Coffee is a big deal in Lebanon! From its simple pleasure to its socializing purpose, coffee for us Lebanese is not just a hot beverage but a necessity to our lives and our lifestyle.
According to our own popular belief, all our problems become smaller after a good cup of coffee, and we do tend to even proclaim it a de-stressing beverage.
If we come to think of it, coffee is one of the only things that unite all the Lebanese people. There are no differences among us when a cup of coffee is in the picture!
From our sebhieh, weddings, and births to funerals or even hospitals, coffee will always be included.
We might try to stop ourselves from overdrinking it, “lah merci, shrebet ktir awhe lyom,” (no thank you, I have had too much coffee today).
But we know that this just won’t last the instant we smell the aroma of our coffee. Another excuse we tend to use is that we won’t be able to sleep at night if we drink too much. However, this one might not be so valid anymore.
That is to say, that a new study by researchers from Florida Atlantic University and Harvard Medical School found out that drinking coffee before bed does not seem to impact the quality of sleep.
According to sleep expert Dr. Neil Stanley, there are some people who are more sensitive to caffeine and should watch out for its excessive consumption.
However, other than that, no correlation was found between the consumption of caffeine before bedtime and a decrease in the number of sleeping hours.
The study was conducted by monitoring 785 people for 5,164 nights, and recording how much caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine they had consumed.
The team also revised the participants’ sleep diaries and checked out the wrist sensors that recorded their sleep duration, efficiency, and how quickly they would wake up after falling asleep.
The findings revealed that alcohol and nicotine did significantly disrupt sleeping patterns to a point where smoking a cigarette before bedtime reduced the amount of sleep by 42 minutes.
Caffeine, on the other hand, seemed to have no effect. Even though the findings were a surprise to the scientists, they were already aware of the benefits that a cup of coffee can bring.
Another study conducted earlier this year, and published in the European Journal of Epidemiology, suggested that drinking about two cups of coffee a day could increase life expectancy by up to two years compared to no coffee consumption.
It seems that Lebanese people are right after all to enjoy their large consumption of coffee whatever what. So, if you are a coffee lover and were depriving yourself of it in the evenings, now you know. Go ahead, drink, and enjoy your life!