Regular coffee drinkers no more alert

[Nate]

"Researchers at Bristol University in the UK have found that heavy coffee drinkers derive no boost from the beverage, but merely stave off the depressive effects of withdrawal."

I know that's how it is with me and Mountain Dew. I'm curious if the same holds true for energy drinks too, though.

For the record, I never got into the habit of drinking coffee. Don't care for the taste. But I thought this was pretty interesting (though I recall seeing an article on Yahoo a couple of weeks back that said drinking coffee had some other health benefits, though I never read it).

[ChristianKitsune]

I think this would make a lot of sense... but I don't really drink coffee for the boost, more for the taste... I drink coffee a lot, but I don't think I drink enough to not get a little extra kick.

Although the opposite can be true: If one suddenly stops drinking coffee after being a regular drinker, the withdrawls can be pretty hard. Jitters, nausea, irritability, etc.

I think it's because caffeine is a lot like a drug (mabye it is one?) that once our bodies get so used to it, it requires more and more to give us an edge.

[mechana2015]

I'm pretty sure that it works for heavy energy drink consumers too, since they are essentially drinking boosted up coffee, with high levels of caffene, sugar and other stimulants. Eventually your body will normalize to account for the elevated stimulants and set that as your baseline, resulting in the withdrawal effects when you stop consuming them. I used to drink a TON of caffene much of it in energy drinks, but laid off it when I got out of the dorms at our school. After a few years I've found that caffene now acts normally on me, boosting me up as long as I only consume it on occasion, rather than on a daily basis.

[Nate]

caffeine is a lot like a drug (mabye it is one?)

It is one.

Caffeine is a bitter, white crystalline xanthine alkaloid that is a psychoactive stimulant drug.

[KougaHane]

I think it's because caffeine is a lot like a drug (mabye it is one?) that once our bodies get so used to it, it requires more and more to give us an edge.

My 9th grade science teacher told me caffeine is officially labeled as a drug due to its nature (i.e. psychological effects and withdrawals).

For some reason though, I only seem to get MORE tired when I drink caffeine. I can't go to sleep though. Strange, eh? Of course, I usually end up drinking caffeine anyway because I like the taste of the drinks they put it in. Sugar does a lot more for me than caffeine does though:dizzy:. I'm addicted to sunkist, which has no caffeine.

[ChristianKitsune]

My 9th grade science teacher told me caffeine is officially labeled as a drug due to its nature (i.e. psychological effects and withdrawals).

For some reason though, I only seem to get MORE tired when I drink caffeine. I can't go to sleep though. Strange, eh? Of course, I usually end up drinking caffeine anyway because I like the taste of the drinks they put it in. Sugar does a lot more for me than caffeine does though:dizzy:. I'm addicted to sunkist, which has no caffeine.

Ah thanks, Nate and Kouga! XD I thought it was.
I think caffeine can sometimes make one tired because of the very reason it keeps you awake. It makes your heart beat faster, but at the same time it can provide a more alert mind.

So your body COULD (this is just a theory) be thinking it's exercising because of the increased heart rate, but you aren't?? Maybe.

[mechana2015]

Actually, I've heard that a lot of it has to do with a person's internal chemistry, so maybe people that get tired when they caffeinate process it differently or have a different reaction, chemically, to caffeine. To really thoroughly say something it would take a doctor or chemist though...

[Atria35]

^ Or someone who's taken a few anat and phys classes?

You're pretty on the mark. Differences in metabolism does account for why a certian small percentage of the population gets tired from caffiene instead of getting a boost, while the majority get a boost instead. Just like how cough syrup merely calms the cough of most people but can act as a psychoactive drug in a small number of others.

[ADXC]

In an earlier thread, I thought we concurred on the idea that caffeine was "Christian crack". XD

But I drink it because I like it and it's a hot beverage so it kinda warms me up a little.



Also, I remember watching this 5 hour energy commercial and I read the bottom of the ad which stated "No crash means no sugar crash because 5 hour energy has no sugar." So therefore you can get crashes from 5 Hour Energy, but sugar is not the cause of it.

[Atria35]

Also, I remember watching this 5 hour energy commercial and I read the bottom of the ad which stated "No crash means no sugar crash because 5 hour energy has no sugar." So therefore you can get crashes from 5 Hour Energy, but sugar is not the cause of it.

Sugar =/= Caffiene. So that means that they'll crash on caffiene!

[Alcuinus]

I drink coffee for the taste. For the longest time I seemed to get tired after drinking coffee and it never helped me stay awake. :\

It does give me heart palpitations though.

[PrincessZelda]

I was like that for a long time. I used to drink Dr. Pepper all the time, everyday, and caffeine never really had any effect on me. However, I stopped drinking sodas all the time, and now whenever I drink one every once in a while, or have some other form of caffeine, I get a huge energy boost.

[Tsukuyomi]

I honestly don't drink coffee either XD I like coffee candy, but I dunno.. I just never got into the coffee craze like others >_>;;

As for the withdraw, I guess that makes sense :-? That can be said about many things too :-?

[Htom Sirveaux]

I have a cup every morning at work. Maybe I should cut down?

[Atria35]

A cup shouldn't hurt you

[Radical Dreamer]

In an earlier thread, I thought we concurred on the idea that caffeine was "Christian crack". XD

Coffee should never, ever be given that name. XDD


Anyways, this isn't surprising to me, and I'm pretty sure I heard it somewhere else. XD I know coffee still has a caffeine effect on me though, which is good, because it still works when I'm trying to use it to stay awake. XD Then again, I often opt for decaf if I'm just drinking it for the taste. XD

[Ante Bellum]

My dad has a caffeine addiction, he drinks of lot of Coke Classic (He hates diet stuff.); he cut down a lot recently but still drinks quite a bit.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

http://youarenotsosmart.com/2010/02/22/coffee/ (language warning. Site uses some colorful words here and there)

The truth is, once you’ve been drinking coffee for a while, the feeling you are getting after a cup isn’t the difference between the normal you and the super you, it’s the difference between the addict before and after a fix.

