Since I started building this website about coffee and all things related, I have been questioning myself about the amount of coffee I was drinking and wondering if I was suffering withdrawal symptoms at some point! And this resulted in my research and writing this article to provide you with my findings on addiction and effects on the body, because I wanted to know if you could really become addicted to caffeine.
I do believe that coffee does have certain health benefits, as you can read in a few other articles I have written, but I do think there is something to this subject of caffeine addiction (You will find a list of articles related to coffee and health at the end). Although I am a health conscious individual, I realized that the first refreshment I looked for whilst working hard at my desk, was a cup of coffee! Caffeine withdrawal perhaps? But one thing I always make sure of (and so should you), is that I have a cold drink of water next to my pc mouse at all times, especially when I have a cup of coffee. And I usually consume about 2 – 3 litres of water a day – so I know that my body is hydrated at all times. Sometimes I have a cup of tea in the evening, but not too late because of the effects of its caffeine content.
How Does Caffeine Affect the Human Body?
It affects the central nervous system because it is a mood altering or enhancing drug. About 3% passes through the body and is released in urine. Although it does give a perk up in the morning, a study in the American Psychological Association has shown that some of caffeine’s effects are actually all ‘in the mind’. I will put a link to the report at the end.
Too much caffeine could also increase your blood pressure by raising systolic pressure (pressure exerted on blood vessels) and some researchers have also suggested that too much caffeine blocks adenosine, resulting in narrowed blood vessels. However, long term effects on blood pressure are minimal because people who drink coffee and other products, develop a tolerance where blood pressure is no longer affected. Increase your Caffeine intake and it can also affect your REM sleep and give you the ‘jitters’, dehydrate your body and make you feel restless.
After much investigation on caffeine addiction, I concluded that although people would say they are addicted to caffeine, because ‘they must have a coffee to start the day and won’t function properly if they don’t get their caffeine fix’, Psychologists and other people dealing with addiction, class someone who is addicted as:
1. They get withdrawal symptoms.
2. They develop a tolerance.
3. They loss control of their actions.
They concluded that the term should really be Caffeine Dependence, not addiction as professionals want to retain the term ‘addiction’ to drug, substance and alcohol addiction. So is caffeine addiction a problem to concern yourself with? No.
Caffeine dependency on the other hand is described as having the three classifications above, but in lower amounts. Caffeine dependant people usually have short term withdrawal symptoms, lasting only up to 48 hours.
As well as coffee, caffeine is found in:
- Cocoa
- Baking chocolate
- Tea
- Cola
- Weight loss/control products – dexatrim, dietac and prolamine.
Read the Article in American Psychological Association
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- What Is Caffeine?
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- Coffee and Health
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About Andy Horton
