We all know about the negative effects of cigarette smoking, and the perils of the misuse of drugs. But what about coffee? When do you cross the line from it being a healthy beverage to a harmful one? Is it one cup? Two? Five? What if you drink tea?. Soda? Most of the negative effects of caffeine are not a concern with an occasional user, but with regular use of over 100 mg daily, it could pose cause to sit up and take notice. The average cup of coffee has 120 – 150 mg of caffeine. Tea has 50 – 60 mg of caffeine and Cola has 30 –65 mg of caffeine. A total intake of 500 mg of caffeine daily is considered high. This would include caffeine derived from coffee, tea, soda or drugs. It’s hard to believe that the very thing you rely upon to pick you up and get you going could actually be bringing you down and making you depressed, or even ill! Below is a list of the most common negative effects caffeine can have on your body. Nervousness, irritability, insomnia, “restless legs”, dizziness and fatigue Headaches Heartburn Anxiety and panic attacks Hyperactivity Bedwetting in children who consume caffeine Increased acidity in stomach Loss of minerals such as potassium, magnesium and zinc Loss of vitamins including the B vitamins, particularly thiamin . loss of vitamin C Reduced absorption of iron and calcium – especially if consumed around Mealtime Osteoporosis and anemia Interruption of growth in children and adolescents Diarrhea Increased blood pressure and hypertension Increased cholesterol and triglyceride blood levels Heart rhythm disturbances and mild arrhythmia, palpitations Increased risk of heart attacks Fibrocystic breast disease Birth defects and miscarriages Kidney stones Increased incidence of certain cancers including bladder cancer, ovarian cancer and pancreatic cancer Prostrate enlargement Hypoglycemia Water for Weight Loss Stave your appetite with water! Drink lots of water; 64 ounces in fact! Start out with two quart bottles in the morning and carry one with you to work or wherever you go. Freeze the majority of your water the night before so it will last all day, even in a hot car. Remember to keep some water unfrozen so it will be ready to drink immediately. It goes without saying that you will have to make more frequent bathroom trips, but it is worth it. If you are worried about being up half the night running to the bathroom, try drinking your 64 ounces of water before dinner. Water not only fills you up and lessens your appetite; it prevents our blood sugar drop that makes you reach for cookies, candy, ice cream, fries or other quick fix treats. Wonderful water also cleans out your systems. It rids your body of bloat and toxins and rosies up the complexion. Reduce Stress Stress busters come in many forms. Some techniques recommended by experts are to think positive thoughts. Spend 30 minutes a day doing something you like such as saying a positive affirmation, or taking a long leisurely walk, read a good book; listen to soothing music, get a massage or a facial. Try deep breathing and counting to ten before losing your temper or getting aggravated and avoid difficult people when possible. Healthy Heart Avoid fried foods, burgers and other fatty meats (i.e. pork, bacon, ham, salami, ribs and sausage). Eat dairy products such as cheese, cottage cheese, milk and cream in low fat versions. Nuts and sandwich meats, mayonnaise, margarine, butter and sauces should be eaten in limited amounts. Most of these are available in lower fat versions such as substitute butter, fat free cheeses and mayonnaise. Move more, find ways to move your body. It does not have to be an hour in the gym or a 45-minute aerobic dance class or tai chi or kickboxing; climb stairs, if given a choice between that and escalators or elevators; mow the lawn yourself; park at the far end of the parking lot. Anything that moves your limbs is not only a fitness tool, it is a stress buster. Think “move” in small increments of time. Would you believe a good vitamin and mineral supplement along with some omega-3 oil? Add to this a healthy diet naturally high in fiber, but low in processed food and hydrogenation hardened fats, and you’re off to a good start! Other factors would be to not smoke, control your waist size and get some exercise. Science shows that a heart healthy diet is one with relatively unprocessed foods. It includes vegetables and fruits and has rice or grains that retain much of their original kernel-structure. Some fresh eggs and liver or fish are also important. Unfortunately, these are just the foods that became scarce in Western diets. Just a note: If you can’t recognize part of the original food, the item is processed or refined. In food processing, as when making noodles or flour, we lose 60 to 95% of most of the heart healthy nutrients. Also lost is the plant structure and fiber that slow digestion. Industrial hydrogenation zaps omega-3 oil, think of it as vitamin F-3, and turns it into toxic trans fat. Most quick acting single nutrient deficiency diseases, such as pellagra, scurvy, beriberi and others, were wiped out by food fortification leaving the long term multiple nutrient deficiencies. Processed foods, low in many nutrients like B6, B9 (folic acid) and B12 are firmly linked to the Long-Latency Deficiency Diseases such as heart disease, cancer, bone loss and Alzheimer’s. Most scientists agree that almost no on has optimum levels of many key nutrients and that a multivitamin and mineral supplement can fill these gaps. As a bonus, a high dose multi vitamin is the only therapy to lower homo cysteine, a natural blood toxin we all have that is now linked to about 100 diseases. The evidence of a good quality multi-vitamin is massive and the cost is only about 15¢ per day. There are major benefits in omega-3 oils such as flax oil or fish oil. Lesser sources are un-hydrogenated soy, mustard oil, wheat germ, flaxseed (whole), walnut oil, and certain green leaf vegetables (surprised?). But watch out! Common oils with over 50% of the omega-6 poly-unsaturated linoleic may be harmful (sunflower, corn, cottonseed, safflower) as is all hydrogenated (trans) oils or ghee and 90% of the margarine on the market. Each year, the average American eats his weight in added sugars. Apart from lowered nutrients, grains ground into a dust (flour and most breakfast cereals) keep you hungry and stress your insulin system. This promotes obesity and adult diabetes. Here, high insulin plus high blood sugar team up to reduce blood circulation and thus promote disease. All illness has nutritional links. There’s no doubt that all omega-3 oils reduce heart attacks and double your survival chances. Omega-3's from fish have anti-inflammation effects and help arthritis and bowel disease. Simple changes in your food intake can mean so much to your quality and health and just possibly will prevent that visit to the heart surgeon.