Chemical Composition of Cofee

Coffee is an incredibly complex bean and contains more different natural compounds than wine.  There are more than 1000 different compounds in coffee.  However, they can be broken down into 11 different families.  These are Minerals, caffeine, trigonelline, lipids, chlorogencic acids, aliphatic acids, oligosaccharides, total polysaccharides amino acids proteins and humic acids.  Minerals are elements which are usually found in salt forms or bioavailable forms.  Usually the ash content of the coffee can be used to determine the number of minerals in coffee.  Caffeine is the psychoactive alkaloid in coffee, which increases vigilance and energy.  Trigonelline, is another compound in coffee that is also an alkaloid that is less frequently studied.  Trigonelline can also have psychoactive effects depending on how the coffee is roasted.  Lipids are the second largest component in coffee and are the fats and fatty acids in coffee, which give it its rich flavor.  Chlorogenic acids are compounds in coffee which give it its bitterness, and which also provide health benefits for arthritis on their own.  Aliphatic acids are a small amount of nonaromatic fatty acids, such as butyric acid, which can act as a prebiotic for butyric acid fermenting bacterias in the gut.  Ologosaccharides are long chained polymers of sugars, which form in many living species.  These sugars can include substances such as honey, as well as silk.  Mucus is also an oligosaccharides.  Hemicellulase is one of the few compounds that can break down oligosaccharides.  However, poly saccarides make up the majority of a roasted and green bean, which makes sense, since cellulose, or the grounds of the coffee are all considered polysaccharides.  Amino Acids and Proteins also make up about 1/8th of the content of coffee, although the amino acids are elminated after roasting.  Lastly humic acids, which give soil its peaty appearance also make up a significant part of roasted coffee, which gives coffee grounds its efficacy as compost in the garden.