Coffee has become part of our daily diet where sometimes we became immobile when we haven’t drink our cup of java. Because of these, circumstances the body is getting dependent on coffee, many were looking into ways on how they can overcome their caffeine addiction, that is why some are switching into the decaffeinated coffee drink. But the question is, which is better decaffeinated or regular coffee? Which is more beneficial to health between the two beverage?
Before answering the questions, first, let us find out how decaffeinated coffee is processed.
“Decaffeinated coffee,” the word itself already describe that this type of coffee doesn’t have caffeine content that is why some coffee lovers who want to reduce their caffeine intake are switching into decaffeinated coffee and to coffee drinkers who strongly believe that caffeine is bad for the health prefers the decaffeinated version of it. However, one of the big questions, is decaffeinated coffee a healthier choice from regular coffee?
Decaffeinated coffee is not a naturally grown coffee bean. The regular coffee beans harvested are processed to extract the caffeine content of the coffee beans to produce a decaffeinated version of it. During the extraction, about 97% of the caffeine content from the coffee beans is removed, so that is almost liquidating all the sedative goodness of coffee. When caffeine in coffee extracted, expect that it will not provide the boosting effect or the morning pick me up, and other effects of caffeine in the body.
How was caffeine removed from the beans?
Extracting caffeine from the coffee beans does not require machinery, but it needs a solution composed of water, organic solvents or carbon dioxide to slowly wash and remove the caffeine from coffee producing caffeine-free coffee beans. So before the coffee beans being roasted, it will undergo the process of caffeine extraction to produce a decaffeinated coffee.
What is the difference between decaffeinated coffee and regular coffee?
Well, as simple as it sounds decaffeinated coffee does not have caffeine content while regular coffee is pack with the caffeine richness of coffee. In the aspect of taste, it is hard to tell the difference between the two coffee which one is decaf and which is regular coffee. Especially for coffee beginners, it will be difficult to tell which is which, but for coffee aficionados, long-time coffee drinkers who already understand their cup of coffee, they can easily tell the difference between the two.
Decaffeinated coffee is a little bit milder in taste and aroma, but the overall feeling of having a regular coffee is still the same but a bit lighter, that is why if you feel your decaf coffee is too mild for your preference you can opt for a stronger bean that has been decaffeinated and satisfy your palate.
Switching to decaffeinated coffee needs a bit of experimenting until you get the right satisfaction you are looking for into a cup of coffee.
If the coffee bean is decaffeinated, does it mean it has zero caffeine to it?
Decaffeinated coffee does not mean it is completely zero caffeine because in the process of removing the caffeine in the beans only 97% or less is washed during the mitigation, but some will remain. Therefore decaffeinated coffee has still caffeine, but lesser in content.
To put on a better understanding of the caffeine left in decaffeinated coffee beans, let us see how much caffeine is there between the two. Regular coffee contains between 70 to 140mg of caffeine per cup, and on decaf coffee, it only has 0-7 mg of caffeine per cup. So, you see almost the caffeine in the coffee beans is washed out during the process.
That is why when you are looking for some alternative or planning to lessen your daily caffeine intake, but do not want to drop the luxury of sipping coffee the decaffeinated coffee is a better choice for you.
Which is better Decaffeinated or Regular Coffee?
Coffee is pack with antioxidants, and other nutrients that are essential for health, this is also one of the many reasons why people drink coffee. However, when it comes to choices on which is better decaffeinated or regular coffee, that is still up to your preferences. Some were saying that regular coffee is bad for health because of the high amount of caffeine, and decaf is a better choice, but when we look on the other side how decaffeinated coffee was made it is an unnatural process of stripping away the essential nutrient of coffee which is the caffeine. Thou the solvent used in washing the caffeine in coffee is not dangerous, but still, it is removing the significant element in coffee. So if we are talking about a better choice on which is healthier we say that it is the regular coffee because of all the vitamins and other nutrients are still unimpaired in the single coffee bean. But of course, it does not mean that regular coffee is healthier than the decaffeinated coffee that we abuse the dose of it. Remember that we can enjoy the benefits of coffee if we drink in moderation and not an addiction.
