Cacao versus Coffee

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Permalink Reply by Michele on January 7, 2009 at 3:12pm

This is the kind of inspiration I was looking for ... that cacao can work in a positive way to get off of coffee. I'm bargaining with the coffee monster within me.

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Permalink Reply by tracy g on January 7, 2009 at 3:37pm

Cacao works way better than coffee for my body. Coffee makes me perspire and feel anxious. Cacao is a smooth energy flow. I used to like coffee plain without sweetener or milk so I just use straight cacao powder in water. (about 1tbs almost daily) A combination of maca and cacao powder feels nice too. Lemon/fresh pressed ginger root/cayenne pepper "tea" works as well for a quick pick-me-up.

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Permalink Reply by Michele on January 7, 2009 at 3:47pm

A smooth energy flow sounds nice. Thanks for the tea idea too.

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Permalink Reply by Kiani on January 8, 2009 at 2:39am

I find it hard to believe that noone wrote this yet. The coffee bean is surrounded by a tasty fruit that is KNOWN to TREAT the EFFECTS of drinking the COFFEE. Yes, coffee fruit treats the syptoms of drinking the coffee including the jitters, overstimulaton, etc. It is actually quite tasty too. Sorry I don't have a photo to share. There are wild coffee groves here in Hawaii. When in season, you can pick and eat so much that you can't deny feeling calm, relaxed, and focused.

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Permalink Reply by Michele on January 17, 2009 at 11:44am

I didn't know that Kiani. That's really interesting. So you can eat the raw coffee bean & its surrounding fruit together and it is actually tasty and gives no bad side effects? What substance is in the fruit that conteracts the effects of the caffeine? If there is an antidote for the unpleasant side effects of caffeine I would like to know what it is !!

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Permalink Reply by Kiani on January 17, 2009 at 2:35pm

I didn't mention eating the coffee beans raw because I wouldn't do it. Look up the proof yourself. I study by the effect it has on me. Coffee fruit is used as an herb to treat the symptoms of drinking the coffee

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Permalink Reply by Dave on April 21, 2009 at 1:12pm

yep in maui i ate 4 raw coffee beans. fruit and everything. i felt awesome. don't know if it was just because it was the raw coffee bean, or the fact the fruit was on it. but yeah.

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Permalink Reply by Dave on April 21, 2009 at 1:31pm

i think if you want to get off coffee...

one way is to find a "drug-effect" replacement...

i like looking at the world's oldest (but dead) woman.

both didn't use coffee really, but they did do drugs.

i think in our civilized dense CONFINED spaces we live in, we simply DO NOT HAVE THE FREEDOM anymore as we did as hunter gatherers. that is one reason I think drugs are good. to help take the psychological edge off of living in a cage. albeit a larger cage than a dog kennel.

Jeanne Calment ate 2 lbs of chocolate a week. She drank wine everyday. Smoked cigarettes. Those were her DRUGS. she lived 125 ish

Same with Fulla Nayak - she loved steaming hot tea. she smoked bidis. she drank palm wine from her hut everyday. she once remarked that smoking cannabis cigars everyday was her secret to long life.


but none of them did coffee. interesting. i know jeanne calment lived in france. so culturally coffee is there... and i saw a pic of her drinking it one time...so she probably enjoyed it. but i think it probably wasn't a part of her daily life. she did cacao.

but they both did drugs. i dont' think they are bad. they are good. but maybe its just balancing them. finding the balance. for instance its nice to have that caffeine high (cacao, tea whatever)... but maybe you need some wine to balance it down with. and tobacco always speeds up the rate of caffeine detox.

why do i still look to these woman for health advise after many years? idk..but i'm continously drawn back to them.

i've tried coffee. i wish i could use it as my drug. i just can't. idk. i WANT TO BELIEVE that its the TYPE of coffee that is the trick...but i've tried different kinds. funny lately when i start drinking it i'm like, WHY AM I DRINKING THIS? i've stopped drinking it now for 2 days.

i guess i'm going to keep exploring. just interesting to me these woman were definite DRUG users. drug is such a bad word... don't like it has too many negative connotations. maybe i should stop using it :)... the word, that is

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Permalink Reply by Randomguru on April 22, 2009 at 8:03pm

I received my advance copy of David Wolfe's new book, "Superfoods - The Food and Medicine of the Future."

As you all may know, David Wolfe is one of the leading authorities on raw foods and has written many books on the subject and earned a Master's Degree in Food Nutrition... not to mention Bachelor's degrees in Science and Engineering.

