Drink Decaf and Die
jose parinas writes "Decaffeinated -- not caffeinated -- coffee may cause an increase in harmful LDL cholesterol by increasing a specific type of blood fat linked to the metabolic syndrome, hints a new study presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2005."
Things that have recently been found to have positive health properties: beer, chocolate, coffee. In moderation of course.
Personally I follow a very simple rule - eat and drink everything, just don't eat or drink too much of any one thing.
There was an interesting study recently - the French (yes, we hate them, yawn) apparently eat lots of stuff that is supposed to be bad for you, and yet remain healthy and slim. How do they do it? Basically, eat in moderation and don't snack between meals.
"Up to 50 years ago, most people had water most of the time."
Not really. Ordinary water tended to have nasty bugs in it, so the way to get rid of them was to either boil it (and make tea, as they did in the East) or ferment it (as they did in the West).
Because people in the East used the boiling method, rather than the fermentation method of purifying water, they didn't develop the same tolerance to alcohol that people in the West have.