The National Coffee Association says younger coffee drinkers are becoming a larger percentage of the occasional coffee drinker segment as the category of cold coffee beverages continues to grow.
NPD Group, a market research firm based in Port Washington, N.Y., has statistics showing the number of teens drinking coffee in cafes or restaurants has increased 12 percent since last year, on top of a 15 percent rise the year before.
So what's the buzz about coffee and coffee houses?
Let's face it, the jolt from the caffeine is a strong attraction. Besides, it makes teens feel older, classy and sophisticated.
Coffee houses are considered a positive teen trend. "I'll meet you after class for a cup of coffee," is fast replacing "How about grabbing some nachos and a Coke?" Gone are the days of "Ewwwww, how can you drink that stuff?" Now, teens are fighting their parents for dibs on the first cup of coffee in the morning.Parents don't have to be worried but they should definitely be aware of how much coffee their teens' drink. Caffeine can interfere with deep sleep that may affect teens' schoolwork and getting adequate sleep during their growing years. Caffeine also increases calcium excretion which teens typically don't consume enough of and is vital for proper bone growth and development. Is there a limit to the amount of caffeine you or your teen should be consuming each day? How much is too much? People of all ages keep track of the amount of caffeine they're consuming when they feel the need to give their systems a jolt.It has recently been established that as little as one cup of coffee per day can trigger addiction in a teenager. While we depend on these things to wake us up, coffee has been found to actually disrupt sleep cycles and short-term memory abilities -- not far from opposite of the effect we're trying to obtain. Of course, there are plenty of other products with caffeine, but being cheap, easily attainable and even classy, coffee will continue to stand firmly as the most popular source of caffeine in the world, even for us teens.Beyond the small portion of coffee-drinking teens seeking a "caffeine wake" stands the bigger picture. The goal is to convey an image: Drinking coffee is a "style." Drinks with diluted espresso flavors, particularly cold drinks (such as a Starbucks Frappuccino) are among the most commonly ordered drinks among teens, giving us the chance to have coffee with a taste that appeals to the young. That being said, coffee has become a part of socialization rather than just a beverage. Teens see it as sophisticated and grown up. With more than 300 million cups of coffee consumed per day, Americans are super-caffeinated. And while teens account for only about 4 percent of this, a fad is slowly emerging.
Most teens suffer from sleep disorders that are either circadian related or a result of poor choices and habits. As teens find greater freedom, they usually participate in activities that harm the sleep cycle. For example, teens will often stay up late with their friends and sleep in late on weekends; both activities disrupt the body clock's ability to regulate consistent sleep/wake cycles. Coffee drinking usually starts in teenage years, and caffeine is one of the most significant disrupters of sleep. Even morning coffee can have an adverse effect on the ability to fall asleep at night.For older kids or teens who may be getting more caffeine than they should, it's important to watch their caffeine consumption. If your teen has taken up a coffee-drinking habit, one cup a day can easily turn into several (as most adults know), especially if your teen is using coffee to stay awake during late-night study sessions.
The best way to reduce your child's caffeine intake is to cut back slowly. Otherwise, he or she could get headaches and feel achy, depressed, or just downright lousy. Try cutting your child's caffeine consumption by substituting noncaffeinated drinks for caffeinated sodas and coffee (water, caffeine-free sodas, and caffeine-free teas). Keep track of how many caffeinated drinks your child has each day, and substitute one drink per week with a caffeine-free alternative until he or she has gotten below the 100-milligram mark.
As you're cutting back the caffeine, your child may feel tired. The best bet is for your child to hit the sack, not the sodas: It's just your child's body's way of saying that more rest is necessary. Don't worry - your child's energy levels will return to normal in a few days.
Although kids get most of their caffeine from sodas, it's also found in coffee, tea, chocolate, coffee ice cream or frozen yogurt, as well as pain relievers and other over-the-counter medicines. Some parents may give their children iced tea in place of soda, thinking that it's a better alternative. But iced tea can contain as much sugar and caffeine as soda.