Ok, this is a very simplified explanation:

Caffeine is an adenosine antagonist. This means it prevents adenosine from doing its job.

Your brain is filled with keys which fit specific keyholes. Adenosine is one of those keys, but caffeine can fit in the same keyhole.

When caffeine gets in there, it keeps adenosine from getting in.

Adenosine does a lot of stuff all throughout your body, but the most noticeable job it has is to suppress your nervous system. With caffeine stuck in the keyhole, adenosine can’t calm you down. It can’t make you drowsy. It can’t get you to shut up.

That crazy wired feeling you get when you drink a lot of coffee is what it feels like when your brain can’t turn itself off.

To compensate, your brain creates a ton of new receptor sites. The plan is to have more keyholes than false keys.

The result is you become very sensitive to adenosine, and without coffee you get overwhelmed by its effects.

[Angel37]

My husband actually has self-induced hypogluscema (sp?) due to his over-dependency on energy drinks and caffeine. Now he can't have anything with caffeine or his blood sugar will spike and then crash him into a coma.

[ShiroiHikari]

I've never heard of caffeine in and of itself causing a blood sugar spike. However energy drinks and soda have a TON of sugar in them, overconsumption of which could definitely cause irregular blood sugar levels. So maybe it's not so much the caffeine, but the sugar.

ETA: Apparently coffee actually can affect your blood sugar levels. Hmmmm...

[Shao Feng-Li]

Coffee doesn't seem to do anything for me at all.

5 Hour Energy Shots do though. I'm wide awake and able to focus, but I can't draw a strait line...

[ShiroiHikari]

5 Hour Energy is wonderful stuff. I think the caffeine content is only equivalent to one cup of coffee so it's not like it's loaded with the stuff. It's mostly vitamins. :B

[ich1990]

Actually, I've heard that a lot of it has to do with a person's internal chemistry, so maybe people that get tired when they caffeinate process it differently or have a different reaction, chemically, to caffeine. To really thoroughly say something it would take a doctor or chemist though...

Exactly. Unfortunately, my physiological makeup makes me immune to the effects of caffeine. I can drink huge amounts of the stuff and the only result is that I have to use the bathroom a little more often. Heck, even large amounts of sugar won't make me any more alert than usual. It is a curse, I have decided.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

5 Hour Energy is wonderful stuff. I think the caffeine content is only equivalent to one cup of coffee so it's not like it's loaded with the stuff. It's mostly vitamins. :B

Wait... wot?

It has an 1870 mg "energy blend", which consists of taurine, Glucuronolactone, malic acid, N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine, L-Phenylalanine, caffeine, and Citicoline (took it off wiki).

It kinda worries me. D: It has more stuff than coffee.

[Davidizer13]

Look at you poor saps, addicted to your hot bean water and your leaf juice and your fizzy chemical mixtures. For what? Nothing, it would sound like from this article. Meanwhile, here I am, surviving night shifts with no more than ice water, Pandora and sheer willpower. Caffeine is for the weak.

[Shao Feng-Li]

5 Hour Energy is wonderful stuff. I think the caffeine content is only equivalent to one cup of coffee so it's not like it's loaded with the stuff. It's mostly vitamins. :B

It does work, but the way it makes me shake can't be good...

[Ante Bellum]

I only use 5 Hour when I need it. Even then, a third of the bottle seems to kick my brain into overdrive...about two or three hours later. But I'm not addicted to that or caffeine, lucky me.

[Lilac#18]

[color="Plum"]I'm not a coffee drinker, but I will drink Frappuccino sometimes. I haven't had a one in a very long time.[/color]

[ChristianKitsune]

I really, really love iced coffee. Of course, I'll drink hot coffee too, but maybe it's just that I really want to be able to drink my coffee and not have to wait for it to cool off haha!

I've heard some scaaary things about 5-hour energy and the like. It's got a lot of Niacin in it (so I've heard) and it can cause some pretty painful side effects if one is sensitive to it.... (Basically your body burns all over, and your turn red. >_<)

[ShiroiHikari]

The niacin thing can be a problem if you're sensitive to it. Different things affect people differently, just like how caffeine doesn't work on some people.

The "energy blend" is a lot of enzymes and amino acids and such. From what I've read, the only two that might cause problems are the phenylalanine (which a few people can't metabolize properly) and the Citicoline (which shouldn't be used by those who have hormone imbalances). Wikipedia has information on all the ingredients of the "energy blend", so look it up if you don't believe me. XD

Also, you probably shouldn't drink a 5-Hour Energy every single day, and it says right on the bottle not to drink more than two bottles in a day. Moderation is your friend.

I bought one at Walmart the other night, and I got ID'd. So you can't buy them there if you're under 18, which I say is a good thing, because why the heck do you need energy if you're that young? Save some for us older people! XD

By the way, I do drink and enjoy coffee, and I typically only have one reasonably sized cup a day-- rarely do I have more than 16 oz in a day. I also often have black or green tea, but I otherwise don't drink caffeinated stuff. (I swore off soda a few years ago and drink only the kind with real sugar, and only on special occasions.)

The one coffee I will not put past my lips is Starbucks. I'll have a Frappuccino, or one of their tea drinks, but not their coffee. Number one: they practically burn their beans, yuck. Number two: I don't know what else they put in that stuff, but if I have it, I crash and burn HARD within 30 minutes. Every time. Like, it makes me feel like I got stepped on by a Gundam. Not a good feeling, and probably not healthy either.