/oss/taxonomy/term/741/all en /oss/article/health-and-nutrition/coffee-doesnt-stunt-your-growth <hr /> <p><em>This article was first published in <a href="https://skepticalinquirer.org/exclusive/facts-and-fiction-of-physiological-phenomena-food-for-thought/">The Skeptical Inquirer.</a></em></p> Fri, 15 Mar 2024 10:00:00 +0000 Ada McVean M.Sc. 9858 at /oss /oss/article/technology-general-science/potential-caffeine-free-coffee-crisprcas9-or-crossbreeding <p>Our current methods for decaffeinating coffee are far from ideal. There are a few different methods, all with their own <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toQOkKkxnTQ">nuanced details</a>, but they all shake out to using some kind of solvent to dissolve and remove caffeine from green coffee beans before roasting. This extra processing means costs to produce decaf are higher, profit margins lower, and production times longer.</p> Fri, 02 Dec 2022 11:00:00 +0000 Ada McVean M.Sc. 9304 at /oss /oss/article/student-contributors-health-and-nutrition/caffeine-consumption-hidden-cause-impulsive-shopping <p>There may yet be a method to help you better manage your budget, and it has to do with the timing of your caffeine consumption.</p> <p>Caffeine is a mild stimulant that increases dopamine release in the brain and is widely consumed to boost alertness and energy levels. It is naturally present in tea, coffee, chocolate, kola, guarana, and yerba mate and can be added to beverages and supplements. The recommended maximum caffeine intake is 400 mg per day, which would be equivalent to three 8-oz cups (237 mL) of brewed coffee, according to Health Canada.</p> Fri, 09 Sep 2022 10:00:00 +0000 K. Coco Zhang, Student Contributor 9214 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition-history/coffee-drink-or-not-drink-question <p>Coffee first appeared in Canadian cups about two hundred years ago, some three hundred years after people in Africa and the Middle East were regularly consuming the beverage. The most popular legend about the origin of coffee consumption takes us back to Ethiopia in the ninth century. Kaldi, a young shepherd noted that his goats became particularly frisky after nibbling on the red berries of a certain bush. Intrigued, he tried the berries himself but found the taste very bitter. But there was something else. He felt full of energy and had trouble sleeping!</p> Wed, 07 Sep 2022 18:05:06 +0000 Joe Schwarcz Phd 9226 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition-you-asked/how-many-yerbas-does-it-take-overdose-caffeine <p>For many students, picking up a coffee from the dining hall before pulling a late nighter at the library is all too familiar. I will admit, I’m an energy drink fiend. My friends have commented on the frequency and quantity of caffeine that I consume during the academic year. “How are you still alive?” is a question I have been asked many times, so I decided to take a look at the science. Which being still alive, I am able to do.</p> Fri, 26 Aug 2022 10:00:00 +0000 Cat Wang 9205 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition/assessing-reports-linking-espresso-and-cholesterol <hr /> <p><em>This article was originally posted in the <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/christopher-labos-assessing-reports-linking-espresso-and-cholesterol">Montreal Gazette.</a></em></p> <hr /> <p>A friend of mine recently sent me an article titled <a href="https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/973819">Espresso Associated with Increased Total Cholestero</a>l. I was told I needed to contextualize this thing quickly, ideally before dinner, after which, my friend noted, good Italians drink their espresso.</p> Wed, 18 May 2022 18:57:27 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 9113 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition-you-asked/what-khat-and-why-are-we-warned-about-it <p>Cathinone’s molecular structure resembles amphetamine which accounts for its mild stimulant effect. Historically, cathinone has not cause much concern, at least not until clandestine chemists began to tinker with its molecular structure, trying to increase its stimulant effect. Attaching a methyl group (consisting of a single carbon atom and three hydrogens) to cathinone turned out to be a simple laboratory procedure. The resulting “methcathinone” was far more potent as a stimulant and found a ready market.</p> Fri, 18 Mar 2022 18:18:19 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 9054 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition/benzene-jitters <p>At one time it was used as an aftershave because of its sweet smell.  It was even used to decaffeinate coffee.  Oh my, how times change!  