Darrick Robles Coffee is the most popular drink among Germans – on average, everyone drinks 162 liters a year. Coffee is more than just a drink: Enjoying a cup of coffee gives the drinker a little break from everyday life. Many don’t want to do without it. Other, less well-known drinks can convey moments of warmth and security just as well – and are also a lot healthier than coffee beans.
Disadvantages of coffee
Of course, you can get rid of tiredness with coffee . Therefore, for many, a cup of coffee is the perfect way to start the day. But there are also plenty of reasons to forgo the caffeine kick:
- Too much caffeine can lead to heart palpitations, headaches and gastrointestinal problems.
- Drinking coffee on an empty stomach can cause heartburn .
- Roasting the beans produces acrylamide, a potentially carcinogenic substance.
- Enjoying coffee in the afternoon or evening can cause insomnia .
- In some cases, coffee is addictive – caffeine can act like a drug.
grain coffee
Grain coffee uses barley or rye instead of beans, sometimes corn or spelt. The grains are dried, roasted and then ground. Barley coffee is well known and widely used as malt coffee. Overall, grain coffee is more digestible and nutritious than coffee beans, and gluten-free versions are also available. It has a typically spicy taste. However, it does not wake you up, because grain coffee does not contain any caffeine.
Lupinenkaffee
The lupine coffee tastes particularly aromatic, nutty, almost chocolaty. It is obtained from the sweet lupine, a legume that was first bred in 1926. Lupine coffee is naturally caffeine-free and gluten-free and is extremely gentle on the stomach. It contains various B vitamins, magnesium, iron and zinc. However, anyone who is allergic to legumes should also be careful with lupine coffee. Since sweet lupins are grown in Germany, lupine coffee has a good ecological balance.
Chicory coffee
Chicory is not a particularly popular vegetable and most people react cautiously to chicory coffee. The taste of chicory coffee is surprisingly close to that of coffee beans. It is not the shoots that are used, but the roots of the chicory plant. It is ground into a fine powder that is caffeine-free and has anti-inflammatory properties. Chicory coffee has been drunk for over 300 years.
Pilzkaffee
It is not mushrooms or chanterelles that are used for mushroom coffee, but Asian or Nordic types of mushrooms such as chage, reishi or shiitake. When mixed with hot water, the mushroom powder has an earthy note, but tastes less bitter than coffee. Mushroom coffee is said to have a revitalizing effect, it is said to strengthen the immune system and promote concentration. However, there are currently no long-term scientific studies to prove this.
Guarana-Pulver
The seeds of the guarana bush have more caffeine than any other plant, about 4 times that of regular coffee. However, the guarana caffeine is only slowly released in the body. This means that the stimulating effect can only be felt later, but lasts longer. Guarana tastes bitter and can have the same side effects as coffee, so the powder should always be weighed carefully. Guarana powder is found in coffee and cocoa mixed drinks, but also in juices and energy drinks.
And what about tea?
It doesn’t always have to be a hip new superfood: tea is also a healthy and proven alternative to coffee. Both black and green tea contain caffeine, but significantly less than coffee. Green tea is considered particularly health-promoting because it contains polyphenols that have an anti-inflammatory effect. This is especially true for matcha tea, where the leaves are not only infused but also ground and thus consumed whole. Herbal, fruit and ginger tea each have their own health benefits, which it would take too long to list here.
Raise the cups!
If you are now in the mood for the coffee alternatives mentioned, we can only encourage you: try them out for yourself and find out what you like! Pay attention to whether you feel different after enjoying it than with coffee beans – this is how you find the right hot drink for you. By the way: Not every supermarket has substitute coffee, but you will find it in health food stores and of course on the Internet.
