Coffee, yes. Tea, yes. Caffeine, yes. Today’s generation is leaking caffeine from their pores because, like nicotine, it’s addictive. Of course, it’s in our coffee, our tea, the majority of cacao products, energy drinks; all the things we rely on during our wake-up times.
I may not depend on coffee, but I do on my precious beverages of Lucozade to give me that special glucose-filled kick during the day. It makes us feel good. It wakes us up, but when those caffeine cravings set in, you know you and the people around you are in for a rude awakening if you don’t get that fix.
That’s when you know it becomes a problem, when you crave it all the time, when you’re snappy and anti-social until you sip your morning coffee. However, are lovers of caffeine aware of exactly what caffeine is?
As simple as getting your morning coffee sounds, caffeine itself is a more complex compound; a stimulant for the central nervous system which increases alertness, but if you overload then you’re welcomed into a world of a body crashing to extreme tiredness, a sick stomach and shaky limbs.
An article on Healthline by Alina Petre outlines the good and the bad of caffeine for your health. If we thought we were the only ones it influenced, then we were wrong. The first brewed tea was tracked as far back as 2737 B.C. with coffee being discovered years later by an Ethiopian shepherd who noticed the extra energy it gave to his goats.
Who knew that goats would love our beloved caffeine products too? Petre gives a brief outline of how caffeine works when ingested into the body; caffeine is quickly absorbed into the bloodstream from the gut. Then it travels to the liver, where it’s broken down into compounds that can affect the function of various organs.
The main one being the brain as it blocks the effects of the neurotransmitter adenosine which makes you feel tired. Healthline gives a detailed description of the benefits and side effects of caffeine Consumption. A great online forum to find out about the health benefits of food or beverages or anything really.
Benefits
The benefits to drinking caffeine may promote a healthy liver by as much as 84 percent. The effect it has on skin by consuming four cups per day may lower the risk of skin cancer by 20 percent. It also aids the digestive tract by reducing the risk of gout and the increase of beneficial gut bacteria. It may also prolong life and help prevent several diseases. The benefits are quite beneficial to a point, but with every advantage comes a disadvantage, a price to pay for that cup or cups of coffee.
Side Effects
The side effects linked to excess caffeine consumption are anxiety, restlessness, tremors, irregular heartbeat and trouble sleeping. Headaches, migraines and high blood pressure are also possible. Therefore, the recommended dosage is two hundred milligrams per dose with a fatal overdose being reportedly five hundred milligrams in a single dose.
