Alternative to coffee

[h90]

I read that coffee may elevate Cholesterol, so I cut it for the moment.

I usually drink like 5-6 strong Espresso in the morning and a few during the day.

 

I replaced that with Earl Grey tea. While I like the taste, it doesn't wake me up. The coffee didn't wake me up proper. But the tea does nothing. I wonder already if tea contains any caffeine....(or do I make them wrong? 1 tea bag for 0.25 Liter hot water, approx. 1-2 min)

 

Questions:

a) Maybe my body get used to less caffeine in a few days???

b) Any alternative? Red Bull is far too sweet for me, zero sugar Red Bull is not available. 0.75 Liter tea does nothing. Any other ideas?

[bkkjames]

I too love espresso, however like you concerned about the cholesterol. 

 

have 1 espresso in the morning to kickstart the system and filter some espresso coffee into a cup later throughout day as required - not as much fun but ...

[h90]

I too love espresso, however like you concerned about the cholesterol. 

 

have 1 espresso in the morning to kickstart the system and filter some espresso coffee into a cup later throughout day as required - not as much fun but ...

 

Also bad is that I get black stain on the back of my teeth from it. Having a SAECO (thumbs of for it, since many years it makes a lot coffee every day without major problems....unfortunately they were bought by Phillips), it is just too easy. When you pass you only press the button, next time you pass it you pick up the coffee.....

Never counted how many I drink during the day. But I guess a total of 10 or more.

All black without sugar.

Maybe good to stop that anyway.....too much

[96tehtarp]

h90, I think you have developed a tolerance to caffeine.

 

If you want the same kick from Earl Grey that you were getting from the espresso you may need to make your tea much stronger.

 

"Any other ideas?"

 

Try to find out if you are addicted to caffeine. Cut it out completely for a few days if you can. See if you have any unpleasant symptoms.

 

Then try the regular strength Earl Grey and see how you feel.

[bkkjames]

h90, I think you have developed a tolerance to caffeine.

 

If you want the same kick from Earl Grey that you were getting from the espresso you may need to make your tea much stronger.

 

"Any other ideas?"

 

Try to find out if you are addicted to caffeine. Cut it out completely for a few days if you can. See if you have any unpleasant symptoms.

 

Then try the regular strength Earl Grey and see how you feel.

 

anybody who is a dedicated coffee drinker will get a headache if they try to quit. :)

[sirocco]

Stop using your head, and continue to take your coffee, even seven cups a day. 

Just filter (as espresso) And then there is the good cholesterol. 

Tea also contains caffeine, but 3 times less than coffee, for the same amount.

That's why you have the impression that you do not dope. 

It was not until March to June h for it to take effect, while for coffee, you are now awake. 

Good coffee, there is nothing better.    

[h90]

96tehtarp: it seems I only more tired.....sleepy. But the work I do is also pretty boring, that might need the need of coffee.

 

sirocco: My LDL was sky high. So I first try to live on every recommendation for low cholesterol but keeping my low carb high protein diet and re-check cholesterol in 2 weeks. Than I may adjust things. This is more an experiment how and if the cholesterol goes down.

 

I read that filter coffee is way better because the substances that cause the high LDL is binding on the filter paper. But I really don't like it. I think it must be much more than 3 times less, because 1 small espresso kicks like a 1/4 liter of German style filter coffee (office quality).

 

Maybe I adjust in a few days....

[totantaz]

Hi h90,

 

i ordered big bags of Yerba Mate from ebay once and had no problem with shipping inside Thailand,

 

It gives a good boost, and only require hot water like coffee. You would need to order a special filtered straw as well.

 

you can look on youtube to learn to pour it correctly and all.

 

cheers,

[ProThaiExpat]

I became ill a couple of years ago and so didn't feel like drinking my usual two cups of wake up strong coffee.  Since I got headaches every prior time I tried to get off coffee I felt like I was truly addicted and that time was a good one to De-caffinate.

 

I have not knowingly injested any caffeine since.  Upon arising, I drink a moderate size glass of fresh orange juice with pulp and the fructose in orange juice gives me the same wake up boost I used to get from coffee, without the caffeine jitters and stomach false hunger pangs I used to get when drinking coffee.

 

Clearly ones blood sugar markedly goes down during sleep and raising that blood sugar upon arising would act as a boost. I have known people who have a mug of coffee in their hand during the entire work day and they must have terrible withdrawal symptoms if they ever tried to decaffeinate.

Edited August 6, 2014 by ProThaiExpat

[h90]

I became ill a couple of years ago and so didn't feel like drinking my usual two cups of wake up strong coffee.  Since I got headaches every prior time I tried to get off coffee I felt like I was truly addicted and that time was a good one to De-caffinate.

