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The Espresso Afterwards – Why it is so Good After a Meal

In many countries, an espresso after a meal is part of a sumptuous meal. Is this a tradition or does the espresso have really positive effects?

The espresso after the meal

Everyone has probably experienced the situation before. After an extensive meal at your favorite Italian restaurant, an espresso is offered at the end. And indeed, after enjoying the little coffee, the food is no longer so heavy in the stomach and you just feel better again. The feeling of sluggishness that tends to set in after a meal seems to have vanished. But what about this tradition, which is extensively celebrated in many countries? Or is it just an imagined effect? Scientists debate the effects of espresso on digestion and well-being.

Espresso? What is that, actually?

Small, black and strong – these are the attributes that are immediately attributed to the small coffee. Many coffee drinkers swear by the short cup of coffee, for others the specialty is too strong. Opinions are already divided here, but as we all know, there is no arguing about taste. Everyone agrees on the origin of the espresso.
The espresso comes from Italy, more precisely from Milan and was drunk here for the first time around 1900.
In the meantime it has conquered the world and is an integral part of every coffee menu. The preparation of this Italian coffee specialty is an art in itself, especially when it is made with a portafilter machine.
For a perfect espresso, hot water is pressed through freshly ground coffee powder under high pressure. The hallmark of a successful drink is the fine crema. Depending on the coffee bean used, the espresso is more digestible or stronger. The typical Italian variant is made from dark roasted beans with a Robusta share of 50%. The version with lightly roasted Arabica beans, on the other hand, is more digestible. By the way, it’s a myth that an espresso contains more caffeine than other coffees. Only the concentration is higher due to the lower liquid content.

This is how an espresso works after a meal

An espresso after a meal is a special treat that is celebrated not only in Italy but in many other European countries. This is not only due to the typical taste, the pleasantly warm feeling is also good. But these are not the only reasons for a little coffee after dinner. The special effect of the espresso is related to the caffeine it contains. Caffeine is said to have a stimulating effect. In the human body, the metabolism and the central nervous system are stimulated – pulse and blood pressure rise. Normally, after eating, the body deals with digestion, all other functions are shut down, so that a certain tiredness sets in. The espresso works to avoid this tiredness thanks to the caffeine content. However, the positive effects do not end there.
The caffeine in espresso also affects digestion. It can stimulate intestinal activity and thus trigger the emptying of the intestine. However, digestion in the stomach is not affected, as is often falsely claimed. In addition, espresso has a positive effect on gastric acid production. The bitter substances contained play an important role here. These regulate the production of gastric acid and prevent over-acidification of the stomach. In addition, a cup of coffee after a meal helps to bring the oral flora back into balance. The polyphenols contained in coffee fight bacteria and plaque. Thus, enjoying coffee after a meal has numerous positive effects.

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Cooking Tips

Freeze Rice: This is How It Stays Delicious After Thawing

If you freeze leftover cooked rice, you don’t have to throw anything away. So that it still tastes delicious after surfacing, we explain how to freeze rice properly.

With rice, it can quickly happen that you misjudge the amount and there is a lot left over. You can keep cooked rice in the fridge for a few days for the next meal. Or you can freeze it and thaw it later when needed.

Rice freezes easily. We’ll show you what you should pay attention to so that the grains still taste good after surfacing and don’t become soft and mushy.

Freezing rice: These varieties are suitable

Perfectly cooked rice grains still have a slight bite. When you thaw frozen rice, the texture changes and the grains become a little too soft. Some types of rice are better for freezing than others because they retain their texture better. These varieties include:

jasmine rice
basmati rice
Patnareis
If you want to cook rice ahead of time, you can intentionally undercook it a little. When reheated, it reaches its perfect consistency.

How to properly freeze and thaw rice

Freeze rice properly

Do not cook the rice too soft, but so that it is still al dente.
Let the rice cool down.
When portioning the rice you have two options:
You freeze everything together. If your rice was still grainy enough after cooking, it will create a frozen clump that you can always break off pieces and thaw.
You’re already freezing it in portions equal to one meal. This is useful if your rice is not quite as grainy and would not be as easy to portion when frozen.
Freezer containers made of glass or stainless steel are suitable for freezing.

Properly defrost rice

It is best to let the rice thaw at room temperature.
Then heat it up with steam. If you boiled it again, possibly with additional water, it would quickly become too soft and gooey.
Instead, place it in a fine-mesh strainer that you hang over a saucepan of boiling water. The rice is heated by the rising steam. Stir the rice once during this time so that it warms up evenly.
You can also just add it directly to the sauce you made for your dish to thaw and let it simmer over low heat.

