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Is it Healthy to Eat Coffee Beans?
Before people started brewing coffee as a beverage, people used it for energy during hunting or farming activities. At this time, people also discovered the crunchiness of coffee beans as an enjoyable snack – these seeds can now be enjoyed chocolate-dipped, straight out of the bag, or as part of your coffee garnishing. But are these seeds nutritious to consume?
Answer: As long as you don’t overdo it. A handful of coffee beans should satisfy your craving without leading to side effects like jitteriness or indigestion, with caffeine providing many health benefits if taken responsibly and antioxidants helping protect against oxidative stress as well as vitamins, minerals and fiber.
Eating whole coffee beans will have similar effects to drinking brewed coffee — only more intensely so. That’s because their active ingredients won’t have been watered down and will directly enter your system as you consume them as snacks – each bean contains approximately 6 milligrams of caffeine which provides you with a substantial dose.
If you plan on eating raw beans, be aware that they may be tough and chewy due to not yet having been roasted. They might taste grassy or woody and are likely more acidic than roasted coffee; but if you can stomach their bitter taste, raw beans can provide both nutrition and caffeine boost for your day!
Raw beans can be found in many forms such as granola bars, protein powders and smoothies. People may even use them instead of roasted peanuts when creating homemade nut butters! It should be noted, however, that while coffee beans have many health benefits they can also be quite costly when used as snacks.
Coffee beans have a highly concentrated and distinct flavor profile that may be difficult to replicate outside of chocolate-dipped varieties or mocha drinks. Although this isn’t necessarily bad news, some consumers may prefer something with more subtle flavour profiles; to overcome this hurdle you can brew your own coffee or mix them with foods to mask bitterness, or opt for smoother roasts such as medium.
