If you love the fragrance of coffee, there are high chances of better performance in analytical tasks, a new study has found.
According to the researchers, smelling a coffee-like scent -- which has no caffeine in it -- has an effect similar to that of drinking coffee, suggesting a placebo effect of coffee scent.

The findings also suggested that the scent of coffee alone may help people perform better on the analytical portion of the Graduate Management Aptitude Test (GMAT) -- a computer adaptive test required by many business schools.


"It`s not just that the coffee-like scent helped people perform better on analytical tasks, which was already interesting," said co-author Adriana Madzharov from the Stevens Institute of Technology in the US.

"But they also thought they would do better, and we demonstrated that this expectation was at least partly responsible for their improved performance," Madzharov added.

For the study, published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology, the research team administered a 10-question GMAT algebra test in a computer lab to about 100 undergraduate business students.

The participants were divided into two groups. One group took the test in the presence of an ambient coffee-like scent, while a control group took the same test -- but in an unscented room.

The researchers found that the group in the coffee-smelling room scored significantly higher on the test.

The team also designed a follow-up survey -- conducted among more than 200 new participants -- quizzing them on beliefs about various scents and their perceived effects on human performance.

The participants believed they would feel more alert and energetic in the presence of a coffee scent, versus a flower scent or no scent; and that exposure to coffee scent would increase their performance on mental tasks.

The results suggest that expectations about performance can be explained by beliefs that coffee scent alone makes people more alert and energetic.

Previous studies have also suggested that coffee may lessen the risk of heart disease, diabetes and dementia.

If you had to put down your cup of coffee because of acidity or heartburn, there is good news. A cold brew coffee offers you that caffeine kick without hurting you.

Cold brew coffee is not be confused with iced coffee, which is hot brewed coffee served over ice. Cold brew coffee is prepared when ground coffee is steeped in water (cold or at room temperature) for 12 to 24 hours to produce a concentrated coffee essence.

This essence is diluted to taste and served hot or chilled. Cold brew can also be stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks or frozen for a longer period, without its taste changing.

Brewing coffee is dependent on various factors such as water volume, water temperature, size of the coffee particles (medium/course), the porosity of the coffee particles, and brewing time. The final composition — flavour, aroma, bioactive compounds — of cold brew is dependent on its brewing time. It is also believed that cold brew is smoother in texture compared to regular coffee.

Cold brew can be traced back to the 1600s, when Dutch traders were looking for a way of producing coffee that could be transported easily. Cold brew takes an edge over regular coffee due to its lower caffeine content and acidic quotient. It is believed that cold brew has a caffeine content of about 40 mgs/100 gms as compared to about 60 mgs/100 gms in regular coffee. Cold brew coffee is known to have a ph of 6.3 compared to a ph of 5.5 of hot brewed coffee. It has also been claimed that an alkaline diet scores more over its health benefits as compared to a diet high in acid producing foods including coffee.

Coffee contains more than 400 chemicals, including trace amounts of vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants and caffeine, the main stimulant. Caffeine increases the release of epinephrine (adrenaline), which stimulates the central nervous system, increases states of alertness and increases heartbeat. Most people believe coffee to be a somewhat toxic addiction taken only as an indulgence or to overcome sleep and boost alertness.

Numerous studies reveal that moderate coffee consumption (1-2 cups a day) and caffeine has certain health benefits and does not contribute to cardiovascular disease, including high blood pressure and stroke. In fact, coffee is known to be a source of certain dietary antioxidants. Since it is a stimulant, it can contribute to difficulty in falling asleep, may interfere with regular sleeping patterns for many people and may cause disturbed or reduced sleep for some. Those sensitive to it should avoid coffee at bed time or try switching to cold brews, if you must.

Many health conscious people are turning to cold brews to get that caffeine kick and keep heartburn/ acidity in check. Despite the increasing popularity of cold brew coffee, more research needs to be conducted to validate its health benefits and ascertain risks, if any.

सकाळी उठल्यावर अनेकांना सर्वात आधी कॉफी पिण्याची सवय असते. काही लोकांना सकाळी उठल्या उठल्या कॉफी घेतली नाही तर फ्रेशच वाट नाही. पण तम्हाला हे ऐकून आश्चर्य वाटेल की, आपलं वजन वाढविण्यासाठी बऱ्याचदा कॉफी कारणीभूत ठरते. संशोधनातून असे सिद्ध झाले आहे की, कॉफी प्यायल्याने वजन वाढते. परंतु तुम्ही कॉफीचे शौकीन असाल आणि वजनही आटोक्यात ठेवायचे असेल तर तुम्हाला कॉफी सोडायची गरज नाही. त्यासाठी तुम्हाला वेगळ्या प्रकारे कॉफी बनवून घ्यावी लागेल. आज आम्ही तुम्हाला कॉफी तयार करण्याची अशी पद्धत सांगणार आहोत, ज्यामुळे तुम्ही कॉफीही पिऊ शकता आणि तुमचे वजनही नियंत्रित राहू शकते.

असा करा कॉफीचा उपयोग

कॉफी तयार करण्यासाठी सर्वात आधी पाव कप नारळाचे तेल आणि १ चमचा दालचिनी पावडर एकत्र करून त्याची पेस्ट तयार करा. आता त्यामध्ये एक चमचा कोको पावडर आणि अर्धा चमचा मध मिक्स करा. आणि तयार मिश्रण एका काचेच्या बरणीत भरून फ्रिजमध्ये ठेवा. दुसऱ्या दिवशी सकाळी जेव्हा कॉफी तयार कराल त्यावेळी कॉफीमध्ये एक किंवा दोन चमचे हे मिश्रण मिक्स करा. काहीच दिवसंत तुम्हाला फरक दिसेल.

शरीरासाठी अत्यंत लाभदायक

अशाप्रकारे तयार करण्यात आलेली कॉफी वजन कमी करतेच, पण त्याचबरोबर वाढत्या वयाच्या खुणांनाही कमी करते. जर तुम्हाला वाटत असेल की, तुम्ही कमी वयातही म्हातारे दिसत असाल तर ही कॉफी तुमच्यासाठी लाभदायक आहे. कॉफीमध्ये मोठ्या प्रमाणावर अॅन्टी-ऑक्सिडेंट असतात. त्यामुळे अनेक आजारांपासून शरीराचे रक्षण करण्यासही मदत होते.

ग्रीन कॉफीचा वापर करा



नुकत्याच झालेल्या संशोधनानुसार, ग्रीन टी सारखीच ग्रीन कॉफी शरीरासाठी फायदेशीर असते. ग्रीन कॉफीबाबत संशोधकांनी सांगितले आहे की, सकाळी अनोशापोटी ग्रीन कॉफी घेतली तर अगदी सहज वजन कमी करण्यास मदत होते.