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Food trends - As we all know, the popularity of certain foods and drinks comes in ebbs and flows. What is fashionable to drink one year may be completely taboo the next.

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Examples -

Recent diet trends include, for example, the rise in veganism and the preference for so-called ‘superfoods.’ And now, interestingly enough, replacing coffee with decaf drinks.

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Our relationship with caffeine -

The idea that we should be opting for a decaf alternative to coffee is interesting; for years, normal coffee has been linked with a lower risk of certain diseases, including heart disease.

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The worry with caffeine -

Recently, however, caffeine has come under fire for causing anxiety and problems with sleep. Enter the caffeine-free coffee alternatives.

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Growing market -

In response to the demand for coffee-like beverages that contain zero caffeine, a number of caffeine-free alternatives have appeared on the market in recent years.

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The concept -

The makers of these alternatives boast a ‘natural boost’ without the coffee jitters, which they claim can be produced with ancient medicinal herbs and even superfoods.

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Examples -

Popular ingredients that are marketed as alternatives to coffee include beetroot, turmeric, maca, ginseng, and moringa.

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Open question -

Many of these ingredients do contain bioactive compounds that will impact our health when consumed, but the jury is currently out on whether that impact is always positive.

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Maca -

One of the most popular coffee alternatives is maca, which is extracted from the maca root plant and is added in powdered form to milk.

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Latte alternative -

Many people are opting for a maca latte in coffee shops instead of a regular latte, but according to one expert from the University of London, it won’t do the same trick.

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No energy boost -

Michael Heinrich is a professor of ethnopharmacology and pharmacognosy and he says, “Maca isn’t a stimulant, like coffee. It doesn’t boost attention.”

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No reliable data -

He also argues that maca cannot be considered any healthier than coffee, since its health benefits have not been well studied and the studies that do exist aren’t always reliable.

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Ginseng -

Another popular coffee substitute is ginseng, a herb that has traditionally been used as a medicine. According to Heinrich, ginseng doesn’t offer any meaningful energy boost either.

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Potential health benefits -

He does note, however, that there have been studies to suggest ginseng may have preventative effects against certain infectious diseases and even some cancers.

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Turmeric -

Turmeric, too, has been shown to have some health benefits. Those benefits won’t necessarily be reaped by drinking a turmeric latte, however.

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The reality -

According to Charlotte Mills, a lecturer in nutritional sciences at the University of Reading, the dose of turmeric needed to get any benefits is incredibly high.

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To quote the expert -

"You can only stomach so much turmeric, so to get the effects shown in some of the research, the dose you'd need is incredibly high. I'm not sure you'd get that through a coffee alternative."

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Potential health risks -

And it may even be the case that drinking a large amount of turmeric could have an adverse impact on our health, according to Gunther Kuhnle at the University of Reading.

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Verbatim -

To quote him, "Research into the potential toxicity of drinking loads of turmeric, or other plant bioactives, hasn't been done, which is concerning."

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Moringa -

And then there's moringa, whose name refers to a tree native to India. It also tends to be blended into milk in its powdered form.

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Benefits of moringa -

According to Wendy Russell, professor of molecular nutrition at the University of Aberdeen, moringa is high in protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals.

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Benefits of moringa continued -

It also apparently contains a wide range of bioactive phytochemicals, some of which have been associated with preventing type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

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The downside -

According to Russell, however, we are unlikely to get these benefits from drinking a moringa latte. To quote her, "Moringa tastes horrible…"

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The reality -

"...You probably couldn't get enough of the plant into a drink to make it beneficial. The amount of moringa in these drinks will actually be quite small.”

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More on moringa -

"I've watched its popularity and sales of moringa drinks rise dramatically, but I'm concerned people are being hoodwinked into thinking it's good for them."

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Why not opt for decaf? -

Apparently moringa will not give you an energy boost that is anything like coffee, either. In the absence of an energy-boosting alternative, then, why don’t people just go for decaf coffee?

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In the past -

This is a question that researchers are pondering heavily. Traditionally, caffeine-free alternatives such as chicory were popular because they were cheap.

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The situation today -

The cost-saving argument doesn’t fly with today’s alternatives, however, as these are likely to set you back more than a regular coffee.

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General confusion - It seems that the popularity of maca, ginseng, turmeric, and the like has to do with some confusion over whether coffee is good or bad for us.

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All in all -

Until we are sure of the health benefits and/or risks of these caffeine-free alternatives, however, it may be the case that a regular old cup of decaf is the safest bet.

Sources: (BBC)

See also: Healthy eating habits from around the world

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