 

I have not knowingly injested any caffeine since.  Upon arising, I drink a moderate size glass of fresh orange juice with pulp and the fructose in orange juice gives me the same wake up boost I used to get from coffee, without the caffeine jitters and stomach false hunger pangs I used to get when drinking coffee.

 

Clearly ones blood sugar markedly goes down during sleep and raising that blood sugar upon arising would act as a boost. I have known people who have a mug of coffee in their hand during the entire work day and they must have terrible withdrawal symptoms if they ever tried to decaffeinate.

 

Well the sugar doesn't help. I am at the moment at low carbs. When I don't train that day I don't eat anything till 1 PM.

If I train I eat a musli in the morning. With musli or without I feel the same.

 

maybe I should stop with the caffeine........

(stopped smoking, stopped drinking, stopped the good food, stopped coffee.....what is left?)

[alant]

enjoy the coffee

[Jeffrey346]

Excerpt form Harvard School Of Public Health

The latest Harvard study on coffee and health seems to offer good news for coffee drinkers. What did the research find?

 

We looked at the relationship between coffee consumption and overall mortality in the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, which together included about 130,000 study volunteers. (1) At the start of the study, these healthy men and women were in their 40s and 50s. We followed them for 18 to 24 years, to see who died during that period, and to track their diet and lifestyle habits, including coffee consumption. We did not find any relationship between coffee consumption and increased risk of death from any cause, death from cancer, or death from cardiovascular disease. Even people who drank up to six cups of coffee per day were at no higher risk of death. This finding fits into the research picture that has been emerging over the past few years. For the general population, the evidence suggests that coffee drinking doesn’t have any serious detrimental health effects.

  Is drinking coffee made with a paper filter healthier than drinking boiled coffee or other types of coffee?

Coffee contains a substance called cafestol that is a potent stimulator of LDL cholesterol levels. Cafestol is found in the oily fraction of coffee, and when you brew coffee with a paper filter, the cafestol gets left behind in the filter. Other methods of coffee preparation, such as the boiled coffee common in Scandinavian countries, French press coffee, or Turkish coffee, are much higher in cafestol. So for people who have high cholesterol levels or who want to prevent having high cholesterol levels, it is better to choose paper filtered coffee or instant coffee, since they have much lower levels of cafestol than boiled or French press coffee. Espresso is somewhere in the middle; it has less cafestol than boiled or French press coffee, but more than paper filtered coffee.

You can read about here..   http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/coffee/

[Utley]

Try eating two apples in the morning; works better than coffee.

[Suradit69]

Suggest you use a stronger tea like Assam and less water or more tea or steep longer.

 

There are also benefits from drinking coffee, so I don't see why you need to stop it completely. During the day I drink both coffee and tea including Oolong, Ceylon and some generic green tea, but the only teas that seems to have any punch are Assam &  Kenyan. Never cared for Earl Grey or any of the awful fruity flavored ####. Unfortunately the variety and quality of tea on sale here is surprisingly limited.

 

The basic English Breakfast tea is a blend of black teas, usually Assam, Ceylon and Kenyan. Presumably they were chosen for their combined wake-up value.

 

The many different types of tea vary from containing high levels of caffeine, to herbal teas which contain no caffeine at all.

 

Regular tea, usually an Orange Pekoe or Black tea blend, contain about the same amount of caffeine as instant coffee -- 50 mg per 8 fl oz cup. But you can always steep your tea for longer, and get a stronger beverage, so the amount of caffeine in a cup of tea varies from about 20mg to 80mg per 8 fl oz cup.

 

There is some variation among different types of tea, with Chai ranging from about 60-120mg of caffeine per 8 fl oz cup, Assam black tea about 80mg per 8 fl oz cup, Earl Grey and Darjeeling teas containing average amounts of caffeine at around 50mg, Oolong having only 40mg, Green tea, 25mg, and White tea, 15mg.

 

http://addictions.about.com/od/Caffeine/tp/Amount-Of-Caffeine-In-Foods-And-Drinks.htm

[StefanBBK]

Wiki says "the caffeine content of "typical" servings of espresso vs. drip brew are 53 mg vs. 95 to 200 mg."

Earl Grey has between 40 and 60 mg. 

Unless you drink as many cups of tea as you drunk espresso, you will likely end up with less caffeine. 

[gregk0543]

You dont mention your weight. If you lose weight you will find cholesterol goes down.

M150 redbull etc give a good hit. Drink just a sip and not the whole bottle or can.