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Food

Speculaas Cake: This Recipe Tastes Good Before and After Christmas

For the speculoos cake you can use old speculoos cookies. Even after Christmas, the creamy cake tastes irresistible. We show you a simple recipe with a vegan version.

The speculoos cake enchants with a fresh note of lemon and Christmas spices. Making speculoos yourself is very easy – so you can use your homemade speculoos cookies for the cake. Alternatively, you can use store-bought speculoos.

Tip: Use old speculaas for the cake to avoid wasting food.

In addition to the speculoos biscuits, the cake lives from the aromatic speculoos spice. Together with a little lemon and subtle sweetness, an irresistible cream is created that makes the cake special.

Serve the speculoos cake during the Advent season, on the Christmas holidays or in the following wintry weeks. Here you can find out how to do it safely.

Speculaas Cake: A simple recipe

When buying your ingredients, pay attention to organic quality. Organic seals such as Demeter, Naturland or Bioland assure products that are free from harmful substances such as synthetic chemical pesticides. This is how you protect the environment and your health. If possible, also buy products from regional production in order to avoid long transport routes with increased CO2 emissions.

Ingredients:

100 g butter
200 g speculoos
20 ml espresso
400 g vanilla yoghurt
200 g sour cream
2 tsp speculoos spice
2 ELA horn syrup
1Organic lemon: peel zest
1 tablespoon cinnamon, ground
1 handful of speculoos

Directions:

Put the butter in a small saucepan and let it melt over medium heat.
Meanwhile, crumble the speculaas biscuits into small pieces.
Mix the crumbly speculoos with the melted butter and espresso in a bowl.
Cover the bottom of the springform pan (diameter 23 centimeters) with the speculoos batter.
Tip: You don’t need to grease the base beforehand as the cookie mixture already contains butter.
Put the yoghurt and sour cream in another bowl. Mix them with the speculoos spice, the maple syrup and the zest of the lemon.
Spread the yoghurt mixture on the speculoos base and spread the cream evenly.
Place the speculaas cake in the fridge for two hours.
Decorate the speculoos cake with some cinnamon and crushed speculoos cookies before serving.

The vegan version

If you want to avoid animal products in your diet, swap out the following ingredients for a vegan alternative:

Speculatius: When buying speculoos, make sure that the biscuits are suitable for vegans.
Butter: Replace with vegan margarine or vegan butter. Coconut oil is also suitable, but changes the taste with its subtle coconut note.
Vanilla yogurt and sour cream: Instead of yogurt and sour cream, buy plant-based products like vegan yogurt. You can get a wide range of vegan alternatives to these dairy products in health food stores and well-stocked supermarkets.
You can keep the cake in the fridge for a few days. The speculoos cake tastes particularly good with hot chocolate or Christmas coffee.

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Lifestyle

Wine, Sparkling Wine, Schnapps: How Long Does Alcohol Last After Opening?

The bottle is open but not drunk empty: Depending on the drink, the shelf life of the alcohol varies. It is important to know how long each drink should be kept.

How long does wine and sparkling wine last after opening?

Surely you have already asked yourself whether you have to throw away the opened bottle of the alcoholic beverage. But this is not the case: if you store the opened bottle properly, you can extend its shelf life. The times given are not fixed, so if you notice that the drink has a strange smell or taste, you should not hesitate to throw the drink away before the time frame is up for health reasons. The reverse also applies: if the drink still tastes and smells good, even though it has been open longer than stated, it can still be enjoyed.

You should definitely store an open white wine in a cool place. Normally, if it is a strong white wine, it should retain its taste after about two to three days. If you have a light white wine, the taste can wear off after just a day or two. The same applies to rosé: lighter varieties lose their aroma a little faster, stronger wines only about two to three days in the fridge. Red wine is also stored refrigerated after opening. If the wine has a high tannin content, it can retain its aroma for around five to seven days; medium-bodied and light wines lose their flavor intensity over the course of three to four days after opening. If the wine taste has evaporated, but the wine is still good, you can use it for cooking, for example.

Opened sparkling wine, champagne or other sparkling wine bottles have a very short shelf life as the carbon dioxide evaporates quickly. When storing the bottle, it is important that you close it tightly and put it in the fridge: This way, they usually still taste slightly tangy after two days. After the second opening, the bottle should ideally be emptied. Whether putting a silver spoon down the neck of the bottle is helpful has not been scientifically proven.

