. Your favorite coffee shop is not telling you about this, either! In this article we explore how this works and what you can do to protect yourself. ANYONE with a Cholesterol issue should learn about this. Coffees made from Espresso machines, French Press, and other brewing methods that do not have a paper filter, may put you at risk for higher Cholesterol. So if you want a decafe, and your coffee shop will only do it on the Espresso machine, that might be a problem. |
There are oils in coffee called Terpenes. These oils can cause the body to produce more Cholesterol. People do not realize that some of the cholesterol in your blood is not just from eating, but is in fact produced by your liver. There are various reasons for why the body makes Cholesterol; but too much and you get a buildup in the arteries.
Drinking UN-filtered coffee is the Terpenes oils are in coffee. So that includes the Espresso machine, and the French Press; these put you at risk. Your favorite Latte or Cappuccino will likely contain these oils. Its important to learn because no one yet found all the causes of heart disease; people keep dying unnecessarily. So if those at risk can eliminate one of those causes, that's huge!
It appears that the paper filter in drip coffee makers does remove the Terpenes oils.
So who should be concerned? Anyone with a history of heart disease, and anyone with risk factors. If you mom or your grandfather has had heart problems, you might be at risk - and should have second thoughts about any non-filtered coffees.
If your family has no history of heart disease, and you are not overweight and not a smoker, then you probably have low risk for Cholesterol-related problems - and thus a French Press, or anything from an Espresso machine, should be fine.
We are talking with various local and 'chain' coffee shops about this, and will do a followup report so you know who is addressing this issue, and who is not. Actually you can tell easily - when you walk into a coffee shop or restaurant, and they are brewing decaf in their drip machine all day, and all night, then you have the health option to get a decaf brewed by paper filter. Now in some coffee shops, they are not aware of this issue or even worse, they care more about profit's than the convenience and health of their customers - and so they refuse to brew decaf with a paper filter. Its hard to understand why a coffee shop would refuse.
What makes matters worse, in terms of heart health, is that there is some strong evidence now that sugar can cause a rise in Cholesterol levels. The liver reacts to sugar as part of its metabolism. And think where you encounter a lot of sugar: at the coffee shop, with your flavored and sweetened Latte, and those tasty pastries they are always tempting you with. So its a double-edged sword..
We are hoping to find some flexibility in independent coffee shops, and in the big chains too. Stay tuned.
And now for some good news; there is one coffee press that includes a paper filter - it is called the Aeropress, and its quite popular now - you can read our review, and here is a picture of one:
Drinking UN-filtered coffee is the Terpenes oils are in coffee. So that includes the Espresso machine, and the French Press; these put you at risk. Your favorite Latte or Cappuccino will likely contain these oils. Its important to learn because no one yet found all the causes of heart disease; people keep dying unnecessarily. So if those at risk can eliminate one of those causes, that's huge!
It appears that the paper filter in drip coffee makers does remove the Terpenes oils.
So who should be concerned? Anyone with a history of heart disease, and anyone with risk factors. If you mom or your grandfather has had heart problems, you might be at risk - and should have second thoughts about any non-filtered coffees.
If your family has no history of heart disease, and you are not overweight and not a smoker, then you probably have low risk for Cholesterol-related problems - and thus a French Press, or anything from an Espresso machine, should be fine.
We are talking with various local and 'chain' coffee shops about this, and will do a followup report so you know who is addressing this issue, and who is not. Actually you can tell easily - when you walk into a coffee shop or restaurant, and they are brewing decaf in their drip machine all day, and all night, then you have the health option to get a decaf brewed by paper filter. Now in some coffee shops, they are not aware of this issue or even worse, they care more about profit's than the convenience and health of their customers - and so they refuse to brew decaf with a paper filter. Its hard to understand why a coffee shop would refuse.
What makes matters worse, in terms of heart health, is that there is some strong evidence now that sugar can cause a rise in Cholesterol levels. The liver reacts to sugar as part of its metabolism. And think where you encounter a lot of sugar: at the coffee shop, with your flavored and sweetened Latte, and those tasty pastries they are always tempting you with. So its a double-edged sword..
We are hoping to find some flexibility in independent coffee shops, and in the big chains too. Stay tuned.
And now for some good news; there is one coffee press that includes a paper filter - it is called the Aeropress, and its quite popular now - you can read our review, and here is a picture of one:
Aeropress Coffee Press with Paper Filter
Here are some articles we found on Terpenes oils and raising Cholesterol:
NBC News
Coffee Crew
LiveStrong
Nutralegacy
FoodGoat
Benecol
You can keep up with this topic by using Google News search, which also has a news alert/subscription option, and ask your doctor. It will help to educate your local coffee shop; have them read this article, and do some online research too.
It is very unfortunate that coffee shops do not post information about this. Being pro-active about health is important.
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