He gets in-depth with what he has labeled the Top 10 Superfoods. Cacao is #2 (after Goji Berries) and in each chapter dedicated to a particular superfood he covers the history, usage, benefits, etc. Cacao has minimal amounts of Caffeine but does contain trace amounts of a stimulant called Theobromine, which is only about 1% in any given amount of cacao. It's not a nervous system stimulant, but actually a cardiovascular stimulant in that it dilates and opens up the cardiovascular system.

What cacao does contain are the most antioxidants over any other food, even more than blueberries. Cacao also contains essential amino acids, minerals like Manganese, Magnesium, Chromium and Zinc. And also contains Anandamide, which is an endorphin, a chemical that David Wolfe calls the "bliss chemical" which explains the good feelings one feels when eating cacao.

David Wolfe also covers what he considers are safe proportions of cacao for children and adults.

I personally don't have any negative side effects from ingesting raw cacao. But i can see how one CAN abuse cacao, or any food for that matter. One thing I personally learned is that my triglyceride levels actually went into the high risk levels and I have ben 90-100% raw vegan. But I figured that I was juicing too much. Moderation is the key in any kind of diet. For me personally, too much juice of any kind can raise my triglyceride levels because they go into my system faster. And this proves too that we are all unique and our bodies differ in chemistry and needs. It's up to us to figure out on an individual basis what our own needs are and what keeps us healthy.

I'm so glad I kicked my Coffee/Caffeine habit... but I don't think I need to stop my raw cacao smoothies. Of course, we all must experience for ourselves what raw cacao does to our bodies. People have various sensitivities to various foods, and might be allergic or have negative reactions to raw cacao.

And if not... enjoy your raw cacao! :o)

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Permalink Reply by Vaughn Sadekni on April 22, 2009 at 10:28pm

Been eating cacao for 6 yrs now and I feel awesome. Nothing negative at all! I think if cacao was bad then I would have felt a reaction by now. Of course I do buy the best quality cacao and will not settle for anything else. Quite the fuss about cacao already!

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Permalink Reply by nora lenz on April 23, 2009 at 10:32pm

There's no need to take anyone's word about cacao, or any other questionable "food". Give it up, if you can, for 3-6 months, then go back and ingest it again. Your body will not lie to you.

When people consume a stimulant or other harmful substance for a long period of time without appearing to experience “negative effects”, it doesn’t mean the body isn’t paying a price. The body actually creates various protective mechanisms for dealing with anything it can’t use or escape. In doing so, it gives up vitality. Following is an explanation of this phenomenon, called “The Law of Vital Accommodation”.

“The Law of Vital Accommodation is also known as nature's balance wheel. The response of the vital organism to internal and external stimuli, agents and influences is intrinsic and instinctive, based on self-preserving, self-maintaining, and self-defending abilities which enable the organism to "adapt," tolerate, or accommodate those extraneous influences it cannot utilize, escape, destroy, eliminate, or control in whatever way possible in order to maintain cellular, organic, and systemic integrity and to protect the life of the organism, at the expense of enervation, overall impairment of health, and consequent degeneration within the organism in direct proportion to the amount of influences and the toxic, enervating effects produced by the degenerating influences.

This law means that the living organism can tolerate or accommodate the extraneous influences which enter or come into contact with it. It "adapts" itself to whatever it cannot free itself of. The body tries in every way possible to maintain functional poise, having to sacrifice well-being. Functional vigor is lowered for the sake of survival. When we make compromises, we do so invariably at our own expense. We create conditions; the laws remain constant.”

When we seek optimal health, it cannot be our goal to make our bodies more tolerant of harmful influences. The healthier a person gets, the more his/her body returns to that vital and sensitive state that accompanied infancy and childhood. A healthy body is LESS tolerant of poisons. All anybody has to do to prove this to himself is think back to his first drink of alcohol or first few puffs on a cigarette.

Best wishes,
Nora
www.RawSchool.com
www.RawTreasure.com

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Permalink Reply by Vaughn Sadekni on April 24, 2009 at 8:58am

I have given it up and the past. What was I supposed to feel? If was not difficult at all to give up. Call me stubborn but I just dont believe all the negative energy that is used to criticize cacao. Sure some people can get addicted and sure some people may be allergic or simply just dont do well on it. Does that mean that everyone should just stop and say oh wow its toxic. There are many individuals out there that even say spices and roots are toxic. Is that the word of choice here. I have heard that from natural hygienists for much to long. They are deeply rooted in just plain dogma and seem to disregard everything else. Been on that path, it made me ill both mentally and physically. Follow you heart not your mind. Just listen to your body.

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