Living in Chester we are spoilt for great coffee shops. Evidence suggests drinking a few cups of coffee a day is unlikely to be harmful to health and may even improve it! Drinking coffee is a true joy in my life but is drinking coffee all the time the best idea?
There are some reasons why opting out of caffeine may be a good idea for you. For instance:
1) In order to get higher quality, and longer nights sleep
2) To improve the health of our skin
3) Ensure you do not become reliant on it
4) Reducing coffee intake during pregnancy
For me, the reason has was pregnancy. Whilst pregnant you are recommended to consume no more than 200mg of caffeine a day (roughly around 1 Americano, with just one shot of espresso, and a cup of tea,) as high amounts of caffeine may be detrimental to the baby.
In the past, I have always been wary of decaffeinated coffee because of the health implications I had heard about. I had heard that the methods used to strip the coffee of the caffeine involved harsh chemicals which are potentially harmful to our health, and so as a result I have always avoided it. I was also suspicious of something that tastes of ‘something’ yet has virtually no calories or energy kick… If it has neither then what is it?!! As I also love the caffeine kick, I have never entertained the idea of decaf, and always opted for an entirely different drink at bedtime to avoid on the one hand the caffeine, and on the other, the nasty chemically cup of brown water as I saw it. SO, I wouldn’t ordinarily be researching decaffeinated coffee…
BUT having my coffee intakes thus limited by pregnancy, I have had no choice but to do my research into the world of ‘decaf’ and here is what I have learned.
There are three main methods:
1) The Solvent Method
I have learned that there are GOOD solvents (for instance ethyl acetate can be used and this is found in fruits. When this has been used the coffee packaging may be labelled ‘naturally decaffeinated’). And there are BAD solvents (such as methylene chloride which is thought to be potentially carcinogenic.) Yes, many things have been labelled carcinogenic and we can’t waste our lives worrying all the time, but to me it seems quite obvious that ingesting an unnatural chemical also used for paint stripping, probably isn’t all that good for our health…
(I think that my previous opinion of decaf was largely tainted by the use of these bad solvents… but unfortunately ‘solvent methods’ as a whole do seem to continue to dominate the market, without us being able to tell most of the time when we buy the coffee which solvent has been used…)
2) CO2 Process – “Naturally Decaffeinated”
Uses carbon dioxide (used to make water sparkling) and water to strip the coffee of its’ caffeine. This process seems to be relatively innocuous and therefore preferred over the solvent method, but this process of stripping the caffeine can also take the flavour of the with it…
3) Swiss Water Process
Uses water to rid of the caffeine but uses an added ingredient of charcoal to help the coffee retain its’ flavour. This method sounds the most sensible! I haven’t yet found a coffee which claims to use this method alone.
(These two methods sound a lot cleaner and less ominous! A lot of research seems to be required to find out which coffees have been decaffeinated in a more ‘natural’ way, as the packaging doesn’t always have this information on it.)
So it has been an interesting journey into the world of decaf… It seems that it’s not as ominous and disgusting as I once thought… and that it can also be clean and tasty.
Where can I get great decaff coffee locally in Chester?
Short and Stout (Hoole)
These guys use coffee beans which have been de-caffeinated using the Swiss Water Process. The coffee tastes good and has had no harmful chemicals stripping it of its’ caffeine. Great coffee mixed with a modern yet homely decor and super friendly staff make this a daily stop off for me. Check them out on Ermine Road in Hoole just a 60sec walk from Synergy Health & Performance.
Or If you are drinking coffee at home…
Taylor’s of Harrogate ground coffee, as their coffee is ‘decaffeinated using natural water, for all the flavour without the kick’, and it tastes pretty good too! So, this is a good alternative when perhaps you’ve already had your quota for the day but fancy a brew… (They are also Rainforest Alliance certified. The Rainforest Alliance help protect the environment and ensure sustainable livelihoods.)
- by Natasha Peto