June 2026

Alkaloids in herbal medicine

• Week 1: Alkaloids in Herbal Medicine
• Week 2: Goldenseal – Herbal Gold At Risk
• Week 3: Coffee – Your Daily Boost
• Week 4: Lobelia – The Optimal Relaxant

Most people don’t think of coffee as an herb; however, it is one of the most widely used herbs in the world. Many folks self prescribe coffee for its stimulating effects, which work by blocking the receptors (Adenosine) that tell you you have had enough and it’s time to slow down.

Coffee – Your Daily Boost

What’s in a name

The word “coffee” is believed to originate in the Ethiopian region of Kaffa (also spelled “Kefa” or “Keffa”), where Coffea arabica, the coffee plant, was first discovered. The locals referred to the drink made from the beans as “bun” or “bunn.”

Botanical Family: Rubiaceae

Part used: Seeds

Degree

 Coffee is a 2nd degree herb. You wouldn’t eat a plateful of coffee like you would dandelion leaves or violets; however, it is appropriate as a tonic for daily use, unlike 3rd degree remedies, which are used only as medicine. 

Description

Coffee is a shrub or small evergreen tree that can grow to more than 30 feet (9 meters).

Leaves are elliptical, dark green and waxy, measuring from 1 to 16 inches, and carry yellow veins. Their color ranges from purple to yellow to dark green (the most common). The leaves grow in pairs across from each other.

Flowers are small, white or pink, and fragrant. They open after a dry period and may last only a few days.

Fruits, called cherry, can be bright red, purple, yellow, orange, blue, or black when mature, depending on the species. They are waxy, grow along the stem, and contain one or two seeds. 

Seeds or “coffee beans” are the rounded oblong seeds, each with a flat face marked by a lengthwise groove. 

Growing 

Coffee plants thrive in tropical conditions. It requires high altitudes of 2000-6000 ft (600–2,000 meters), consistent tropical temperatures of 60-75 F (15-24 C), rich, well-draining soil, and a pH between 5.5 and 6.5 for optimal nutrient absorption.  

For high quality beans, coffee plants require filtered sunlight and 1,500-2,000 mm of rainfall annually. Sustained rainfall followed by shorter dry periods triggers the coffee plant to bloom and fruit. 

History and lore

According to legend, a goat herder named Kaldi was the first person to discover coffee beans and their benefits. Kaldi noticed that after his goats ate the cherries of a particular tree in the ancient coffee forests of the Ethiopian plateau, they were so full of energy that they didn’t want to sleep at night.

The brewing of coffee originated in Yemen, spread to Mecca and the wider Arabian Peninsula, and by the early 16th century had reached Cairo, Damascus, and Istanbul, where Sufi Muslims used it to aid concentration during night prayers.

Through Mediterranean trade routes, coffee entered Europe in the mid-16th century, first in Italy and later in other regions. Coffee houses were established in Western Europe by the late 17th century. 

Energetic Architecture

Taste

Coffee is bitter, which suggests a stimulating effect on digestive enzymes and bile production from the liver. 

Energetics

Temperature: When you drink a cup of coffee, the immediate effect is that of a peripheral vasoconstriction and an increase in cortisol, leading to a short-term warming sensation. People feel flushed, energized, and warm. However, the chronic adrenal output may deplete the warming metabolic fire rather than sustaining it, leading to a cold constitution over time. People who drink numerous cups of coffee daily might experience cold hands and feet, relying on the coffee’s stimulant effect to feel warm rather than generating endogenous warmth.

Fluids: Coffee dries the body by suppressing mucus production and increasing urination. 

Tone: While coffee stimulates the nervous system, it has a relaxing effect on smooth muscles in the periphery. It allows the airways to relax and the bronchi to dilate, relaxes the lower esophageal sphincter and biliary smooth muscle. 

Tissue State

Short term people with cold, damp, and atonic conditions might benefit from coffee. However, in the long term, these people will deplete their already marginal energy reserves. 

Pharmacology

Carbohydrates – account for 60% of the total weight of raw coffee beans. The polysaccharides serve various functions, such as binding aroma, stabilizing foam, promoting sedimentation, and increasing the viscosity of the extract. Polysaccharides are reduced during roasting by degradation into simple carbohydrates, making them easily extractable with water. 

Volatile compounds – More than 800 kinds of coffee aroma components are found in coffee, most of which are generated during roasting, mostly basic acids, organic acids, phenols, and sugars. 

