COFFEE

[Lewis]

Caffeine is far more damaging to the human body than we have before recognized. Caffeine, particularly, injures the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas where insulin is produced. Even Sanka and Decaf should be avoided, although they have only about 15-18 mg of caffeine per cup.

Caffeine and adenine (a non-poisonous purine base, a chemical component of every cell nucleus) are very close together in molecular structure. Because of the molecular similarity, caffeine is sometimes incorporated into the genetic material. Radiolabeled caffeine was given to mice during gestation until delivery. Then the material from the pups was extracted. Radioactivity was found in the genetic material, indicating that caffeine was actually incorporated into the genetic make up of the baby mice! Perhaps our coffee drinking habits for the last 100 years will be found to be the cause of the "diabetes explosion" we are seeing in our country.

Nutrition for Vegetarians, by Agatha M. Thrash, M.D. and Calvin L. Thrash, M.D.

This is also an interesting site about caffeine: http://www.caffeinedependence.org/caffeine_dependence.html#health

[Brian M]

How can we encourage our people to leave off the use of coffee & caffeine?

[Wally]

How can we encourage our people to leave off the use of coffee & caffeine?

That is a hard question.  Not to be cynical, but if we can't even get them to give up meat; and with many SDA's engaging in "social" drinking, how can we ever persuade them to give up the "lesser" evils? 

Seems like the angle to be persued would be to strive for more members to become completely surrendered to the Lord, fully committed to the message for our time.  Then we might see some results.  It's definitely an internal problem, not an external one.

[Lewis]

Seems like the angle to be persued would be to strive for more members to become completely surrendered to the Lord, fully committed to the message for our time.  Then we might see some results.  It's definitely an internal problem, not an external one.

I agree. I have talked to a member that is a head elder, and he said he just had to have that cup of coffee. Other members in the same church say that they just can not give up the meat because it is so good. And when the SOP or Bible principles on health are discussed, the conversation quickly comes to an end.

 What I have noticed is that in many of the church members lives; the Bible is not read that much, and the SOP is read even less, and you can see by their fruits that the world has crept in their lifestyle choices as well.

 The heart needs to be transformed by God in order to have a desire to want a change in their life.

[Suzanne]

Caffeine and Diabetes

Duke University researchers see a troubling effect for people with Type 2 diabetes who are regular coffee drinkers. Using new technology--a tiny glucose monitor embedded under abdominal skin--to monitor blood glucose (sugar) levels ccontinuously, investigators find that caffeine disrupts glucose metabolism in a potentially damaging way.

"When people with Type 2 diabetes who are regular coffee drinkers drink coffee, it produces an elevation in their glucose throughout the day" by about 8%. Researchers suggest that caffeine may interfere with the process that transports glucose from the blood into muscles and other cells in the body where it's burned as fuel. In addition, caffeine triggers adrenaline, which also raises blood sugar levels. "People with diabetes might want to avoid coffee and other caffeinated beverages," they caution, to better balance their glucose levels.

Other researchers using blood sugar samples, found habitual coffee drinking can impair long-term glucose control in those with Type 2 diabetes. And a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial shows that daily caffeine intake reduces insulin sensitivy--the effect lasting 12 hours after last consuming caffeinated products.

Caffeine may also be a culprit in osteoporosis, high blood pressure, increased cholesterol and triglyceride blood levels, fibrocystic breast disease, prostate enlargement, and hypoglycemia. --Taste for Life, March 2008.

Note: This posting was also featured in the Diabetes thread.

Suzanne

[Tammy]

I think you are right, Wally...it is an internal issue.  Our people should be at the place where they say, "If the Lord says it, I believe it", and they do it....  But sadly, that isn't the case. 

I recently was asked to give a presentation on caffeine at a Methodist church.  I gave a lecture and then used a slide presentation produced by Loma Linda, called "Caught in the Spiders Web".  It is EXCELLENT!  It is old, I don't know if they still sell it or not....(I hope so, cause the tape in mine broke at that meeting!)  It is very interesting and convincing.  They show what the equivalent of just 1 cup of coffee does to a spiders web, and how long it takes for it to be able to make a normal web again... 

