How bad is caffeine?

a reply to: oblivvious

Do you sweeten your coffee? If so, do you use actual sugar or Pink Death Powder? You might be sensitive to the chemicals if so. You could also just be very sensitive to coffee.

The best thing to do, from a completely non-medical perspective, is to only drink good quality, fresh-ground, strong coffee, lay off by noon as you said you have, and keep practicing. Watering down or drinking decaf is akin to mixing soda water into a 30-year single malt. It might ease the symptoms, but it's destructive to the soul. Terribly, terribly destructive.

Why don't we have a coffee cup emoji?

The best way to know if caffeine is responsible for all the symptoms you're experiencing is to go a few days/weeks without it, assuming you're not too far down the addiction hole to be able to stop.

I am of the opinion that anything that can create an addiction is bad for you. Alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, sugar etc, should all be avoided or kept to a minimum. The addicts say a day without caffeine is a terrible day, I say nothing beats sustained NATURAL energy throughout the entire day.

In a SHTF situation do you want to be paired with a strong person who is free of addictions, or do you want to be paired with a person who can't "function" without their morning coffee?

a reply to: oblivvious

Caffeine has the same effects on the body that coc aine and amphetamine have, I have seen various amounts that are in a cup of coffee from 10 mg upto 250 mg for mcdonalds coffee.
the number 1 cause of heart attack in the western world is caffeine it boosts the heart's rhythm for between 4-6 hours
www.scientificamerican.com...
I am sure I read a study by the WHO stating that it takes 10 years of your life more so if you drink 5 cups a day but in some people just 1 cup a day.
caffeine creates noradrenaline in the body which depletes phenylalanine (a major pain reliever) and tyrosine an amino acid that is essential for thyroid hormone production,
It also blocks the uptake of serotonin which is produced in the GI tract contributing to depression especially if you have a shower as this depletes the serotonin form your blood within 30 minutes of taking a shower due to the positive ions created by the water that surrounds you.

Coffee is good for you in moderation, but like most things can be harmful is used to excess. If you insist on sweetening it, try honey.

originally posted by: JDeLattre89
If you insist on sweetening it, try honey.

As far as the body is concerned, honey and table sugar are the same. They are both made up of a combination of fructose and glucose, with the main difference being that in table sugar the fructose and glucose are bonded together (sucrose) but they get broken down in the small intestine anyway.

Honey also has more calories than table sugar (22 calories in a teaspoon vs 16 calories in a teaspoon of sugar). One could argue that honey is healthier because it contains vitamins and minerals, but the amounts are too minuscule to make a difference.

Bottom line is both are considered added sugar and should be avoided.

a reply to: oblivvious

Do keep in mind, Teas have natural caffeine in them, the same caffeine found in coffee.

Granted, it is less then coffee beans.

The average cup of coffee has around 200mg of caffiene.

Teas tend to run around 65mg - 120mg, depending on concentration, and the color (black, green etc) of your tea.

Caffeine is also a diuretic (makes you pee), so make sure and not get dehydrated.

You can look up most drinks online, and find out how much caffeine are in them. Search "Death by caffeine" for a website that tells you how many cups of coffee / soda / energy drinks you would need to drink to kill yourself. It's rather amusing, as body-weight effects the amount.

Enjoy!

a reply to: BlueShaman

I agree, if looking at the make-up honey is the same as sugar (which should be real sugar). With the exception that real honey is going to help boost your immune system. . . so if you're going to sweeten your coffee, use honey which at least has a health benefit.

Coffee is a drug! simple as that, it is not good for you, your adrenal glands take a beating when you drink coffee, if you want a healthy energy kick have some fruit juice or some sugar water, something your body can assimilate and use for actual fuel, the reason why people desire and crave caffeine is because they are not getting sufficient amounts of glucose ideally from fruits and vegetables. Also keep in mind that caffeine does not actually provide energy, what it does do is stimulate you and produces adrenaline giving you the feeling of a jolt of energy which has to be paid back 10 fold, the more caffeine you use the bigger the hole you dig for your self and the longer it will take for you to recover and feel normal again, some people take up to a month to recover and even then their adrenal glands can take a lot longer to heal and maybe even being permanently damaged.

Maybe all that is not cause of caffeine, but cause of the stress you've faced on the new job. You should definitly limit it, and green tea sounds just fine. But we all know, at the new workplace it's almost necessary to have a cup of coffee in your hand to feel more confident. The faster you calm down about this job and stop the stress, all the sympthoms would be gone.

You should only use in moderation (never on a regular basis as it is not healthy).