Here's how some sources of caffeine compare:
Item Amount of Item Amount of Caffeine
Jolt soft drink
12 ounces
71.2 mg
Mountain Dew
12 ounces
55.0 mg
Coca-Cola
12 ounces
34.0 mg
Diet Coke
12 ounces
45.0 mg
Pepsi
12 ounces
38.0 mg
7-Up
12 ounces
0 mg
brewed coffee (drip method)
5 ounces
115 mg*
iced tea
12 ounces
70 mg*
dark chocolate
1 ounce
20 mg*
milk chocolate
1 ounce
6 mg*
cocoa beverage
5 ounces
4 mg*
chocolate milk beverage
8 ounces
5 mg*
cold relief medication
1 tablet
30 mg** denotes average amount of caffeine (Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration and National Soft Drink Association)
Most parents wouldn't dream of giving their kids a toasty cup of coffee, but they may routinely serve soft drinks containing caffeine. Although it's likely that your child will ingest caffeine at some time, it's a good idea to keep caffeine consumption to a minimum, especially in younger children.
Although the United States hasn't yet developed guidelines for caffeine intake and kids, Canadian guidelines recommend that preschool children get no more than 45 milligrams of caffeine a day. That's equivalent to the average amount of caffeine found in a 12-ounce (355-milliliter) can of soda or four 1.5-ounce (43-gram) milk chocolate bars.A stimulant that affects children and adults similarly, caffeine is a drug that's naturally produced in the leaves and seeds of many plants. Caffeine is also made artificially and added to certain foods. Caffeine is defined as a drug because it stimulates the central nervous system. At lower levels, caffeine can make people feel more alert and like they have more energy.In both kids and adults, too much caffeine can cause:
jitteriness and nervousness
upset stomach
headaches
difficulty concentrating
difficulty sleeping
increased heart rate
increased blood pressure
Especially in young children, it doesn't take a lot of caffeine to produce these effects.
Other reasons to limit kids' caffeine consumption include:Consuming one 12-ounce (355-milliliter) sweetened soft drink per day increases a child's risk of obesity by 60%. Not only do caffeinated beverages contain empty calories (calories that don't provide any nutrients), but kids who fill up on them don't get the vitamins and minerals they need from healthy sources, putting them at risk for developing nutritional deficiencies. In particular, children who drink too much soda (which usually starts between the third and eighth grades) may miss getting the calcium they need from milk to build strong bones and teeth. Drinking too many sweetened caffeinated drinks could lead to dental cavities (or caries) from the high sugar content and the erosion of the enamel of the teeth from the acidity. Not convinced that sodas can wreak that much havoc on kids' teeth? Consider this: One 12-ounce (355-milliliter) nondiet, carbonated soft drink contains the equivalent of 10 teaspoons of sugar (49 milliliters) and 150 calories. Caffeine is a diuretic that causes the body to eliminate water (through urinating), which may contribute to dehydration. Caffeine may be an especially poor choice in hot weather, when children need to replace water lost through perspiration. Abruptly stopping caffeine may cause withdrawal symptoms (headaches, muscle aches, temporary depression, and irritability), especially for those who are used to consuming a lot. Caffeine can aggravate heart problems or nervous disorders, and some children may not be aware that they're at risk. One thing that caffeine doesn't do is stunt growth. Although scientists once worried that caffeine could hinder a child's growth, this concern isn't supported by research.Don't get it all wrong - coffee has a heavenly taste, and one drink isn't going to result in addiction or obesity. As with all foods and drinks, it is important to remain conscious of moderation. Nevertheless, it would be nice if teens would stop and consider why they are really there when they step into a coffee shop.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Beauty With Coffee Grounds
Many of us can't imagine starting the day without that first cup of coffee--but did you know that coffee is also a fabulous beauty aid? In fact, it may do more for our outsides than it does for our insides! Find out how coffee can help reduce cellulite, exfoliate dead-looking facial skin, give hair a warm glow and shine, and more. These great beauty tips will open your eyes, for sure. Before you throw away those used coffee grounds, get the buzz on coffee for beauty: it‘s all right here.Used coffee grounds as a beauty aid! Coffee grounds go on the attack against cellulite, dead skin and gray hair, among other things. Brew a cup of coffee and after you're awake from it, use it for these personal beauty ideas. Steep a cup or so in hot water, then use as a rinse to help cover gray. Coffee grounds make a gentle exfoliating wash for your face. Wet your face and scrub with a tablespoonful of them. Fill a muslin bag with used grounds and scrub yourself with it in the shower. It's a gentle exfoliator and deodorizer in one. Rub warm, wet coffee grounds onto your skin and cover with plastic wrap for a few minutes before rinsing to fight cellulite. A quarter cup of grounds mixed with an egg white makes a toning and firming facial. Massage it into your skin and allow it to dry, then rinse. If you have dry skin, follow with a moisturizer. Deodorize with Coffee GroundsCoffee grounds will get rid of the oniony, garlicky, or fishy smells that cooking leaves often behind on our hands: just rub a handful of used grounds all over your hands and then rinse with warm water. You can also fill a muslin bag with used grounds to deodorize yourself all over in the bath or shower.
