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For coffee lovers: how does the drink affect the heart and blood vessels, as well as what are the features of its consumption

Coffee is an amazing drink. For those who love it and drink it regularly, it can bring both harm and benefit. Even doctors use it for certain diseases and conditions.

To understand when coffee is dangerous and when it is very useful, you need to learn about its main properties and effects on the body of adults and young, sick and healthy, active and those who lead a sedentary lifestyle.

Content

What effect does caffeine have on the cardiovascular system?
How much is acceptable to drink?
Is it worth drinking an instant drink?
Can it cause chest pain?
Other common questions
Use in some diseases
Related videos

What effect does caffeine have on the cardiovascular system?

Caffeine is the main substance in the drink, which is the basis of everything both useful and harmful to the human body. The fewer deviations in health, the less likely it is to harm blood vessels when using it.

Initially healthy heart, blood vessel walls not clogged with cholesterol deposits are practically a guarantee that coffee will not cause any harm.

Positive aspects of the impact

Almost any natural product has many useful properties. And this alone gives reason to learn about the positive properties of natural coffee and its beneficial effect on the heart and the body as a whole.

Contains potassium and magnesium. Coffee contains a lot of vitamins and trace elements, including potassium and magnesium, which are vital for the heart muscle. See also Top 10 foods containing potassium .
Lowers cholesterol. Both freshly ground and instant coffee are recognized as a product that reduces the level of bad cholesterol in the blood.
Fights infections and removes toxins. Is used in medicine, in particular, for certain infectious diseases, as well as if it is necessary to neutralize the effect of drugs, sleeping pills or poisons that suppress the central nervous system.
Is a stimulant. It gives you the opportunity to cheer up when the body's strength is running out. It stimulates the brain and affects physical and mental activity, so it is used not only as a delicious drink, but also as a natural energy product.

An invigorating drink has a number of properties that are an additional bonus for the body, in addition to beneficial effects on the heart and blood vessels. This is first of all:

Antitumor substances, reducing the risk of developing stomach, small and large intestine cancer;
Performance-enhancing substances , a mood that prevents the development of stress even against the background of alcohol consumption, cigarette smoking and a dysfunctional social environment;
Prevention of diabetes mellitus, Parkinson's disease, asthma, cirrhosis of the liver and other diseases.

See also:

9 fruits and vegetables that are good for the cardiovascular system.

Why nuts are important for the heart: What does science say?

Negative aspects

Like any food product, it may have contraindications, as well as reasons for restriction.

Illiterate consumption of large amounts can cause dehydration , as it has a diuretic effect. This has a bad effect not only on the overall tone, but also on the cardiovascular system. But knowing that about half an hour after drinking a cup of drink, you need to drink a glass of drinking water, the problem can be easily avoided.
Leaches calcium and some other trace elements from the body necessary for the proper functioning of the cardiovascular system. This can be prevented by adding natural milk or cream.
With a sudden change in diet and the abolition of regular consumption coffee the body can respond by depressing the physical and mental state: loss of strength, increased drowsiness, decreased physical and mental activity, hypotension and even real depression.
Caffeinated foods can exacerbate the symptoms of pre-existing diseases.

The drink is strictly contraindicated in:

Stomach ulcer and other inflammatory processes in the gastrointestinal tract;
Kidney failure;
Neuralgic diseases.

Different effects of the drink are related to the dosage and methods of its preparation. However, the fact that this drink can plant and kill our heart is a myth.

How much is acceptable to consume?

Since the study of the drink does not stand still, both nutritionists and doctors constantly change their point of view about its dosage to different people, depending on age and body condition.

Recent research by Russian and foreign doctors and biologists has shown that it is definitely safe to drink 2-4 cups a day.

If desired, 1 cup of coffee with milk can be drunk even for children starting from 10-12 years old, and pregnant and lactating women, if they are used to it before pregnancy and there are no other contraindications (kidney failure, inflammatory phenomena of the gastric mucosa, etc.)

Is it worth drinking an instant drink?

Instant coffee is more convenient to drink, as it instantly dissolves in water. It is sold in three types: powdered, granular and freeze-dried, which distinguishes them only by the production method and appearance.

In terms of content, for a soluble product, not noble Arabica is more often used, but a lower grade of &8212; robusta. In addition, for the preparation of powder or granules, the outer layer of the grain containing caffeine is often removed altogether. It can be said that most varieties of the surrogate drink do not contain caffeine. This is the reason why you want to sleep after instant coffee.

But the lack of caffeine does not make it healthier: on the contrary, no one can know exactly what exactly the purchased powder contains and how many elements of the periodic table are mixed in it.

The “invigorating" effect is primarily associated with the effect of getting used to the ritual of drinking a drink and to its aroma. Some doctors even consider this addiction to be a real addiction that has nothing to do with a healthy lifestyle.

Concluding that instant drink has no positive properties for the body, except for psychological ones, we can say that there is simply no point in drinking it, unlike natural.

A very rare use of a soluble surrogate by a healthy person will not affect his state of health in any way, but for a permanent menu it is better to choose a natural product that needs brewing.

As for pregnant, lactating, children and sick people, for many of them, even one dose of a surrogate may be enough to cause serious health problems.

Can it make your chest hurt?

Many fans of the drink noticed pain under the left shoulder blade after drinking it.

