How much do you know about coffee's innocence? Not only contains caffeine

In the past, people didn't pay much attention to the complex chemicals in coffee. People are interested in coffee's pick-me-up rather than the health effects of regular coffee drinking. But food chemistry is becoming increasingly important to our lives today because of a range of serious diseases linked to our diet, which is estimated to be responsible for three-quarters of deaths in the United States each year. These include heart disease, hypertension, stroke, cancer and diabetes. Everyone is at risk for diet-related chronic diseases to varying degrees, and this risk increases with age. Possible factors that increase the risk of developing these diseases include inadequate intake of vegetables and fruits, excessive consumption of foods containing saturated fats (fried foods, whole fat dairy products, fatty meat) and poor lifestyles such as lack of exercise. These lifestyles are generally developed in childhood and continue into adulthood.

Coffee contains more nutrients than many important foods. Coffee contains protein (11%) and amino acids (less than 1%), lipids (10%-20%) such as triglycerides and free fatty acids, and sugars (35%-55%) and polysaccharides. Coffee contains a lot of minerals (3%-5%), such as potassium (K), iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), also contains about 0.5% niacin (prevention of pellagra, also known as vitamin pp or vitamin B3), in addition to coffee antioxidant-chlorogenic acid content of 7%-9%, greatly exceeding the caffeine content. Coffee is roasted at a high temperature of about 200 ° C, and protein, amino acids, sugars and lipids are decomposed to derive about 1000 volatile compounds. Part of chlorogenic acid is converted to lactone. The chemical reactions to most of the volatiles in coffee beans are unclear. Caffeine is an important ingredient in coffee, it is not destroyed, and other substances are easily destroyed during processing. Coffee drinks contain hundreds of volatile compounds, soluble compounds such as caffeine, chlorogenic acid, niacin, minerals, caffeine alcohol, etc. dissolved in water to form aromatic flavor.

The essential nutrients and energy sources needed in a daily diet depend on age, sex, height, weight, metabolism and physical activity. For vitamins and minerals we know little about, safety and daily intake should be evaluated. Iron is a nutrient that constitutes hemoglobin, myoglobin and other enzymes in the body. Iron deficiency may cause anemia. It is the most common nutritional deficiency in the world. It is also a common disease caused by insufficient iron intake in children, adolescent girls and pregnant women. Iron deficiency can occur in anyone who loses blood, and all people with iron deficiency need iron supplements.

The human body contains 2-3 grams of zinc, mainly distributed in bones, teeth, hair, skin, liver and muscle. More than 100 zinc-containing enzymes play important roles in many cellular functions. Healthy adults consume 6-15 grams of zinc per day from their diet, of which about 20% is absorbed by the body. Meat, liver, eggs and seafood (especially oysters) are good food sources. The daily zinc intake for adults is 0.2 mg/kg. Clinical manifestations and symptoms of zinc deficiency include anorexia, developmental delay, delayed sexual maturity, immune disorders, dermatitis, night blindness, hypogeusia (hypogeusia) and wound healing difficulties. Zinc deficiency in some patients with liver cirrhosis is due to loss of zinc storage capacity. Mild zinc deficiency is difficult to diagnose clinically because its clinical manifestations and symptoms are not too obvious. Zinc deficiency in mothers can cause anencephaly in fetuses. Liver disease can cause secondary zinc deficiency, mainly due to malabsorption and long-term parenteral nutrition. Its main features are night blindness and sleeping sickness.