Coffee Hair Glow RecipeThis recipe smells divine and it really works: you'll have more lustrous hair after just one application.
Make a strong brew (espresso if possible) and allow to cool until only warm, not hot. Apply the coffee to dry hair and allow to remain on for 20 minutes. Rinse with warm water.Cellulite BusterThose expensive cellulite creams have one ingredient in common: caffeine! You can make your own cellulite treatment with caffeinated coffee grounds that works beautifully. Here's how:The used grounds work better if they're warm. 1. Put some newspaper on the floor of your bathroom.2. Mix about a quarter-cup of warm used coffee grounds with a tablespoon or so of olive oil. Stand on the paper and apply the coffee mixture to your cellulite areas using your hands or a loofah mitt. Don't worry if a lot of the coffee mixture falls to the floor; enough will stick to your skin to do the trick.
3. Wrap the area in plastic wrap and allow to remain on for several minutes.
4. Remove wrap and brush off excess coffee mixture. Shower with warm water.
5. This procedure is most effective when repeated twice a week.
Exfoliating and Firming Perk-Up FacialThis will gently firm and tone your skin, minimizing pores and sloughing off dead skin so the fresh new skin underneath is revealed. Those with dry skin will want to follow the facial with a moisturizer.Mix 1/4 cup used coffee grounds and one egg white, combining well. Massage gently onto face, then allow to dry. Rinse off with warm water.
Coffee Hair Glow RecipeThis recipe smells divine and it really works: you'll have more lustrous hair after just one application.
Make a strong brew (espresso if possible) and allow to cool until only warm, not hot. Apply the coffee to dry hair and allow to remain on for 20 minutes. Rinse with warm water.Cellulite BusterThose expensive cellulite creams have one ingredient in common: caffeine! You can make your own cellulite treatment with caffeinated coffee grounds that works beautifully. Here's how:The used grounds work better if they're warm. 1. Put some newspaper on the floor of your bathroom.2. Mix about a quarter-cup of warm used coffee grounds with a tablespoon or so of olive oil. Stand on the paper and apply the coffee mixture to your cellulite areas using your hands or a loofah mitt. Don't worry if a lot of the coffee mixture falls to the floor; enough will stick to your skin to do the trick.
3. Wrap the area in plastic wrap and allow to remain on for several minutes.
4. Remove wrap and brush off excess coffee mixture. Shower with warm water.
5. This procedure is most effective when repeated twice a week.
Exfoliating and Firming Perk-Up FacialThis will gently firm and tone your skin, minimizing pores and sloughing off dead skin so the fresh new skin underneath is revealed. Those with dry skin will want to follow the facial with a moisturizer.Mix 1/4 cup used coffee grounds and one egg white, combining well. Massage gently onto face, then allow to dry. Rinse off with warm water.
Coffee In Beauty Products
From lip balm to soap, from lotions to scrubs, there are many beauty products made with coffee to give you a new sense of "pick-me-up" when you shower or bathe.