Alkaloids – Caffeine is the main alkaloid component in coffee fruits and the source of the bitter taste of coffee.

Phenolic acids – are degraded by heat during coffee roasting, leading to the formation of bitter and aromatic phenolic compounds, which are responsible for the color and astringency of coffee. 

Flavonoids – such as catechin, epicatechin, and quercetin are responsible for the antioxidant effect of coffee.

Terpenoids – are oily, fat-soluble compounds naturally present in the lipid fraction of coffee beans that were found to show antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and potentially anti-carcinogenic properties.

Actions

Foundational actions

Foundational actions are associated with the energetic pattern and can be experienced viscerally in the body.

Not a surprise that the foundational action of coffee is a central nervous system stimulant. By blocking adenosine, coffee increases alertness, and temporarily elevates mood and cognitive speed. 

Primary actions

Primary actions relate to organs, systems, or tissues.

Diuretic – The blocking effect of coffee on adenosine receptors extends beyond the nervous system to the kidneys, too. When coffee binds to adenosine receptors in the kidneys, it increases blood flow to the kidneys, raises the glomerular filtration rate, and reduces sodium reabsorption, resulting in a well-known diuretic effect. 

Vascular tone modulating – Blood vessel tone in the brain is mainly modulated by adenosine. By blocking adenosine receptors in the brain, caffeine causes brain blood vessels to narrow. However, the modulation of blood vessel tone in the rest of the body is achieved by the vagus nerve. When the vagus nerve is activated, the body is in parasympathetic mode, and blood vessels are dilated. Coffee being bitter means it activates the vagus nerves. 

One caveat to mention. The degree of vasoconstriction in the body largely depends on your habitual caffeine intake and overall health. People who do not drink coffee regularly may experience more pronounced, temporary blood vessel constriction and a brief spike in blood pressure.

Digestive tonic – The bitter taste promotes the secretion of gastric acid, pepsin, bile, and pancreatic enzymes, as well as increases upper GI motility.

Cholagogue – Stimulates the gallbladder and promotes the flow of bile to aid in emulsifying and absorbing fats.

Laxative – As a bitter  cholagogue, coffee increases motility by promoting bile and digestive enzyme production, activating the vagus nerve, and stimulating the small intestinal muscles. 

Astringent – The phenolic compounds, like chlorogenic acids, can have a similar effect to tannins in wine, eliciting a drying, constricting effect on the tissue. 

Secondary actions 

Secondary actions imply an end result without specifying energetics or the system affected. 

Antioxidant: Rich in caffeic and chlorogenic acids, and flavonoids which scavenge free radicals, coffee helps lower systemic inflammation

Organ affinity

• Central nervous system
• Urinary tract
• Liver
• Digestive tract

Clinical Patterns

Most of the research on the clinical effects of coffee has focused on the alkaloid, specifically caffeine. Caffeine was found to have a different mechanism of action in each body system.

Central nervous system

Caffeine crosses the blood brain barrier rapidly and almost completely, where it binds to adenosine receptors and blocks them. By blocking adenosine’s inhibitory effect, caffeine indirectly affects the release of norepinephrine, dopamine, acetylcholine, serotonin, glutamate, and GABA. 

Dophamine

By blocking adenosine receptors, caffeine increases dopamine production and sensitivity to dopamine, which explains why your mood and motivation improve when you drink coffee and why you might develop mild physical dependence. 

Norepinephrine

When caffeine blocks adenosine receptors, the adenosine inhibitory effect on norepinephrine is suppressed. The brain and the body produce more norepinephrine, promoting a sympathetic response that includes increased alertness, memory, and focus, but at the same time, an increase in anxiety. 

Acetylcholine

Adenosine normally suppresses acetylcholine release and promotes sleep. By blocking adenosine, caffeine allows the release of acetylcholine to proceed, which promotes memory consolidation, alertness, attention, and learning.

GABA

At high doses, caffeine directly blocks GABA receptors, increasing the overall stimulating effect of caffeine and with it the tendency toward anxiety. 

Glutamate

Glutamate is the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system. It stimulates nerve cells to send signals, making it vital for cognition, learning, and memory. By blocking adenosine, caffeine increases glutamate, which

amplifies excitatory signaling throughout the brain, and increases neural firing rates and processing speed

Digestion

As an alkaloidal bitter, coffee stimulates digestive vitality through cephalic phase responses to aroma and taste. In the stomach, Chlorogenic acids from coffee stimulate parietal cells to produce gastrin.  