High-percentage storage: You have to pay attention to this

The shelf life of harder alcoholic beverages depends on how high the alcohol content is. As the alcohol content increases, so does the shelf life; nevertheless, the other ingredients should not be ignored either.

If you are storing a homemade liqueur that contains perishable ingredients, you should always be extra careful. Before drinking, you should always smell it and try it to see if it’s still edible. Particular care should be taken, for example, with egg liqueurs, cream liqueurs, the well-known crème de cassis* and vermouth. It is important that you store the liqueur in a cool and dark place: it should keep for a few weeks.

With liqueurs that have an alcohol content of more than 30 percent, the shelf life is automatically longer. If you store these liqueurs in a dark and cool place, you can usually still enjoy them decades later.

Brandies or spirits that have an alcohol content of more than 37.5 percent are known to have a “shelf life forever”: If you keep them closed and in the dark, they actually have a very long shelf life. The only thing that can be lost over the years is the aroma of the drink.

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health

Itching After Showering: You Can do This if Your Skin is Irritated

After a nice warm shower, they suddenly appear – red spots on the skin. Many people then complain about itching. The causes of this are usually harmless and can be remedied with simple tricks.

Red spots and itching: High temperature and alkaline shampoos as triggers

The skin can react sensitively, especially after a long, hot shower. To counteract this, lower temperatures can be tested. “Some have such a threshold temperature,” explains dermatologist Philipp Babilas. This temperature should then not be exceeded or fallen below – in this way the red spots can be avoided in many cases.

Another possible common cause is the shower gel, to which the skin is overly sensitive. This can manifest itself in two ways: In addition to red spots, many people often complain of itching after a long shower.

Shower gels often have a high pH value to which the skin reacts sensitively. Switching to pH-neutral soap can help and prevent itching. The shower process itself should also not be too long and too hot, otherwise the natural protective film will come loose. It’s also healthier for the skin after a shower to be gently and gently blotted. “Strong rubbing is unhealthy for the skin in the long run”

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health

Tips For Sore Muscles: This Helps Against Pain After Exercise

If the training was too intense, aching muscles will develop. With relaxation, warmth and the consumption of protein-containing products, you will quickly get rid of the annoying pain.

Sore muscles: This helps with pain after exercise

Sore muscles are tiny tears in the muscle fibers that cause swelling, which in turn causes pain. The best thing is to prevent sore muscles and not suffer from them in the first place. Easier said than done, though, so we have great tips for you on how to relieve your sore muscles.

What happens to the body when muscles are sore?

A sore muscle is a micro-injury to the muscle. It generally occurs when an unfamiliar or new movement has been performed, or when the muscle has been overused. This is the case, for example, with very intensive training*. Tissue fluid penetrates the muscle fibers through the smallest injuries and they swell. However, according to the Bayreuth sports scientist Wolfgang Buskies, you don’t feel the pain immediately when the micro-cracks appear. Because the muscle fibers themselves have no pain receptors. For this reason, it takes a while before the pain receptors, which are located outside the muscle fibers, report the injury to the brain and we notice the painful muscle soreness.

Correct prevention helps against sore muscles

Before it comes to an unpleasant soreness, you can do a lot to prevent it from occurring in the first place. In general, it is advisable to only do sports when you are rested. The sports medicine doctor Dr. Axel Klein has more tips ready:

Make sure you have enough fluids in your body. That means drink, drink, drink! Water that contains plenty of sodium or apple or currant spritzer is best.
In addition, you should warm up properly before exercising. That means doing light movements for at least five to ten minutes. For example, brisk walking or jumping. Even after the sports unit*
Don’t give it your all right away, but ensure a moderate increase in the level. This gives the muscles a chance to gradually approach the effort.
A warm shower is recommended after exercise, as it relaxes the body.
You should not stretch too much before or after exercising.

I have sore muscles – what will bring me relief?

If your muscles are sore, you should first lean back and rest your damaged muscles. If possible, move the muscles in a relaxed manner, never straining. You can easily train the muscles that are not injured. In addition, you should adhere to the following:

The sore muscles should be stretched lightly, but not too much.
Warm up the muscles. This leads to increased blood flow to the muscles, which has a pain-relieving effect. In addition to a heating pad, we also recommend a visit to the sauna or a bath with mountain pine additives*.
You should also make sure you have enough protein
Get at least eight hours of sleep a night. This promotes the self-regeneration of the body.

Should I take medication?

