Can You Get Cancer If You Drink Too Much Coffee?

Fresh Coffee

Over the years, there have been countless debates on the probability of coffee being cancerous. While it has been nothing but a threat, the latest ruling by California judge has people biting their nails thanks to anxiety. The supposed rule requires that java manufacturing companies put a cancer warning labels on their products (you know, like the ones cigarettes have). Just to get a clear mental image of the problem, let’s look at the facts.

Does coffee carry any real danger?

Recently, a nonprofit organization filed a lawsuit against a good number of java shops and companies, like Starbucks. They made a good case and even showed evidence of how these products affect everyone in the long run, from the unborn to the old (if consumed of course).

It must have been a convincing case because even the Superior Court Judge, Elihu Berle, leaned on their side. However, the doctors and other medical bodied insisted that there was no harm in “a cup a day.”

According to them, it was only harmful if consumed excessively; that’s pretty harmful if you ask me.
The Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1996 in California’s 65th Proposition requires that employers/manufacturers should warn the respective consumers if they are being exposed to one or more of carcinogen compounds.

There are about nine hundred of these compounds, one of them being acrylamide. This is the same compound found in French fries, chips, crisps; basically, anything that is fried or baked. It is present in dry coffee beans, and that renders it harmful even though the level of its content is considered mild by health experts.

The Health Benefits

There’s something else we might want to consider though, health experts say, Proposition 65 does not give thought to the upside of coffee. Apparently, there are health benefits that accompany drinking it; who would have thought that? We can agree that too much of anything can be poisonous, why should this drink be an exception to that rule?

After all, was said and done, I decided to look at some of the health benefits of coffee, and they include;

– Lowers the risk of liver cancer and protect against colorectal cancer – this is yet the most ironic benefit. The debate here is that it causes cancer and at the same time prevents some types of cancer (your poison is also the treatment you need).

– Helps in protecting against type two diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, liver disease and promoting a healthy heart.

There have been alternative solutions to the problem. Most people argue that posting warning labels and the likes is not efficient as such considering most of these labels are placed in places where they are not easily visible; and if they are, some people choose to ignore the warnings.

To make it a win-win situation, some companies suggested it would be better if they used little extra money in the production in the removing of acrylamide from these products.

Even though a little expensive, the latter seems to be the most efficient solution; I mean, why not get rid of the problem altogether?

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