Caffeine is ubiquitous in our lives. It’s in your coffee in the morning, in the Excedrin that calms your raging headache and the Redbull and vodka that keeps you going for that night out on the town.
Caffeine is in many things we eat, from coffee and tea, to chocolate, yerba mate and guarana. But what is caffeine, how does it affect us and what is the best way to use it?
Caffeine is a drug, and its use should be treated and monitored as any other drug. The only difference between caffeine and any other stimulant is that nine out of ten Americans ingest caffeine regularly.
Heavy caffeine use (more than 500 milligrams per day, around five cups of coffee) can cause restlessness, anxiety, irritability, muscle tremors, sleeplessness, headaches, gastrointestinal problems and abnormal heart rhythms.
The dark downward spiral of caffeine use continues as excessive caffeine use causes sleeplessness and therefore exhaustion, which increases the likelihood that you will return to fill up that mug again or grab another energy drink.
It is important to track and moderate the amount of caffeine you ingest daily. An eight to ten ounce cup of coffee contains on average 110 milligrams of caffeine.
Brewed teas and caffeinated sodas average about 30 - 35 milligrams of caffeine per 12 ounce serving. This website can help you calculate your caffeine intake http://www.cspinet.org/new/cafchart.htm.
Caffeine is addictive and can cause withdrawal symptoms ranging from headache, fatigue, irritability and nervousness.
These withdrawal symptoms can be eased by slowly weaning yourself from caffeine by not finishing that fourth coffee or by having one less can of soda each day until you gradually are taking in very little caffeine. Another good tip is to mix caffeinated and decaffeinated coffees or sodas to make them half-caffeinated.
There are always times when you do need help staying awake or being alert during a long drive or study session.
When you need to stay awake, the best way to use caffeine is to take small amounts over a long period of time, keeping the caffeine at a steady concentration in your body. This approach will increase your alertness and avoid symptoms of excessive caffeine use, including the lows that follow it.
It takes may hours for you body to metabolize and eliminate caffeine, so make sure not to ingest caffeine for several hours before sleeping to avoid losing sleep from restlessness and wakefulness.