Taking medication for sore muscles is not normally necessary. In any case, there are no medications for sore muscles themselves. If so, painkillers are often used, but they can have the opposite effect: painkillers can suppress the inflammation, which slows down the healing of the microcracks.

So it’s better to let your sore muscles heal naturally than to resort to painkillers. You can use heat to relieve the pain.

Should I see a doctor for sore muscles?

If the muscle soreness does not subside after several days, you should consult a doctor. If you still have trouble moving, be careful. Because in an emergency, rhabdomyolysis can be present.

In the case of three young women from Scotland, the severe muscle pain was definitely a case for the doctor: because their urine also turned brown. The family doctor, in whose practice all three were, immediately sent them to the hospital. The diagnosis: imminent kidney failure due to excessive strain on the muscles. Due to the causal overload, the mantle of the muscle cells was injured, causing them to push outwards. This released the muscle pigment myoglobin, which almost flooded the kidneys. For this reason, the urine of the women also turned brown. If the women had not been treated quickly, their kidneys would have failed and they would have died. The case shows how dangerous it is to exaggerate too much in sports.

Conclusion: Prevention, warmth and relaxation help with sore muscles

If you haven’t managed to prevent aching muscles, you can still do a lot to alleviate the annoying suffering. Heat has proven to be very helpful, for example in the form of a visit to the sauna or a warm bath with mountain pine additives*. You can also promote the self-healing of the muscle fibers by consuming protein products. Last but not least, you should also get enough sleep so that the body, and thus the muscles, can regenerate.

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Lifestyle

Store the Paint Rollers and Brushes After Painting

Tips for storing paint rollers and brushes correctly after painting work as a craftsman.

If you are about to beautify your apartment with a new coat of paint, you should make sure that brushes and paint rollers do not dry out during painting breaks and become stiff and unusable as a result.

Please also note our instructions for making colors yourself.

Brushes and paint rollers in plastic bags

Simply wrap them tightly in cling film or plastic bags. The rollers or brushes stay wet for hours. So you can keep paint rollers for days with this method. In addition, note other clever tips for wallpapering.

Rinse with water at the end

As soon as the painting work is finished, you should wash the brushes thoroughly with water for storage. The paint rollers must then dry well. Here’s a little tip: If you rub some soap into the bristles after cleaning, they will remain soft for a new coat of paint.

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health

Coffee on an Empty Stomach: This is What Happens in Your Body After Just One Cup

Coffee is the most popular hot drink. But many make a critical mistake when they pour themselves that first cup of the caffeinated beverage early in the morning. We explain the risks of drinking coffee to you.

Coffee before breakfast: Even one cup has negative effects

In an experiment, researchers from the University of Bath examined the blood sugar regulation of a total of 29 healthy men and women. To do this, they went through different scenarios on three consecutive nights to find out whether the coffee that is drunk before the first meal has a negative effect on the metabolism.

During the investigations, in which the test subjects had one night of normal sleep and were awakened every hour on two nights, the test subjects’ blood sugar levels were continuously measured. The scientists realized that just one cup of coffee with about 300 milligrams of caffeine is enough to produce an increase in blood sugar.
The increase is particularly strong after the restless nights.

Conclusion: Coffee should only be drunk after breakfast

A high blood sugar level caused by drinking coffee in the morning can be avoided if the hot drink is only drunk after breakfast. Five cups of the caffeinated drink are therefore considered harmless so far, provided they

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health

Asparagus Season Begins: Why Does Urine Smell so Bad After Eating Asparagus?

Asparagus is delicious and, thanks to valuable ingredients, also healthy. But as soon as you eat it, the delicious dish turns into a pungent smell in the toilet. Why is that?

The problem: Urine smells bad after eating asparagus

If only it weren’t for that unpleasant acrid smell when you go to the toilet, shortly after eating asparagus. However, fewer people are affected by this than is commonly thought.

The phenomenon of asparagus urine only occurs with every second person. The reasons can be very different. “Methanethiol, dimethyl sulfide and dimethyl disulphide compete in asparagus urine for the most unpleasant note,” says an article in the magazine Chemie in our time.
The foul-smelling substance trio is quite familiar to our nose: It also gives human biogases such as flatulence, mouth and athlete’s foot odor unpleasant notes.

Why does urine smell after eating asparagus?

Asparagus, whether white or green, contains asparagusic acid, which is initially odorless. However, if this is broken down, a sulphur-containing compound is formed which is excreted in the urine – with a corresponding odour.

However, this breakdown product only occurs if you have a certain enzyme – and not everyone does that. The genes decide who has this enzyme and who doesn’t. Only about 40 percent of people have such a gene that is able to produce the enzyme.