After the meeting, one of the women there said to the rest of the group, "Well ladies, now that we have learned this, what are we going to do about it?  Are we going to continue serving coffee at our church functions?"  I don't know what they ended up doing about that, but I do know that they were truly convicted.  I had taken them samples of Dandy Blend, it is the best coffee substitute we have found, and they really liked it.  And I made some carob fudge so they could try carob instead of chocolate...that went over real well.  Education is a big part of helping people to turn away from things that are not healthy for them....  The Health Message truly is the Right Arm, the opening wedge, of the Gospel!

[JimB]

Low Dose Of Caffeine When Pregnant May Damage Heart Of Offspring For A Lifetime

ScienceDaily (Dec. 17, 2008) — A new study shows that the equivalent of one dose of caffeine (just two cups of coffee) ingested during pregnancy may be enough to affect fetal heart development and then reduce heart function over the entire lifespan of the child. In addition, the researchers also found that this relatively minimal amount of exposure may lead to higher body fat among males, when compared to those who were not exposed to caffeine.

Although the study was in mice, the biological cause and effect described in the research paper is plausible in humans.

According to Scott Rivkees, Yale's Associate Chair of Pediatric Research and a senior researcher on the study, "Our studies raise potential concerns about caffeine exposure during very early pregnancy, but further studies are necessary to evaluate caffeine's safety during pregnancy."

Science Daily

[Richard Myers]

Amazing how the light given to our church so many years ago is now being seen by scientific research!

[Curt]

337. Cardiologists are begging you to never practice this mid-morning habit,
Reaching for the caffeine can backfire for some people
The Independent, Julia Mosto New York Thursday 05 June 2025
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/coffee-cortisol-heart-health-b2764657.html

Are you tired in the mid-morning? Experts advise not to reach for the caffeine.

A second or third cup of coffee may not have the effect you hope it will. The stimulant can raise cortisol levels, which naturally dip around 10 or 11 a.m.
Cortisol is the body’s main stress hormone. It can also regulate inflammation and blood pressure and boost energy. But, high cortisol doesn’t necessarily equate to high energy.

“Cortisol can be high and we can feel tired or low energy, like when we wake up. Or it can be low and we can feel high energy like the mid-morning. If I had to equate cortisol levels with something, it would be irritation,” Calm’s Dr. Chris Mosunic said in a statement.

Regardless, caffeine raises cortisol, “potentially amplifying sympathetic tone," Dr. Marschall Runge told Parade.

[rahab]

Ditched it when I became sda.

[Dorine]

I have never been a coffee drinker. I was raised SDA and believed the counsel given especially to do with temperance. Abstain from all that is harmful and use in moderation that which is good. But when I had to do a night shift when in nursing I could not keep my eyes open. I was urged to try coffee that it will keep me awake. I was 19 years old and I yielded and within minutes my heart went into such palpitations I thought I was having a heart attack. I loved the taste but the scare kept me from ever trying that again. It also reinforced that what God says; He means. Many today in the church are ignoring this counsel and don't hide it. They can't live without their coffee or tea. (not herbal) Anyone doing differently is looked upon as fanatical to be so particular about such a 'little' thing. Yet those in the world in the health field know the dangers. We are in a sad state of affairs.

[Richard Myers]

Thanks for sharing, Sister Dorine. You bring up the reality that to not do such things can make us appear as fanatics. We ought to get over this because very soon when we refuse to go to church on the sun day, we not only we be called fanatics, we shall be fined, jailed, and eventually will be hunted to be killed.

You remind me of my daily meeting with a few town leaders at a coffee shop.  I was young among others who were older. It was my first such temptation to give in and follow the group. It was a coffee break for all except me, I drank orange juice. I had tasted coffee before. Like whisky, beer, and  cigarettes,  they all tasted nasty. God was looking after me. As we look back over our lives, we will find much that reveals God and His angels did in fact look over us and kept us alive. We ought to keep these times in our mind and daily praise our loving God. We need to witnesses of His power to keep us from doing wrong (sin).

[rahab]

Another point people don’t understand is that even one cup of coffee or even tea will affect sleep Patterns!

[Curt]

It is the CAFFEINE so anything with Caffeine (black drinks like coke, pepsi, in addition to teas, coffee), may have varied amounts but the effect should be the same.

[rahab]

It is the CAFFEINE so anything with Caffeine (black drinks like coke, pepsi, in addition to teas, coffee), may have varied amounts but the effect should be the same.

true, thanks 😊

[Richard Myers]

Satan has somehow convinced many that there needed to be caffeine drinks. They are called "energy drinks.'   Not for children or pregnant women.