One of the advantages for soap made with coffee is its ability to remove odors like onion, garlic, or fish from our hands, and coffee soap is excellent in removing either cooking or mechanical grease from hands, too.
The other advantage is the caffeine in the coffee bean, particularly when blended with herbal extracts known to draw our impurities or firm and tone the skin, can temporarily help smooth the "dimpling" effect of cellulite which forms on the skin of many women (and less so for men) which neither exercise nor diet seems to abate. Although no cellulite cream eliminates the condition, they can definitely give the skin a better appearance.
If you'd like to make one at home, here's an at-home recipe to try: Do this in the tub, and make sure there's a drainer cover! Better yet, lay some plastic or shopping bags on the floor of the tub!
You'll need some plastic wrap, used coffee grounds, and a little oil.
Mix together ¼ cup warm used coffee grounds with a tablespoon of olive oil. Stand naked in the tub, and apply the coffee mixture to your cellulite areas using your hands or a loofah mitt. Wrap the area with the coffee mixture in plastic wrap so that it "sinks in" to do its magic.
Peel off the plastic wrap, brush off the excess coffee mixture with a loofah mitt, then remove and toss the detritus that has gathered on the paper in the tub. Shower with warm water and enjoy baby-smooth skin!
Want to make your own coffee soap? Here's an easy recipe with just four store-bought ingredients:
1-4 oz. bar glycerin soap
1 teaspoon ground espresso or regular coffee ground to a powder
1 teaspoon powdered milk
10 drops coffee fragrance oil (optional)
In a small saucepan, over very low heat, melt the bar of glycerin soap until liquefied. Remove from heat; stir in ground espresso, powdered milk, and coffee fragrance oil, then pour into a mold. When cooled, tightly wrap the soap in plastic for gifts or until you want to use them.
One More Coffee Body Scrub
2 cups of coarsely ground coffee (not used)
1/2 cup raw sugar for gentle scrub, salt for a rougher scrub
3 tablespoons massage oil or mineral oil
You can substitute milk or yogurt for the oil with equally good results.
Mix all ingredients together and put in a small plastic container. Take it with you to the bathroom and enjoy a hot shower to wet the skin, then rub the coffee body scrub in circular motions everywhere you want smoother skin. Shower off and gently pat yourself dry (no more rubbing!) Add a coffee shea butter or your regular lotion. Using coffee grounds not only adds traces of caffeine to draw out toxins, it acts as a temporary vasorestrictor to tighten your skin.
Brand names online and in stores are focusing on coffee as an ingredient in their products. Neuturogena, L'Oreal, and Avon have added caffeine to various products and some add potassium, an additional diuretic, Vitamin E and other rich extracts of nuts, herbs, and gingko. If you just cannot get enough of the fragrance of coffee, The Demeter Fragrance Library has cologne sprays with espresso and cappuccino added to the mixture of their fragrances.
One of the advantages for soap made with coffee is its ability to remove odors like onion, garlic, or fish from our hands, and coffee soap is excellent in removing either cooking or mechanical grease from hands, too.
The other advantage is the caffeine in the coffee bean, particularly when blended with herbal extracts known to draw our impurities or firm and tone the skin, can temporarily help smooth the "dimpling" effect of cellulite which forms on the skin of many women (and less so for men) which neither exercise nor diet seems to abate. Although no cellulite cream eliminates the condition, they can definitely give the skin a better appearance.
If you'd like to make one at home, here's an at-home recipe to try: Do this in the tub, and make sure there's a drainer cover! Better yet, lay some plastic or shopping bags on the floor of the tub!
You'll need some plastic wrap, used coffee grounds, and a little oil.
Mix together ¼ cup warm used coffee grounds with a tablespoon of olive oil. Stand naked in the tub, and apply the coffee mixture to your cellulite areas using your hands or a loofah mitt. Wrap the area with the coffee mixture in plastic wrap so that it "sinks in" to do its magic.