But very often people have a number of health problems that they don't even know about, but the symptoms of which are similar to heart pain. If a person has drunk a coffee drink and has a sore chest, it can manifest diseases such as:

Neuralgia;
Stomach ulcer;
Gastritis;
Diseases of the pancreas, etc.

If these problems are excluded by doctors, then it is necessary to understand the answer to two important questions.

Why is this happening?

By affecting the central nervous system, caffeine can cause:

Increased arousal,
Palpitations,
Increased blood pressure
And, as a result, heart problems.

Most often this happens due to exceeding the permissible dose of consumption . Symptoms appear when a person drinks regularly 5-6 cups a day or after the usual normal dose, but in a state of any stress for the body (lack of sleep, acclimatization, increased fatigue, etc.).

What to do if pain has already appeared?

Is it possible to drink coffee if you already have chest pain? If, as a result of drinking a drink, tachycardia appeared, a person began to lack air, dizziness appeared, it is necessary to stop drinking the drink. At the same time, it is necessary to:

Lay it at a high angle, for example, on a high pillow;
Ventilate the room;
Give half a liter of clean and non-carbonated water to drink in small sips;
Give the opportunity to rest for a few minutes.

In case of repeated recurrence of such attacks, it is necessary to consult a cardiologist to rule out serious diseases of the cardiovascular system. During the examination period, it is better to replace the usual taste with a very similar one: high-quality chicory will not only not harm the heart, but also noticeably improve the whole body.

Use in some diseases

Scientists are still arguing about the permissibility of coffee in the diet of people with cardiovascular diseases. But recently, most doctors agree that a categorical restriction on caffeine is necessary only in very rare cases.

1. With hypertension

It used to be believed that since coffee increases blood pressure, it is not necessary to drink it with hypertension, but should be replaced with a caffeine-free or even another drink.

But recent research by scientists has shown that such a reaction to the body occurs only in those who usually do not consume at least one cup of drink a day. Moreover, it was found out that caffeine-free coffee also acts only on those who do not drink a soluble caffeine-free substitute. But if the pressure rises even in the second case, then caffeine has nothing to do with it.

OUTPUT: One cup of coffee a day not only does not hurt, but can also serve as a prevention of a sharp increase in blood pressure.

2. With arrhythmia

Doctors traditionally advise to give up the drink in case of a tendency to arrhythmias. But targeted medical research has shown that people who use it are often hospitalized even with the most severe type of arrhythmia - atrial fibrillation.

However, even when drinking more than 4 mugs a day, there are much fewer such cases than with those who do not drink coffee at all. Moreover, if the arrhythmia is combined with an excessively rare heartbeat, then a portion of natural coffee can normalize the heart rate.

CONCLUSION: if you like the drink, then this is not a reason to give it up because of arrhythmia, on the contrary, moderate consumption will prevent the appearance of the disease.

3. With tachycardia

Caffeinated foods are not capable of causing tachycardia by themselves. But after using them, the following symptoms sometimes appear:

Palpitations;
Feeling of lack of air;
Leg cramping;
Darkening of the eyes;
Nausea;
Sudden sweating.

This suggests that caffeine either provoked the manifestation of some other disease, or got into the body against the background of:

Overwork;
Lack of sleep;
Stress;
Inflammatory processes in the body, etc .

ATTENTION: if the above symptoms of tachycardia appeared against the background of drinking a soluble caffeine-free drink, then this only means that the surrogate is saturated with harmful chemicals, it is undesirable to use it even for healthy people and categorically impossible for pregnant, lactating and children.

4. For angina pectoris

Caffeine cannot cause angina pectoris. This is a disease associated with atherosclerosis. And if it already exists, then caffeine will interfere with the normal functioning of the heart, as the gaps in the arteries pumping blood to the heart are reduced.

Due to lack of blood, the heart muscle will suffer from oxygen deficiency, and as a result, a coronary spasm may occur.

Therefore, if angina pectoris is diagnosed, then it is better to drink chicory and other healthy and delicious drinks.

5. In case of heart failure

Many doctors traditionally prohibit the use of caffeinated products in heart failure.

But a lot of recent medical research shows that caffeine is safe for this disease and cannot cause heart failure and arrhythmia if we are talking about reasonable use of the product.

6. After bypass surgery

After surgery in the form of coronary artery bypass grafting, a gentle diet is recommended for a long time.

But as a categorically prohibited drink, only alcohol in any of its forms is called.

Regarding coffee, most doctors agree that if you have a great desire, you can drink it weakly, with the addition of milk.

The diet can also be varied due to soluble chicory, barley drink, weak teas, especially herbal, karkade, mate.

7. After a heart attack

Heart attack &8212; is a serious cardiovascular disease. But there is no direct link between myocardial infarction and coffee: a fragrant drink has never been the cause of the disease.

Meanwhile, a strong invigorating effect is not needed during the recovery period: the body needs long-term rest after a disease.

If the patient is pleased with the aroma and he is used to small doses of the drink, then one cup a day in half with milk can always be drunk: it won't hurt, but it will bring positive emotions, which are very necessary for the convalescent.

8. In case of ischemic disease

Until the 90s of the XX century, it was believed that the drink was categorically contraindicated in ischemia of the heart.

But research over more than 30 years has shown that this disease occurs in those who have not consumed any caffeinated products at all for decades , as often as those who have regularly included a drink in their diet for 30 years.

IMPORTANT: if ischemia is also combined with low blood pressure, coffee is even indicated to the patient.

A wonderful invigorating drink is wrongly accused of harming human health.