[robblok]

 

I became ill a couple of years ago and so didn't feel like drinking my usual two cups of wake up strong coffee.  Since I got headaches every prior time I tried to get off coffee I felt like I was truly addicted and that time was a good one to De-caffinate.

 

I have not knowingly injested any caffeine since.  Upon arising, I drink a moderate size glass of fresh orange juice with pulp and the fructose in orange juice gives me the same wake up boost I used to get from coffee, without the caffeine jitters and stomach false hunger pangs I used to get when drinking coffee.

 

Clearly ones blood sugar markedly goes down during sleep and raising that blood sugar upon arising would act as a boost. I have known people who have a mug of coffee in their hand during the entire work day and they must have terrible withdrawal symptoms if they ever tried to decaffeinate.

 

Well the sugar doesn't help. I am at the moment at low carbs. When I don't train that day I don't eat anything till 1 PM.

If I train I eat a musli in the morning. With musli or without I feel the same.

 

maybe I should stop with the caffeine........

(stopped smoking, stopped drinking, stopped the good food, stopped coffee.....what is left?)

 

I know all about caffeine addiction at times i take home made caffeine tablets (got a kg of caffeine powder at home) to give me a kick start. But if i overdo it for a long time and then quit. Then I get headaches.

[Moo2cm]

hi,

From my experience dietary changes never reduced my cholesterol. The more cutting edge science is showing that it's not so much what you eat as how you eat.
 

Eat normal, then one or two days a week eat only 500 calories (in one meal) your body goes into a mode that consumes triglycerides (after available glucose and glycogen have been used up) and will possible give you completely normal cholesterol levels in a few weeks (give it 5 weeks). 
 

Anyway, worked for me, spot-on perfect numbers for the first time and I now eat anything, (high fat, eggs, fast food). Just google ADF (alternate day fasting ) or 5/2 diet and research it yourself. Oh yes and consult a doctor before ....blah blah blah.
 

Good Luck,

[kleelof]

96tehtarp: it seems I only more tired.....sleepy. But the work I do is also pretty boring, that might need the need of coffee.

 

sirocco: My LDL was sky high. So I first try to live on every recommendation for low cholesterol but keeping my low carb high protein diet and re-check cholesterol in 2 weeks. Than I may adjust things. This is more an experiment how and if the cholesterol goes down.

 

I read that filter coffee is way better because the substances that cause the high LDL is binding on the filter paper. But I really don't like it. I think it must be much more than 3 times less, because 1 small espresso kicks like a 1/4 liter of German style filter coffee (office quality).

 

Maybe I adjust in a few days....

I was feeling sleepy all the time too. I was drinking 4 or 5 BIG cups of strong tea a day.

I cut back to 2 or 3 regular size cups of tea a day and the sleepiness is gone and I sleep better at night.

I agree with what someone said earlier, sounds like you have a caffeine addiction.

Also, maybe just cutting back on coffee along with other diet changes will solve your cholesterol problem.

[super22k]

You should try dandelion coffee.Yes,roasted dandelions make a good alternative to coffee.It tastes just like coffee bean coffee.You can get it in health food shops and I am sure the super markets have it,too.Just ask for it. Also,if you want something to wake you up and give you energy,try sucking a Vitamin C tablet.

[sawadee1947]

h90: I don't know where you read this nonsense. At present there is NO EVIDENCE that coffee will increase your cholesterol (HDL?, LDL?). But people BELIEVE but can't give a proof. Don't believe all what you find in internet!

Think more about antimutagenic and antiinflammatory effects. Enjoy your coffee.

Dr. P

[chuenyongman]

Speaking of Cholesterol in around 1991 I went to the doctors for some reason ( Cannot remember what). He suggested I have a  Cholesterol test. Bad news. He prescribed Lipitor medication.(Atorvastatin 

40 Mg.  I moved from that area to another and the doctor put me on 80 mg. as my Cholesterol had increased. After taking all those tablets for 20 years I had to have a triple bypass.  Did I waste my money or would I have had to have a bypass earlier? 

[h90]

 

Excerpt form Harvard School Of Public Health

The latest Harvard study on coffee and health seems to offer good news for coffee drinkers. What did the research find?

 

We looked at the relationship between coffee consumption and overall mortality in the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, which together included about 130,000 study volunteers. (1) At the start of the study, these healthy men and women were in their 40s and 50s. We followed them for 18 to 24 years, to see who died during that period, and to track their diet and lifestyle habits, including coffee consumption. We did not find any relationship between coffee consumption and increased risk of death from any cause, death from cancer, or death from cardiovascular disease. Even people who drank up to six cups of coffee per day were at no higher risk of death. This finding fits into the research picture that has been emerging over the past few years. For the general population, the evidence suggests that coffee drinking doesn’t have any serious detrimental health effects.

