Decaffeinated coffee is coffee with very less percentage of caffeine, which is allowed by the regulatory authority to label it as decaffeinated. More and more people are becoming aware of caffeine and its presence in coffee and tea. Caffeine is a substance found in coffee, which acts as a stimulant and keeps us awake, when we need it as well as when there is no need. With increasing awareness among people of the side effects of caffeine, many people prefer to consume decaffeinated coffee.
Decaffeinated coffee which is also known as ‘decaf’ is coffee where most of the caffeine content is removed.
A normal coffee up of 6 ounce may contain 50 to 70 milligram of caffeine. It may vary few milligrams according to the type. But in decaffeinated coffee, the amount of coffee in a 6 ounce of coffee cup is typically less than 10 milligrams.
European Process For Decaffeinated Coffee
There are many methods for decaffeinating coffee, but the most familiar and commercially viable methods used today, is European process and Swiss water process.
Most brands of decaf coffees use European process. As the name suggests this chemical process was used first in Europe. It involves following steps:
- Soak the beans in water.
- Wash these beans in a chemical methylene chloride. The chemical absorbs caffeine from the coffee beans.
- Again the beans are rinsed with water to remove the chemicals.
- The beans are dried and sent for roasting.
Advantage: this method does not allow the flavor to get diluted and the person can enjoy the original taste without the side effects of caffeine.
Swiss Water Decaffeinated Coffee Process
It is developed by Swiss water decaffeinated coffee company. There is no use of chemicals in this process. Only hot water and steam are utilized for removing caffeine from the coffee.
- The beans are soaked in hot water.
- Caffeine is released in the water.
- When all the caffeine is released in the water, the beans are removed.
- This water is then passed through activated charcoal where all the caffeine content is soaked out.
- The solution is named as green coffee extract.
- Once the caffeine is removed, the same beans are dipped in the solution for reabsorbing other contents.
- The beans are finally dried and roasted.
Disadvantage: the process removes much of the original flavor.
Health Benefits Of Decaffeinated Coffee
Coffee is considered to posses many health benefits for people who are depressed, or diabetic or suffering from heart ailment. But there is no clarity regarding decaf coffee to be having equivalent benefits as that of coffee.
- According to a study, coffee contains many antioxidants that protect the cellular destruction, responsible for causing diabetes type 2. One of the chemical present in coffee, is chlorogenic acid. It is known to regulate blood glucose level. But the findings were reflecting in people who drank more than 6 cups of coffee in a day. But drinking coffee six times in a day is too much. The best solution is to get the benefits of coffee minus the caffeine content, by drinking decaffeinated coffee.
- Decaffeinated coffee contains antioxidants that are useful for fighting the free radicals that may be associated with development of various cancers, particularly cancer of colon and cancer of breast.
- Even in elderly males, drinking decaffeinated coffee has been associated with low incidences of prostate cancer as compared to people who drink regular coffee.
- Researchers have found that drinking decaf coffee has decreased the risk of developing gout in comparison of people who drank coffee that is not decaffeinated.
- If a pregnant woman has habit of drinking coffee, than it is better to switch over the decaf coffee, which has very small amount of caffeine.
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