Of course, the idea of having a personal cup of coffee sounds amazing but just how bad are these coffee pods? There are things about them that we need to know.
If you own or are considering buying a Keurig, please pay close attention to this article. You may have noticed there is no way to empty the water from your Keurig’s internal tank. This is disgusting when you really think about it. It is very likely that there are bacteria and mold living inside that hidden water tank in the nice warm darkness. Have you ever noticed a bit of green or black slime on the tiny ring at the bottom of the exterior water container? Imagine how the inside looks.
That slime is known as bio-film and is most common in moist, dark places, like the inside of your Keurig. According to Donna Duberg, an assistant professor of clinical laboratory science at Saint Louis University, the research they have done shows that the antibacterial effects your coffee beans have are only fifty percent effective when it comes to killing these bacteria. This meaning, no your coffee will not be enough to keep you safe. On top of this, the water in your coffee system does not get hot enough to kill them either. In order to kill the bacteria via heated water, it would need to reach boiling temperatures and stay there for at least one whole minute. This does not happen.
You can attempt to clean these coffee makers by running vinegar through the cycle a few times but this is not even as effective as it should be and will not kill all of the bacteria or molds. However, the coffee maker itself is not the worst part about this whole ordeal. The K-cups themselves are made from a composite plastic, number seven. Sure, this is BPA-free but the chemicals of the composite plastic are still not safe and have estrogen activity.
These K-cups are not recyclable and it is a huge issue for the environment because as you may know the coffee pod era is upon us. These K-cups are extremely popular. Over eight billion K-cups are discarded a year! The lids of the K-cups alone are made from polyethylene coated foil. Yes, aluminum foil. Something connected to diseases like autism, anxiety, Alzheimer’s, and Celiac disease.
These single cup coffee makers and coffee pods are convenient and useful but they are not good for us or the environment. We should not be using them if you have one I strongly suggest going back to the normal coffee maker. For more information on the dangers of the K-cup (coffee pods) for the environment please take the time to watch the video below.