CGA in Coffee Beans

What is chlorogenic acid? If you are an avid coffee drinker then one of its qualities that you probably love is the rather acidic and bitter flavor. This is caused by the chlorogenic acid which is present in both roasted and unroasted coffee bean. There are other plants out there that are comprised of this type of acid but coffee beans hold the highest concentration. So, what do we know about chlorgenic acid’s effect on the body? That is what we are here to find out.

What are the Types of Chlorogenic Acids found in Coffee?

There are various types of CGAs and the most common one found in coffee beans is the 5-caffeoylquinic acid. It also contains the following CGAs but is found at a much smaller dose: feruloylquinic acid, coumaroylquinic acid and dicaffeoylquinic acid. The amount of CGA found in the coffee bean will determine the quality of the taste and scent of the coffee.

Quantity of Chlorogenic Acids in Different Types of Coffee

How the coffee was prepared will have an impact at the amount of CGAs that it contains. Grinding, roasting and preparation of the coffee will all have an effect on the bean’s CGA content and this will result in coffees with a wide variety of taste.

Robusta beans for example naturally contains a larger amount of CGA when compared to Arabica coffee plants. This is the reason for the huge difference of taste between the two. Roasting a coffee bean will decrease the CGA levels; hence, darker colored beans will always have lower CGA content. When it comes to grounding the coffee bean, finely grounded ones will have a higher CGA content. The temperature for which you brew the bean will also affect the CGA content level.

What are the Benefits of CGA?

The CGA has the potential to deliver high doses of antioxidants in the body. This in turn helps the body to flush out harmful chemicals that may cause damage to your skin. However, CGA is known to be digested extremely quickly by the body which begs the question of how effective it truly is as an antioxidant if the body does not have the time to properly absorb it?

CGA is also being looked at as a reliable preventive measure to health conditions such as diabetes, mainly diabetic cataracts. A recent study was conducted that showed the health benefits of CGA and its ability to stem the spread of diabetic cataracts in an animal. However, more time and research must still be done in order to fully learn its effectiveness when it comes to the human cases.

Are Green Coffee Bean Extracts Effective?

That is the question researchers are still trying to answer up to this day. However, the potency of CGA is further enhanced due to the fact that Green Coffee uses unroasted beans which means the CGA levels is not degraded through roasting. The answer seems to point that green coffee bean extracts hold a lot more health benefits than what it initially shows. That much is for sure.