The recent green coffee bean craze, boosted by Dr. Oz, is an interesting confirmation of the benefits of raw Paleo, if it's more than just hype. Starbucks is even cashing in on the craze, though their green tea products have added ingredients, are highly processed, and probably not raw (
http://www.starbucks.com/promo/refreshers).
The coffee bean is a fruit seed/pit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffee_bean, rather than a legume (and some even regard certain legumes that are edible raw, such as tamarinds, jicama and groundnuts, as raw Paleo anyway). I'm posting this in the general forum because...
> I've never seen anyone claim that raw fruit seeds aren't raw Paleo (though I have seen caveats about sprouting and such)
> this thread is about raw green coffee beans, rather than the roasted variety
> while the raw beans themselves are too tough for me to bother eating them (though out of curiosity I softened some in my mouth until flavor was produced and they actually weren't that bad, though still not worth the bother), coffee water produced from soaking them is edible raw and I find it tasty
> fruit seed threads have been accepted in the general forum before, such as
http://www.rawpaleodietforum.com/general-discussion/eating-fruit-seeds-and-pips-good-for-you/msg99418/ and
http://www.rawpaleodietforum.com/health/prevent-cancer-with-apricot-seeds/msg89593/Caveat: because fruit seeds contain much higher concentrations of plant toxins than fruit flesh, it may be wise to limit intake. My thinking here is that raw green coffee bean water may be hormetic and a better alternative to roasted coffee, not that raw green coffee is fine in unlimited amounts.
I sometimes drink coffee and I've been using the lightest-roast (tan) coffee beans I could find between local shops and Amazon and soaking them overnight in cold water in a French Press instead of using boiling water and then either lightly heating it in a microwave just enough to melt added butter or drinking it cold. Unaware of the recent green coffee craze, I then read about the reported anti-aging benefits of green coffee beans at Vince Giuliano's blog
www.anti-agingfirewalls.com and wondered if they could be purchased and if "coffee" made from them would be palatable. I did some searching and found that vegan super athlete Rich Roll makes coffee from unroasted beans (see below) and I found and bought a 1 pound size of The Bean Coffee Company brand Costa Rican green coffee beans at Amazon to try them.
I ground the beans a bit--they are tougher and therefore more difficult to grind than roasted beans--and soaked them overnight in the French press, as usual. I was surprised to find that the resulting coffee water, while very mild, tasted rather good to me--mildly nutty and sweet, similar to raw cacao--especially by the third day I tried it, despite Tim Ferriss' writing that it's "Slightly bitter and somewhat flavorless." Maybe it's because I notice subtle flavors much more since eating mostly raw?
It's early to tell, but I seem to notice some of the energy and feeling of well being I get from roasted coffee beans without the jitteriness or muscle achiness I get if I drink too much roasted coffee, or too often.
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Here's some info on raw green coffee beans:
Three identified ingredients in green coffee believed to produce beneficial effects (hypthesized as due to hormesis and/or antioxidant activity) are chlorogenic acid, caffeine and caffeic acid (unrelated to caffeine).
Green Coffee Bean Extract: Fat-Burner or Fraud?http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/green-coffee-bean-projectVincent Giuliano wrote that the xenohormetic ingredients in green coffee beans include caffeic acid and chlorogenic acid and that "Green coffee beans are good. These polyphenols are damaged by the heat with coffee bean roasting." Chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid inhibit DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs). DNMTs "silence" genes that promote health and anti-aging when active. (Source: Vincent Giuliano,
http://www.anti-agingfirewalls.com/2013/05/07/part-1-slaying-two-dragons-with-one-stone-how-to-prevent-cancer-and-aging-with-the-same-strategy)
"Coffee is a notable source of caffeine. However, coffee’s effects on glycemic control and weight loss have been attributed to its other components, including chlorogenic acid, quinides, lignans, and trigonelline, all of which have been shown to improve glucose metabolism in animal studies.
Chlorogenic acid has specifically been shown to inhibit an enzyme, glucose-6-phosphatase, that promotes the formation of glucose (sugar) in the liver. Hence, chlorogenic acid in coffee may be responsible, at least in part, for the reduced risk of glycemic disorders, like diabetes, with long-term coffee consumption.
It may also be the source of coffee’s anti-obesity effects. Various studies have suggested that chlorogenic acid slows absorption of fat from food intake and also activates metabolism of extra fat. Unfortunately, traditional brewed coffee doesn’t serve as a good source of chlorogenic acid. While roasting green coffee beans removes its naturally bitter taste, it also removes a significant portion of chlorogenic acid. Hence, green coffee beans remain one of the best natural sources for chlorogenic acid."
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/fact-sheet-green-coffee-beanVegan super-athlete Rich Roll uses green coffee beans:
"Fat Loss. Similar to green tea and grape seed extract, organic raw (green) coffee beans have powerful anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties effective in combating free radical damage. Benefits in weight management are due to two active compounds, caffeine (lower in green beans) and chlorogenic acid (which is destroyed by roasting) [TIM: Also found in my perennial fave, yerba mate]. The caffeine releases fatty acids into the bloodstream from stored body fat, while the chlorogenic acid increases efficiency of metabolizing these fats while inhibiting sugar (glucose) absorption by the blood stream.
Simply grind the green beans and prepare in a French Press like normal coffee. Alternatively, place the ground beans in water in the sun to brew iced coffee. However, don’t expect it to taste like coffee – it doesn’t. Slightly bitter and somewhat flavorless, try adding erythritol to sweeten. Nor will it give you a boost; its caffeine content is significantly lower than roasted beans.
There was a rumor that Starbucks was test-marketing some iced green bean elixirs, but I have yet to see it hit stores. Probably didn’t test well."
- Tim Ferriss,
http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2012/05/23/10-uncommon-superfoods-from-the-world-of-ultra-endurance"While the caffeine content in coffee may play a role in weight loss, chlorogenic acid, lignans and other elements have a stronger effect on glucose metabolism as well as other less discussed benefits of green coffee bean extract. Unfortunately, traditional coffee is not a good source of chlorogenic acid.
The process of roasting green coffee beans removes the bitter taste associated with coffee, but it also removes much of the chlorogenic acid. Raw, unroasted green coffee beans are the best natural source of CGA.
Green coffee bean supplements usually contain an extract of chlorogenic acid and other hydroxycinnamic acids. These ingredients have proven antioxidant properties that are beneficial for health. Test subjects who took green coffee supplements lost an average of 18 pounds over a 12-week period. They lost fat from their bellies and other parts of the body."
http://www.sao.org/is-green-coffee-bean-extract-really-a-solution-for-belly-fatNew Evidence That Caffeine Is a Healthful Antioxidant in Coffee
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110504095630.htmAntioxidant activity of caffeic acid (3,4-dihydroxycinnamic acid)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0300483X05004786Bee propolis can contain caffeic acid. See Antioxidant activity of propolis: role of caffeic acid phenethyl ester and galangin,
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12495706
