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The Doctor's Kitchen Podcast
#259 Why you should drink 2-3 cups of coffee everyday with Alex Higham
Today we’re diving deep into the wonderful world of coffee with my good friend Alex Higham.
In this episode we talk about the attributes of coffee and why it seems to have benefits for brain and heart health. We also talk through the healthiest brewing methods for coffee from espresso, to aeropress, to cafetiere and Alex’s experiments looking at the caffeine content of different brewing styles.
We talk about how sourcing and roasting methods can affect the polyphenol concentration of the coffee beans and hence the health benefits and how you can choose the best tasting coffee with these in mind. I also ask Alex the questions that I get asked all the time such as how often should I change the beans, when should I drink coffee and what if I can’t tolerate caffeine?
Alex is co-founder of Exhale Healthy Coffee, the UK’s first coffee crafted for health. After 8 years grappling with auto-immunity, Alex is now on a mission to help others regain control of their health starting with the thing most people consume vast quantities of, their coffee.
As a disclaimer, I must mention that I am an advisor to Exhale coffee the company, and I sincerely love everything that Exhale is about. From rigorous sourcing and independently lab testing their beans to ensure no contaminants, it’s how food products should be made, and it’s a privilege to be part of their incredible journey.
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