Parietal cells respond to the presence of gastrin and histamine by elevating cAMP, a chemical messenger that drives HCL production. PDE is an enzyme that breaks down cAMP once HCl amounts are sufficient. Caffeine inhibits PDE activity, prolonging cAMP’s shelf life and leading to elevated HCl. 

The duodenum, the higher third of the small intestine, is where chyme, a half-digested soup mixed with stomach acids from the stomach, is mixed with bile, pancreatic enzymes, and intestinal secretions. 

Regular and decaffeinated coffee stimulates cholecystokinin (CCK) secretion, a hormone that enhances gallbladder contractility and bile production, leading to increased bile and pancreatic enzyme flow.  

A 2015 meta-analysis study found that coffee consumption was  associated with a significant reduction in risk of gallstone disease in women but not in men. 

Histamine

While coffee by itself doesn’t contain much histamine, the roasting process increases its histamine content. 

DAO enzymes are enzymes that metabolize histamine, both intrinsic (produced by the body) and extrinsic (entering the body from the outside). Coffee acts as a DAO inhibitor, reducing the DAO enzyme activity in the gut and increasing histamine load.  lin lininging

Some of the symptoms of increased histamines are headaches or migraines, heart palpitations, anxiety, nausea, and flushing, which explains why some people react to caffeine with these symptoms. 

Liver

Coffee consumption has been shown to benefit liver health. Studies suggest that coffee improves liver enzymes (ALT, AST, and GGTP) in  people with Hepatitis B and C, as well as in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and alcoholic liver disease. Coffee intake of more than 2 cups per day in patients with preexisting liver disease has been shown to be associated with lower incidence of fibrosis and cirrhosis, lower hepatocellular carcinoma rates, as well as decreased mortality.

Metabolic health

Metabolic conditions, including insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, are a rapidly growing global problem with large social, health, and economic consequences..

A 2021 meta-analysis found that short term  consumption of caffeine inhibits glucose uptake and glycogen synthase activity in skeletal muscle by blocking adenosine receptors.  Other mechanisms include increased levels of epinephrine and free fatty acids, which can increase insulin resistance after caffeine intake. 

However, studies suggest that habitual coffee drinkers who drink 3-4 cups of coffee daily might benefit from the protective antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of caffeine, as well as the slowing down of glucose intestinal absorption.

Large prospective studies consistently show that 3-4 cups per day, both caffeinated and decaffeinated, is associated with a 25-30% reduced risk of type 2 diabetes.

Another factor to consider is that coffee is a good dietary source of magnesium, which can help increase insulin sensitivity. 

Cardiovascular system

Caffeine has a dual effect on the heart; it increases heart rate and blood pressure, which means the heart works faster and harder.

In the heart, adenosine regulates heart rate by slowing the heart. However, when caffeine blocks adenosine receptors, adenosine can’t apply the brakes, and heart rate increases.

cAMP is an excitatory chemical messenger that stimulates the heart muscle to contract forcefully. PDE is the enzyme that breaks down cAMP and removes it from the blood, so it no longer increases heart contraction force. Caffeine inhibits PDE, prolonging cAMP levels and leading to more forceful contractions that raise blood pressure. 

Kidneys

In the kidneys, caffeine increases blood flow and renin secretion, thereby increasing diuresis.

Antioxidant

Coffee beans contain a high level of chlorogenic acid. During roasting, chlorogenic acid undergoes progressive destruction and transformation, accompanied by the parallel release of a series of secondary metabolites. However, a substantial amount of chlorogenic acid, ranging from a few mg to perhaps close to 1 g, still remains. 

At the same time, studies suggest that, although coffee may contain high levels of phenolics, their individual physiological effects may be limited by their low bioavailability in the upper gastrointestinal tract.

Safety

While I love my warm cup of coffee first thing in the morning, a couple of words of caution.

If you struggle with insomnia, have problems falling or staying asleep, then coffee and caffeine are not your cup of… 

Feeling tired and wired? Need a lift me up? Consider a good night’s sleep or finding time to rest and recharge. Coffee doesn’t add energy to your energy reserve; it blocks the sensation of fatigue. 

Not listening to your body is the same as not picking up the phone when the bank calls. It will not make your debt disappear; it will just accumulate more interest until you are bankrupt. Shutting down your body’s signals when you are fatigued can lead to burnout and disease. 

If anxiety, especially one where you feel chest pressure or heart palpitations, is something you struggle with, avoid caffeine.

Coffee is contraindicated for people with a hot, dry constitution.