Peel off the plastic wrap, brush off the excess coffee mixture with a loofah mitt, then remove and toss the detritus that has gathered on the paper in the tub. Shower with warm water and enjoy baby-smooth skin!
Want to make your own coffee soap? Here's an easy recipe with just four store-bought ingredients:
1-4 oz. bar glycerin soap
1 teaspoon ground espresso or regular coffee ground to a powder
1 teaspoon powdered milk
10 drops coffee fragrance oil (optional)
In a small saucepan, over very low heat, melt the bar of glycerin soap until liquefied. Remove from heat; stir in ground espresso, powdered milk, and coffee fragrance oil, then pour into a mold. When cooled, tightly wrap the soap in plastic for gifts or until you want to use them.
One More Coffee Body Scrub
2 cups of coarsely ground coffee (not used)
1/2 cup raw sugar for gentle scrub, salt for a rougher scrub
3 tablespoons massage oil or mineral oil
You can substitute milk or yogurt for the oil with equally good results.
Mix all ingredients together and put in a small plastic container. Take it with you to the bathroom and enjoy a hot shower to wet the skin, then rub the coffee body scrub in circular motions everywhere you want smoother skin. Shower off and gently pat yourself dry (no more rubbing!) Add a coffee shea butter or your regular lotion. Using coffee grounds not only adds traces of caffeine to draw out toxins, it acts as a temporary vasorestrictor to tighten your skin.
Brand names online and in stores are focusing on coffee as an ingredient in their products. Neuturogena, L'Oreal, and Avon have added caffeine to various products and some add potassium, an additional diuretic, Vitamin E and other rich extracts of nuts, herbs, and gingko. If you just cannot get enough of the fragrance of coffee, The Demeter Fragrance Library has cologne sprays with espresso and cappuccino added to the mixture of their fragrances.
Coffee Controversy
coffee helpful or harmful to your health? The answer changes like the weather.
The trendy drink is a popular subject of study and this week is the topic of discussion among scientists and coffee enthusiasts.
Serious coffee drinkers will tell you there is nothing like a good cup of coffee to get your day going and those beans may do more than boost your concentration. An analysis by UCLA researchers uncovered at least 400 studies looking at the link between coffee and cancer with a menu of conclusions.It's been shown to have a protective effect on colon and liver cancer and little or no impact on the risk of breast and prostate cancer.Other studies show there's a possible connection between drinking four cups of coffee a day during pregnancy and the risk of childhood leukemia. A menu of other studies suggest a few cups of coffee a day may actually help reduce the risk of a number of ailments including diabetes, gallstones and Parkinson's disease.The International Journal of Dermatology even reports that drinking as many as 60 cups a day may increase your hair growth.Scientists are also studying the long list of other compounds in coffee with some research suggesting the drink helps ward off cavities. With all these bean-related benefits could it be the coffee controversy has simmered, maybe for now say health experts moderation is a good mantra, especially since caffeine has been linked to increases in heart rate and blood pressure. As for the hair growth, scientists are working on a cream
The trendy drink is a popular subject of study and this week is the topic of discussion among scientists and coffee enthusiasts.
Serious coffee drinkers will tell you there is nothing like a good cup of coffee to get your day going and those beans may do more than boost your concentration. An analysis by UCLA researchers uncovered at least 400 studies looking at the link between coffee and cancer with a menu of conclusions.It's been shown to have a protective effect on colon and liver cancer and little or no impact on the risk of breast and prostate cancer.Other studies show there's a possible connection between drinking four cups of coffee a day during pregnancy and the risk of childhood leukemia. A menu of other studies suggest a few cups of coffee a day may actually help reduce the risk of a number of ailments including diabetes, gallstones and Parkinson's disease.The International Journal of Dermatology even reports that drinking as many as 60 cups a day may increase your hair growth.Scientists are also studying the long list of other compounds in coffee with some research suggesting the drink helps ward off cavities. With all these bean-related benefits could it be the coffee controversy has simmered, maybe for now say health experts moderation is a good mantra, especially since caffeine has been linked to increases in heart rate and blood pressure. As for the hair growth, scientists are working on a cream
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