According to CNN, drinking coffee may reduce the risk of ailments like colon cancer, Type 2 diabetes and Parkinson's disease. These benefits may result from antioxidant activity in coffee. CNN notes a study that suggests that Americans get more antioxidants from coffee than any other source of dietary antioxidants. Polyphenols or flavonoids are among the major groups of antioxidant compounds that exist in coffee.
Chlorogenic Acid
The Coffee Science Information Center suggests that coffee beans are one of the richest sources of dietary chlorogenic acid. Chlorogenic acid is an antioxidant that could make up 70 to 350 mg of a 200 ml sample of coffee. According to the Coffee Science Information Center, a 200 ml cup of Arabica coffee contains between 70 and 200 mg of chlorogenic acid, and the same cup of Robusta coffee contains up to 350 mg of chlorogenic acid. The Institute for Traditional Medicine indicates that coffee consumption may reduce the risk of liver cirrhosis and liver cancer. The institute suggests this benefit may result from a combination of cholagogue and antioxidant activity in coffee. Cholagogue action promotes the flow of toxins and fats through bile fluid and antioxidant activity occurs with chlorogenic acid. The institute speculates that coffee is a primary source of antioxidant activity in the American population.
Caffeic Acid
Caffeic acid is a non-nitrogenous carbocyclic or carboxlic acid produced by plants. According to the Coffee Science Information Center, caffeic acid is a strong "in vitro" antioxidant that exists in coffee, which indicates that this acid exhibits antioxidant activity in controlled laboratory experiments. The Chemical Land 21 website notes that caffeic acid is a phenolic acid that may inhibit carcinogenic activity in your body. Chemical Land 21 suggests that antioxidant activity in caffeic acid may help prevent cardiovascular diseases. A 2008 study conducted by Nam Joo Kang and colleagues and published in "Carcinogenesis: Integrative Cancer Research" suggests that caffeic acid may have anti-carcinogenic effects that provide a "potent chemopreventative" against skin cancer.
Melanoidins
The Coffee Science Information Center suggests that roasting coffee beans may "dramatically increase" total antioxidant activity in coffee. The "maillard" reaction is a chemical reaction that occurs during coffee bean roasting. The maillard reaction yields brown polymer substances known as melanoidins. Melanoidins may account for as much as 25 percent of dry matter in coffee beans. The Warwick Medical School indicates that melanoidins may provide antioxidant effects by decreasing concentration in the body or intercepting radical oxygen molecules. Melanoidins may decompose free radicals into non-radical substances or "scavenging" free radicals to prevent free radical activity known as "first chain" initiation.
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