Today we worry about a few parts per billion of benzene in our drinking water, in our soft drinks, in our antiperspirants or sun protection products.  Why?  Because benzene is an established carcinogen and should be avoided.  But benzene also happens to be one of the building blocks of our society.  Traces of it are everywhere.  Given that eliminating benzene from the environment is impossible, what we need is a reasonable risk analysis.  That’s quite a c</p> Thu, 20 Jan 2022 01:26:48 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8995 at /oss /oss/article/health-nutrition-you-asked/what-guarana <p>The Amazon is a dangerous place, with jaguars, anacondas and piranhas in constant search for their next meal, but you would not have anything to fear from guarana. It isn’t a predator, it’s a woody vine that climbs through the trees, growing up to 30 feet long. It produces bright red berries that split open when ripe, revealing a shiny black seed partially embedded in a thin white pulp. From a distance, the split berries look disturbingly like eyes staring down from the leafy canopy. The name “guarana” reflects this connection, deriving from the native words “guara” for “human,” and “na” fo</p> Thu, 30 Sep 2021 18:00:48 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8883 at /oss /oss/article/health-videos/right-chemistry-leaded-coffee <p></p><div class="media-youtube-video media-element file-default media-youtube-1"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" id="media-youtube-yfoq-nmcz-g" width="640" height="390" title="Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the use of the term “leaded coffee" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/yfoq_NMCz_g?wmode=opaque&controls=&enablejsapi=1&modestbranding=1&playerapiid=media-youtube-yfoq-nmcz-g&origin=https%3A//www.mcgill.ca&rel=0" name="Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the use of the term “leaded coffee" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="">Video of Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the use of the term “leaded coffee</iframe> </div> Thu, 04 Mar 2021 17:22:39 +0000 OSS 8638 at /oss /oss/article/health-nutrition/why-does-coffee-make-you-poop <p>If you're anything like me, you can't start your day without a cup of coffee. However, if you're anything like me, about 20 minutes after that first cup has been drained, you can be found sitting on a porcelain throne, taking your first poop of the day.</p> Fri, 26 Jun 2020 18:00:07 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 8314 at /oss /oss/article/health/my-dog-ate-chocolate-and-he-was-fine-so-whats-big-deal <p>If you ask a dog owner what dogs cannot eat, they’ll list some foods like onions, garlic, rhubarb, grapes and chocolate. (As an aside, if they say grains, <a href="/oss/article/health-nutrition/feeding-dogs-theyre-human-raw-grain-free-and-vegan-diets-dogs">don’t listen to them</a>.) Dogs' inability to safely consume chocolate is common knowledge, but thanks to their proclivity for eating anything they can get their mouths on, many dogs are nonetheless treated for ingesting chocolate every year.</p> Thu, 22 Aug 2019 15:48:08 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 7878 at /oss /oss/article/can-coffee-inhibit-absorption-iron <p>Iron is an essential dietary nutrient needed for the formation of hemoglobin, the complex protein that transports oxygen through the bloodstream and delivers it to cells where the oxygen is needed for the production of energy. It is a positively charged ion of iron (ferrous iron) embedded in hemoglobin ("heme iron") that actually binds oxygen. Iron is found in a variety of foods, especially meat since animals also rely on hemoglobin for oxygen transport.</p> Fri, 10 May 2019 19:29:28 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7753 at /oss /oss/article/health/combining-caffeine-alcohol-can-be-problem <p>On March 1, 2018 the body of teenager Athena Gervais was discovered face down in a creek in the Montreal suburb of Laval. The coroner’s report of the case was just made public and concludes that she had stumbled into the creek after becoming intoxicated. Athena had purchased three “energy drinks” that contained 11.9% alcohol and consumed most of these within about 23 minutes resulting in a blood alcohol level of 192 mg/100 mL, way above the 80 mg/100mL which is the legal limit for driving in Quebec.</p> Wed, 27 Mar 2019 18:35:10 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7671 at /oss /oss/article/videos-technology-history/right-chemistry-history-decaffeinated-coffee <p></p><div class="media-youtube-video media-element file-default media-youtube-2"></div> Fri, 14 Sep 2018 16:29:36 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7356 at /oss