  Is drinking coffee made with a paper filter healthier than drinking boiled coffee or other types of coffee?

Coffee contains a substance called cafestol that is a potent stimulator of LDL cholesterol levels. Cafestol is found in the oily fraction of coffee, and when you brew coffee with a paper filter, the cafestol gets left behind in the filter. Other methods of coffee preparation, such as the boiled coffee common in Scandinavian countries, French press coffee, or Turkish coffee, are much higher in cafestol. So for people who have high cholesterol levels or who want to prevent having high cholesterol levels, it is better to choose paper filtered coffee or instant coffee, since they have much lower levels of cafestol than boiled or French press coffee. Espresso is somewhere in the middle; it has less cafestol than boiled or French press coffee, but more than paper filtered coffee.

You can read about here..   http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/coffee/

 

yes and in my case it is espresso

[h90]

Suggest you use a stronger tea like Assam and less water or more tea or steep longer.

 

There are also benefits from drinking coffee, so I don't see why you need to stop it completely. During the day I drink both coffee and tea including Oolong, Ceylon and some generic green tea, but the only teas that seems to have any punch are Assam &  Kenyan. Never cared for Earl Grey or any of the awful fruity flavored ####. Unfortunately the variety and quality of tea on sale here is surprisingly limited.

 

The basic English Breakfast tea is a blend of black teas, usually Assam, Ceylon and Kenyan. Presumably they were chosen for their combined wake-up value.

 

The many different types of tea vary from containing high levels of caffeine, to herbal teas which contain no caffeine at all.

 

Regular tea, usually an Orange Pekoe or Black tea blend, contain about the same amount of caffeine as instant coffee -- 50 mg per 8 fl oz cup. But you can always steep your tea for longer, and get a stronger beverage, so the amount of caffeine in a cup of tea varies from about 20mg to 80mg per 8 fl oz cup.

 

There is some variation among different types of tea, with Chai ranging from about 60-120mg of caffeine per 8 fl oz cup, Assam black tea about 80mg per 8 fl oz cup, Earl Grey and Darjeeling teas containing average amounts of caffeine at around 50mg, Oolong having only 40mg, Green tea, 25mg, and White tea, 15mg.

 

http://addictions.about.com/od/Caffeine/tp/Amount-Of-Caffeine-In-Foods-And-Drinks.htm

 

bought a "English Breakfast tea"...lets see what it can do.

THANKS
 

[h90]

You dont mention your weight. If you lose weight you will find cholesterol goes down.

M150 redbull etc give a good hit. Drink just a sip and not the whole bottle or can.

 

68 kg and shrinking...

170 tall

relative muscular

 

So not much I can reduce.....

[h90]

Speaking of Cholesterol in around 1991 I went to the doctors for some reason ( Cannot remember what). He suggested I have a  Cholesterol test. Bad news. He prescribed Lipitor medication.(Atorvastatin 

40 Mg.  I moved from that area to another and the doctor put me on 80 mg. as my Cholesterol had increased. After taking all those tablets for 20 years I had to have a triple bypass.  Did I waste my money or would I have had to have a bypass earlier? 

 

I think impossible to say unless you have a twin.....

Without the tablets you may have never needed the bypass, or you might be already at the graveyard or everything would be just the same.....impossible to say.

 

We have actually all the family never had any heart problems.....but strokes (not sure if that is the english word, when a tube in the brain leaks) and alzheimer. So maybe I shouldn't watch the Cholesterol at all.....

On the other hand, maybe I am posting in 30 years if I wouldn't have needed the bypass if I would have done something 30 years earlier???????

[Fore Man]

Research shows that drinking large amounts of unfiltered coffee (e.g, percolator drip/espresso/French press) could stimulate the body to raise cholesterol levels .  Here is an excerpt taken from an online article published by the Mayo Clinic:

"....However, the research appears to bear out some risks. High consumption of unfiltered coffee (boiled or espresso) has been associated with mild elevations in cholesterol levels. And some studies found that two or more cups of coffee a day can increase the risk of heart disease in people with a specific — and fairly common — genetic mutation that slows the breakdown of caffeine in the body. So, how quickly you metabolize coffee may affect your health risk."

