Can Coffee Cause
Heartburn?
Many people wonder
if drinking too much coffee can cause heartburn symptoms.
If you cannot picture starting off your day without a cup
of joe, then you have joined a huge club without even
really knowing it. The majority of the population needs
caffeine to jump start their day or get through that mid
day slump but this is not the case for around 20 percent
of coffee drinkers. These people tend to
experience stomach distress and heartburn and most have to stop drinking
coffee in order to not cause long lasting harm to their
bodies.
According to the
National Coffee
Association of the USA, 56 of the
population above 18 yrs of age enjoys a cup daily. The
estimated number of the sufferers though stands at around
40 million. These people either have to avoid it all
together or sip only a very small amount as anything more
creates reflux or other unpleasant
symptoms in their
bodies.
The
main thought cause of this was that caffeine is the main
irritant and it causes the lower esophageal sphincter to
relax which allows for the stomach contents to raise up
into the chest and throat area. It seems that things are a
bit more complicated than that.
At the
American Chemical
Society's 239th National Meeting, a group
of scientists pointed out that no previous research really
proved why any of the coffee components irritate the stomach.
Many coffee manufacturers sell "stomach friendly" products
where the beans are supposedly put through a different
process, but no one really knows what the results actually
are.
The process is
meant to reduce the irritants within the
beans but this also lessens the benefits of the drink
such as a reduced risk of diabetes,
stroke,
heart
disease and Alzheimer's disease. If
you have ever sipped a stomach friendly coffee than you
already know that these lack a bit in the aroma and taste
department.
Studies
have been done on all types off coffee... ranging from
mild,
decaffeinated,
regular,
stomach
friendly... all the way to the
dark and
gourmet
brews. They have been trying to figure out the
effect of these drinks on the cultures which lie within the
human stomach cells. The findings have shows that certain
compounds such as N-alkanoly-5-hydroxytryptamides,
catechols
and caffeine trigger the
production of stomach acid
(hydrochloric
acid).
The study
also showed that a combination of these things on not just one
element is the cause of the irritation. To add a twist, the
compound called N-methylpyridium
(NMP) seems to
have a beneficial effect as it actually prevents the stomach
from producing excess acid.
This
compound does not show up in the raw coffee beans and is only
present when roasted. This would suggest that drinking
roasted
brews such as espresso, or
French
roast may actually cause less of the
painful symptoms then some of the other hearty
brews. The amount of NMP depends on the
roasting process and type of bean.
The
National Coffee
Association is experimenting with various
strands of beans and methods of roasting them in order to
create a more stomach friendly type of coffee. Hopefully, they
can also create something that actually tastes good as that is
a big deterrent for most people as it relates to the current
stomach friendly roasts.
So What
Can You Do In The Mean Time?
- Until
the perfect, stomach friendly coffee is created there are a
few things that you can try:
- Try a
yerba mate, gets you moving, allows you to sleep better
without the side effects of
coffee.
- Drink
a stomach-friendly brew and see if that helps. The brand
Folgers can be found in the supermarkets selling
these.
- Take
an antacid before and after
drinking.
- Switch
to decaf, espresso or French
roast.
- Drink
smaller amounts.
SOURCES:
National Coffee
Association
American
Chemical Society
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