L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MARCH 10, 2022 www.italoamericano.org 26 L'Italo-Americano A s a former – and long-time – res- i d e n t o f t h e British Isles, I l i k e r e a d i n g Irish and English newspa- pers. During the first, 2020 Covid-19 lockdown I forked out for two subscriptions, one for Dublin's Irish Times and one for London's Daily Tele- graph: both of them remain among my cherished, early morning, first-coffee-of-the- day readings. Just about two weeks ago, the best of news appeared on the Telegraph, especially for all of us kava- lovers out there: science con- firms that coffee can make you live longer. We all know that coffee is a s e r i o u s m a t t e r i n I t a l y . Statistics show that the aver- age Italian family uses some 37 kg (81.5 lbs) of coffee a y e a r a n d , w h i l e w e c o m e b e h i n d N o r t h e r n E u r o p e when it comes to consump- tion, it should be reminded that our espresso is different from the percolated brew u s u a l l y p r e f e r r e d b y o u r cousins up North. Of course, coffee is not only a pleasure in the Bel Paese, it's also a business: Italian coffee is famously good and we export it everywhere in the world – from France and Germany to the USA – where it is usually c o n s i d e r e d a s y n o n y m o f good quality. The potential benefits of drinking coffee have been discussed, more or less scien- tifically, for several years, which is only natural, when you consider that the about 2 billion cups of it are con- sumed every day around the world, making your average cup of joe - or espresso and cappuccino - the most popu- lar drink on Earth. We Ital- ians are particularly fond of coffee at breakfast time, with half of us starting the day with a brew. In Italy, there are about 150.000 "bar" (our c o f f e e s h o p s ) , s e r v i n g a n average of 175 tazzine each morning. But, of course, Italy's cof- fee consumption isn't limited to breakfast time, having a cup is synonym with plenty of things. Four out of ten Ital- ians associate coffee with tak- ing a break, while two out of t e n l o v e i f a f t e r l u n c h ; against all odds and fears of s p e n d i n g t h e n i g h t w i d e - awake, half of us loves coffee after dinner, perhaps while watching TV or reading a book. Unfortunately for coffee l o v e r s a r o u n d t h e w o r l d , including us Italians, there's always been the idea that drinking coffee isn't healthy: it may increase heart rate, it c a u s e s i n s o m n i a , i t g i v e s stomach aches. It even stains your teeth. But there is more and more research out there pointing at the contrary. For instance, work pub- lished in Nutrients found out that moderate coffee con- sumption can have a protec- tive effect against some com- mon health issues, including gallstones and some liver dis- eases, as well as a stimulating effect on our digestion. The Institute for Scientific Infor- mation on Coffee (ISIC) also r e p o r t e d t h a t c o f f e e c o n - sumption can help us beat the winter blues or, to say it with the right medical termi- nology, Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Perhaps, though, the study mentioned by J o e P i n k - s t o n e i n t h e D a i l y T e l e - graph is the more interest- i n g , b e c a u s e i t c o n n e c t s directly moderate coffee con- sumption to longevity. A UK Biobank study enrolled, 11 years ago, half a million Britons to carry out research o n t h e b e n e f i t s o f c o f f e e , dividing participants into three categories, people who didn't drink coffee, people who consumed up to three cups a day, and those who drank more than three cups. Results revealed that people who enjoyed coffee in moder- ation were 12% less at risk to die during the time the study lasted. Another study con- ducted by the Semmelweis University in Budapest and Queen Mary University in London, and always cited in the article above mentioned, found also a link between coffee consumption and a d i m i n i s h e d r i s k t o d i e o f coronary disease and stroke. This work has been defined in the article as the "largest study to date which focused on the effect of coffee on car- diovascular health." As one of the countries in the world w i t h t h e h i g h e s t l i f e expectancy – 81.1 years for m e n a n d 8 5 . 4 y e a r s f o r women, against 76.3 years for men and 81.4 for women in the US – and a major cof- fee consumer, Italy may well represent a good case study to investigate further the con- nection between coffee con- sumption and longevity, even though it is known that the m a i n r e a s o n b e h i n d o u r "aging well" is, in fact, our beloved Mediterranean diet. Mind, these aren't the first academic studies highlight- ing the health benefits of our beloved caffè. Scientists at H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y h a d a l r e a d y d e m o n s t r a t e d i n 2015 that a couple of cups a day could reduce significantly the dangers associated with heart disease, type-2 dia- betes, and neurological issues such as Parkinson's disease. Ming Ding, who directed the s t u d y b a c k t h e n , h a d declared that "bioactive com- p o u n d s i n c o f f e e r e d u c e insulin resistance and sys- tematic inflammation. That could explain some of our f i n d i n g s . H o w e v e r , m o r e studies are needed to investi- gate the biological mecha- n i s m s p r o d u c i n g t h e s e effects." And apparently, it isn't all down to caffeine, because benefits have been recorded also among participants with a penchant for decaf: this seems to demonstrate that coffee's goodness, at least when it comes to our hearts and brains, doesn't come f r o m c a f f e i n e , b u t r a t h e r from other substances and compounds that make up its chemical composition. A n d w h a t a b o u t t h e instant coffee drinkers out there? A survey carried out in 2014 and published in Times Magazine and the Washing- ton Post found out that while A m e r i c a n s h a v e b e c o m e more and more discerning when it comes to the quality of their brew, instant coffee is the most consumed type of coffee in the world. To be quite honest, this doesn't faze Italian much: we aren't great instant coffee drinkers at all, with most of us using it to make caffelatte in the morn- ing more than anything else. However, those favoring a quick caffeine fix to the plea- sure of a proper cup or tazzi- na di caffè may change their mind now because, apparent- l y , n o n e o f t h e b e n e f i t s r e c o r d e d a m o n g f u l l a n d decaf coffee drinkers have been found in instant coffee consumers. According to Dr. Zahra Raisi-Estabragh of Queen Mary University, this may be caused by the way coffee beans are processed to make ground and instant cof- fee and by the different addi- tives utilized. W e n e e d t o b e c a r e f u l though, because too much of a good thing may turn into risky behavior. If you thought that with coffee, a bit like with fruit or vegetables, more is always better, you're down for a bad surprise: excessive coffee drinking is actually dangerous for our health: basically, if you cross the three-cups-per-day line, you do so at your own risk. Too m u c h c o f f e e c a n a c t u a l l y increase the risk of develop- ing the same illnesses moder- ate consumption help reduce. So, yes, our beloved caffè is good for us: let's just stick to three cups a day! Finally, science says coffee helps live longer CHIARA D'ALESSIO That's one large moka! (Photo: Luca Lorenzelli/Dreamstime) LIFESTYLE FASHION FOOD ARTS ADVICE

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