I’ll Take a Venti Carmel Macchiato Please, Full Whip

Do you know where all the local Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts and local cafe’s are in your area, as well as, all the places you’ve lived and visited? Can you read a Starbucks menu and know exactly what everything means? Do you know the difference between light, dark and medium roast ? If you answered yes to any one of these questions and especially all of them, then you belong to the coffee culture.

As described by the Wikipedia, coffee culture is, “a social atmosphere that depends heavily upon coffee shops, espresso in particular, to act as a social lubricant.” The idea of grabbing one’s laptop, heading to a local Starbucks, ordering a half calf, light carmel macchiato, with soy and no whip, then sitting in an overstuffed arm chair to type the next greatest American novel is borderline orgasmic, if you belong to the coffee culture. America houses the greatest number of consumers of coffee and coffee related business’s and paraphernalia. (wikipedia, Social Aspects section) So it seems only natural that the beverage be tied into our media, environments, lives and households. Television shows like Friends, Frazier, Gilmore Girls, NYPD Blue, Monk and Seinfeld have all emphasized coffee as a main character in their shows and a steady in the backdrop to all socialization. Coffee is our friend.

Many doctors and nutritionist have toted the benefits of caffeine. Coffee can reduce the chances of your getting cancer, dying young, lower your cholesterol, improve brain function and reduce your chances of getting a heart attack. It also keeps cavities at bay and alleviates headaches and wards off colon cancer. What more could you ask for? Why isn’t everybody drinking coffee and gaining its medicinal properties? Well, there are a few reasons why.

Negatives of coffee drinking for some is simply caffeine sensitivity. I happen to know some people who drink a cup of joe and fall fast asleep. It has the reverse effect of the jolt that so many of us rely on to start our days. Besides that, coffee drinking can speed up your heart rate, cause nervous jitters and the headaches associated with coming off the coffee jolt. This can put some people off and keep them from being part of the coffee culture. Some of those negative benefits are: worsening women’s infertility, headaches, worsening of symptoms for people with high blood pressure and heart conditions. So for those suffering from these conditions and or symptoms, coffee would not only not benefit them, but possibly kill them. For the majority of the population, however, coffee benefits very much out weigh the negatives.