The Coffee Conspiracy

Today, for the second time recently, I’ve heard someone say “tea has more caffeine than coffee.”  Imported tea, on average, has 60mg of caffeine per cup.  US brands of tea have even less, averaging 40mg.  Drip coffee, on the other hand, has anywhere between 115-175mg per cup.  If you don’t believe me, look it up for yourself.

Here’s what I think is behind this crazy rumor.  In the US, we’re crazy about our caffeine, especially coffee.  Lately, we’ve also been crazy about high-protein, low-carbohydrate fad diets.  The worst of those is also the most popular, “Dr. Atkin’s Diet Revolution,” which I will henceforth refer to as “Fatkins.”  One thing the late Dr. Atkins advises against is caffeine.  I don’t have the source in front of me; I’m a former recovering Fatkins dieter, so I’m not going to touch that book again.  So if people want to choose their morning caffeine source, many of them might be tempted to switch to tea.

I think the rumor about coffee having less caffeine than tea was started by the coffee lobby in an effort to win over those victims of Fatkins.  It’s the only explanation that makes sense.

And before people bombard me with e-mails and comments asking me if I’ve lost my mind, please check the categories for this post.

PGP Key

I totally fail when it comes to organization, and sometimes I loose both private keys and revocation certificates. Anycow, if you need to contact me securely, here is my PGP key:

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Food is good! But…

Food is a wonderful thing.  It sustains us.  It brings us together in community as families and friends.  It is so easy, though, to use food as a comforter.

I used to be very fat.  I’m 6′0″, and most of my adult life I was between 240 – 270 lbs.  I’ve been on fad diets, and my weight and mood yo-yoed.  When I went vegan, by some miracle, I lost weight and kept it off.  I’m now around 170 lbs.  Lately I’ve been finding myself falling into bad habits.  Yes, it is possible to eat junky foods and still be a vegan.  I’ve known vegans who are well over 300 lbs.  We don’t eat friggin’ sticks and twigs!  I eat all sorts of good stuff, fried stuff, and sugary stuff.  I have a horrible caffeine addiction and sweet tooth.  Salads with iceberg lettuce bore me to tears.  Vegenaise and Cheezly taste, in my opinion, better than the foods they replace.  Cakes made with egg-replacer are moister and fluffier than any cake made with egg.  Many dark chocolates, as well as those damned peanut chews one sees everywhere, are vegan.  (So, non-vegans, take note!  We vegans aren’t depriving ourselves!)

It frightens me when I find myself retreating to food as a comforter.  Saturday I was in a bad mood, and I spent the day playing PS2, and I had a quart(!) of pomegranate chocolate chip soy ice cream, fried samosa, and other things I’m ashamed to confess.  When I find myself eating when I’m not hungry just because it’s enjoyable, I have to check myself.  It’s time for a fast, followed by a mostly raw diet.  Once I get the cravings out of my system, I’ll return to eating other things in moderation.

This is a very important, very emotionally-charged subject for me.  I’ve lost my mother to health complications that were caused by her chronic weight and overeating problems.  Even though she had gastric bypass surgery years ago and lost much of the weight, all those years took their toll on her liver and kidneys.  I know as a vegan it’s less likely I’ll ever reach that point, it’s not a chance I’m willing to take.

All things in moderation.  (Still, go vegan!  There’s no reason not to.)