In the trend of mixed drinks, coffee is indispensable. Not only coffee beans can be mixed, but also some spices and Chinese medicinal materials can be combined with coffee to enhance the health and anti-inflammatory effects of coffee.
Coffee is rich in antioxidants and is lightly roasted.
Coffee can not only refresh you, but also help prevent cancer, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, dementia, type 2 diabetes and other diseases. Coffee contains a variety of antioxidants, such as chlorogenic acid, which can help remove free radicals and inflammatory factors from the body and protect cell tissues. Therefore, drinking coffee can improve chronic inflammation, and many modern civilization diseases are caused by chronic inflammation.
According to the degree of roasting, coffee can be divided into light roasting, medium roasting and dark roasting. Lausanne Gazan, president of the Lausanne Preventive Medicine Group, pointed out that dark roasting will destroy the nutritional value of coffee and cause the loss of chlorogenic acid, so light and medium roasted coffee is better.
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For those who only drink black coffee, it is not recommended to add sugar, cream, etc. to avoid adding burden to the body.
Adding one more ingredient to coffee can enhance its health-promoting and anti-inflammatory effects
If you want to enhance the flavor of your coffee and drink it healthily, you can try adding these: wolfberry, tangerine peel, red dates, longan (longan meat), black pepper, star anise, cinnamon, cloves, and lemon.
These Chinese herbs, spices and fruits are all added to coffee. They have anti-inflammatory effects. Brewing them with black coffee “can enhance the anti-inflammatory effect,” said Losang Jiacan. Red dates and longans are sweeter and can even be used as sugar substitutes to reduce the harm of sugar to the body.
From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, these ingredients also have health benefits:
● Wolfberry: It is neutral in nature, can nourish the liver and kidneys, and improve eyesight.
● Tangerine peel: warm in nature, can regulate qi and strengthen the stomach, dry up dampness and resolve phlegm.
● Red dates: warm in nature, can replenish qi, nourish blood, soothe the mind and protect the stomach and intestines.
● Longan (longan meat): warm in nature, can nourish the heart and spleen, nourish blood and calm the mind.
● Black pepper: It is hot in nature, can warm the middle and relieve pain, relieve gas and eliminate phlegm.
● Star anise: warm in nature, can dispel cold and relieve pain.
● Cinnamon: It is hot in nature, can boost Yang energy, warm the meridians and unclog blood vessels.
● Clove: It is warm in nature and has the effects of dispelling cold, relieving pain, warming the kidney and assisting yang.
In addition, in traditional Chinese medicine, lemon has a cold nature, and its vitamin C helps repair wounds and regulate immunity.
Wu Jiandong, director of Yongsheng Chinese Medicine Clinic, said that some people are prone to diarrhea after drinking coffee and have cold hands and feet, which means that their body constitution is cold. When drinking coffee, you can add cinnamon in moderation. He added that adding these ingredients to coffee can indeed add extra benefits, provided that you feel that the taste is compatible with it, otherwise it is difficult to persist in drinking it. “There was ginseng coffee before, but it disappeared after a short time of sale.”
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In the Chinese Materia Medica, a book on Chinese medicine, coffee is defined as slightly bitter and astringent, with a neutral nature. However, coffee beans will become hotter as they are roasted, or cooler or colder when ice is added.
The above ingredients can fine-tune the properties of coffee, and the addition should also be based on personal constitution. Luosang Jiashen reminds that red dates are warm and lemons are cold, so red dates can be added during menstruation, but lemons are not suitable for people with cold, weak or menstrual conditions.
Two tips for drinking coffee
Even though coffee is a very common beverage, there are still some things to be aware of when drinking it:
1. It is important to choose good materials
Whether it is coffee beans or mixed ingredients or Chinese medicinal materials, the selection of materials is very important. Luosang Jiacan emphasized that if the materials are moldy, it will harm the liver and kidneys. For example, he recommends sun-dried coffee beans because the beans can be dried to remove moisture and avoid the possibility of mold.
2. People with stomach diseases should drink less
If you take too much caffeine, the human nervous system will be overexcited, causing palpitations and excessive gastric acid secretion. Wu Jiandong reminds people who have stomach diseases such as stomach pain, gastroesophageal reflux, gastric ulcers, or who are prone to insomnia, dry mouth, irritability, and hot constitutions, to avoid excessive drinking.
