Coffee lovers rejoice! Despite all we’ve heard about links between Coffee and various cancers, the latest word from the medical community is, the beloved beverage does not Cancer and never did! The assertion this week comes after a survey by a group of 23 international scientists for WHO.
Last time the World Health Organization (WHO) took an in-depth look at Coffee and cancer was 1991. At that time, it concluded that Coffee was ‘possibly carcinogenic to humans’. But that was 25 years ago and a lot of new work about Coffee has been published in the world’s medical journals since then. In fact, the survey, by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), examined more than 1,000 learned papers on the issue. In the end, the consensus was that there was ‘inadequate evidence’ to support the earlier assertion that Coffee, itself, can cause cancer.
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Left: Steaming Hot Coffee – not the
best way to take your morning hit!
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And now, the rest of the story…
Seems that, while Coffee is not officially off the hook as a cancer causing agent, ‘very hot beverages’ are in the limelight. Evidence from Asia and the Middle East – where Coffee and other hot beverages are drunk at temperatures around 70 C / 160 F – suggests a connection between very hot beverages and esophageal cancer.
But that just confirms a previous WHO declaration that it’s hazardous, for a number of reasons, for humans to consume ‘scalding hot’ beverages.
For the record, most culinary instructors recommend that you brew Coffee at around 90-95 C / 200 but serve it somewhat cooler – say, 55 – 60 C / 140 – 145 F. And, then, most folks either let it cool further in the cup or add Milk or Cream.
So where does that leave us? Is an Iced Coffee resurgence imminent? Will folks use more Milk or Cream than they used to, to take the scald off their Java?
We’ll keep an eye on burgeoning trends…
~ Maggie J.