 

The complete article is found here:  http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/coffee-and-health/faq-20058339

 

I also learned this past year after an abnormal stress EKG that drinking caffeinated beverages can cause or exacerbate heart arrhythmias, including irregular or missing heartbeats (look up 'preventricular' and/or 'pre-atrial contractions').  The cardiologist suggested that I stop drinking coffee and increase my intake of foods containing potassium & magnesium.  I started eating more bananas and other mineral-rich foods as well and my PVC/PAC events diminished sharply after lowering my regular, caffeinated coffee consumption and started drinking decaf.  It took awhile to fool my system that I wasn't getting a caffeine jolt any more, and yes, I went through a mild withdrawal period, but now I'm accustomed to decaf and it works well when made into a low-fat milk or low-sugar latte.

 

 

[h90]

 

 

I became ill a couple of years ago and so didn't feel like drinking my usual two cups of wake up strong coffee.  Since I got headaches every prior time I tried to get off coffee I felt like I was truly addicted and that time was a good one to De-caffinate.

 

I have not knowingly injested any caffeine since.  Upon arising, I drink a moderate size glass of fresh orange juice with pulp and the fructose in orange juice gives me the same wake up boost I used to get from coffee, without the caffeine jitters and stomach false hunger pangs I used to get when drinking coffee.

 

Clearly ones blood sugar markedly goes down during sleep and raising that blood sugar upon arising would act as a boost. I have known people who have a mug of coffee in their hand during the entire work day and they must have terrible withdrawal symptoms if they ever tried to decaffeinate.

 

Well the sugar doesn't help. I am at the moment at low carbs. When I don't train that day I don't eat anything till 1 PM.

If I train I eat a musli in the morning. With musli or without I feel the same.

 

maybe I should stop with the caffeine........

(stopped smoking, stopped drinking, stopped the good food, stopped coffee.....what is left?)

 

I know all about caffeine addiction at times i take home made caffeine tablets (got a kg of caffeine powder at home) to give me a kick start. But if i overdo it for a long time and then quit. Then I get headaches.

 

 

1 kg.....you don't make things half.....

 

There is a lot nonsense you could do with it
 

[laislica]

 

You dont mention your weight. If you lose weight you will find cholesterol goes down.

M150 redbull etc give a good hit. Drink just a sip and not the whole bottle or can.

 

68 kg and shrinking...

170 tall

relative muscular

 

So not much I can reduce.....

 

 

Cholesterol, never eat anything that contains it and you should have low cholesterol?

NO!

Your body must have it and will make it from carbohydrates.

So eat loads of carbs and guess what - high cholesterol.

Watch the documentary Cereal Killers.

Eating good fats like avos, coconut oil etc actually balances cholesterol to normal levels.

Cholesterol is usually measured as Low density and high density

but the low density (or bad?) is in two parts, low and very low density - and more.

A little knowledge in this area can be dangerous, it´s what´s not normally discussed that is important.

Watch that documentary and have it explained scientifically and totally related to what you eat and drink.

The results may well surprise you.

It is possible that the current thoughts/eating guidelines are wrong for the majority of people.

They may be more use to the manufacturers of food that to the consumers.

If you can´t find the doc, pm me, maybe I can help.

 

[h90]

 

 

You dont mention your weight. If you lose weight you will find cholesterol goes down.

M150 redbull etc give a good hit. Drink just a sip and not the whole bottle or can.

 

68 kg and shrinking...

170 tall

relative muscular

 

So not much I can reduce.....

 

 

Cholesterol, never eat anything that contains it and you should have low cholesterol?

NO!

Your body must have it and will make it from carbohydrates.

So eat loads of carbs and guess what - high cholesterol.

Watch the documentary Cereal Killers.

Eating good fats like avos, coconut oil etc actually balances cholesterol to normal levels.

Cholesterol is usually measured as Low density and high density

but the low density (or bad?) is in two parts, low and very low density - and more.

A little knowledge in this area can be dangerous, it´s what´s not normally discussed that is important.

Watch that documentary and have it explained scientifically and totally related to what you eat and drink.

The results may well surprise you.

It is possible that the current thoughts/eating guidelines are wrong for the majority of people.

They may be more use to the manufacturers of food that to the consumers.

If you can´t find the doc, pm me, maybe I can help.

 

 

 

yes I know that most of the cholesterol is made by the body itself.

I am currently on a low carb diet. Before no carbs, but now I eat a little musli in the morning on the days I exercise.

I don't know if some labs in Thailand further split up, beside HDL and LDL?

 

Yes at the moment the Cholesterol thing is like: You want to know the quality of a car and as test you measure the width of one tire. Which will be often right: width tire means strong engine which is often in expensive cars which usually have good quality. But it isn't always right.