Still others can’t even smell the smell. The Apotheken Umschau writes that those affected then probably have a mutation in an odor receptor gene. But don’t worry, it’s neither bad nor dangerous.

Asparagus urine resembles skunk secretion

“The smell is harmless and not a sign of illness or poisoning,” reports Stefan Lorkowski, Professor of Nutritional Biochemistry at the University of Jena, to the Apotheken-Umschau. Stuffing when going to the toilet is still unpleasant. No wonder, since the substance is similar to the chemical compounds in the dreaded skunk secretion.

Only 15 minutes after enjoying an asparagus meal, it starts to smell. Nothing can be done about it. However, drinking plenty of water helps flush the breakdown products out of the body quickly.

Incidentally, the problem that the pee gives off a strange smell after eating asparagus is not new: reports of smelly asparagus urine have been around since the middle of the 17th century – a time when sulfur and sulfates were used as fertilizers for the first time.

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Food

Shock For All Cola Fans: This Really Happens in Your Body After Just One Glass

For many, cola is a cult drink that is not only drunk as a cool refreshment, but also as a mixed drink at parties. But what effect does cola actually have on you? This is what happens after just one glass in your body.

Shocking news for all cola fans: this really happens in your body after just one glass

After all, cola is one of the most popular soft drinks, especially among children and young people. It’s no wonder, because the manufacturers’ advertising strategies seem to be working. On average, everyone drinks over 33 liters of cola a year (as of 2020). If you add the light versions, it is even more than 45 liters. Around 1.5 billion bottles are sold every day.

But what exactly is in the drink? What is it made of? The exact composition is closely guarded by the manufacturers.

But the main components are well known. These are water, carbon dioxide, flavors, colors, phosphoric acid, caffeine and sugar. And there is more than enough of the latter. A 0.2 liter glass of the dark fizz contains over 21 grams of it. And that’s more than 90% of the WHO recommended daily dose. And the light or zero version? There are artificial sweeteners, such as aspartame, and a relatively large amount of phosphoric acid. Incidentally, the caffeine content is between 10 and 25 milligrams per 100 milliliters, depending on the manufacturer.

How unhealthy is cola really?

A nice ice cold cola. The taste on the tongue, the tingling of the carbonic acid. Who thinks at that moment what is happening in the body now? But maybe you should think about it a bit.

Let’s say you drink a 0.33 liter can. You’re immediately ingesting the equivalent of seven teaspoons of sugar. That’s already more than the World Health Organization recommends, which recommends six teaspoons. After 20 minutes, the blood sugar level reaches its peak. This causes insulin to be released, which prompts the liver to convert the sugar into fat. After 40 minutes, the caffeine intake is complete and the liver releases even more sugar. Blood pressure rises, the pupils dilate. In the brain, the adenosine receptors are blocked, which prevents sleepiness. After 45 minutes, the messenger substance dopamine is increasingly released. This ensures that we feel happiness and well-being. After an hour, the phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium and zinc in the lower digestive tract, which boosts metabolism. This effect is amplified by the high doses of sugar and artificial sweeteners, which drives the excretion of calcium in the urine.

After more than 60 minutes, caffeine’s diuretic properties kick in – you need to pee. And with it, calcium, magnesium and zinc, which, among other things, were intended for the bones, are excreted. Other electrolytes and of course water also leave the body. Now comes the sugar crash. You become nervous, irritable, sluggish, or all of them together. After a few hours, the caffeine crash follows. All the liquid you took in with the cola is gone. And with that, important nutrients that the body needs have literally ended up in the toilet.

Cola as a thirst quencher? These alternatives exist

If you now consider the effects that cola has on the body, what happens if you consume a lot of it over a longer period of time? Due to the yo-yo effect when it comes to sugar, the body demands more and more of it. You want to feel good, savor the happiness that dopamine brings about. And this is where the danger lurks. Too much sugar consumption can lead to obesity, diabetes and the associated damage.

The amount of 3 milligrams per day and kilogram of body weight should not be exceeded in children and adolescents. Together with the sugar consumed in large quantities, cola is therefore more than just questionable for young people.

Conclusion: Cola is not suitable as a thirst quencher. Along with fruit juices, cola is one of the luxury drinks and should therefore be enjoyed in moderation. Alternatives are spritzers or water, which you can enjoy with fruits or other ingredients as “infused water”. Homemade unsweetened iced tea can also be considered as an alternative. This turns thirst quenching into indulgence with no regrets.

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