Nathaniel Mckaye
Alexander Whelan
English IV
18 September 2017
Caffeine Addiction
Millions of people including adults and kids are addicted to caffeine. A lot of them don’t even acknowledge that they have an addiction, and some may not even know. Caffeine addiction is something most people either don’t recognize or don’t perceive as a problem. Caffeine addiction looks like a problem because teens are getting addicted, people have to deal with withdrawal effects and other physical side effects. Teenagers will do things that make them feel more grown up, such as drinking coffee. They will start out drinking coffee for the taste and feeling, or because they actually need to wake up for the day and one day they are just depending
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Withdrawal from coffee can last from up to two days to a little over a week. The brain might start with just caffeine headache then throughout the day one may get sleepy and eventually even have depressing thoughts(Kallmyer 1). Therefore, caffeine withdrawal could even have effects on one’s work ethic throughout their day and or week. Caffeine can have other physical effects on the body such as insomnia, nausea, and anxiety. It can even cause constipation because caffeine cause bowels to be stimulated by the body(Kallmyer 1). When one stops drinking it their bowels contract and do not function as well. Insomnia and anxiety can happen to certain people, and heartbeat irregularity may even be caused to the person withdrawing from caffeine(Kallmyer 1). Caffeine can affect everyday life in a positive way but the negatives will always …show more content…
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By this definition, and after knowing the effects of caffeine upon the human body, I have come to the conclusion that drinking caffeine is a sign of a lack of respect for oneself, and of an unappreciative attitude toward the life that each of us has been blessed with. Furthermore, it shows of either our inability, or unwillingness to learn to think clearly.
Caffeine is a mild stimulant that occurs naturally in at least 63 plant species. Caffeine can be found in the leaves, stems, seeds, and roots of these various plants. Caffeine is part of the methylxanthine family. It consists of a xanthine molecule with three methyl groups attached to it. Caffeine can be found in many products like sodas, tea, and coffee, but it also occurs in several other products such as prescription medications, diuretics, and pain relievers. Caffeine’s widespread use and popularity have caused many people to view the substance as an addictive drug. Thus making caffeine the most inexpensive and readily available drug known to man. Then on the other hand there are people who view caffeine as a helpful stimulant that increases the individual’s concentration and awareness as well as many other physical traits. The important thing to remember is that caffeine’s affects vary based on the person, the amount ingested, the frequency of consumption, and individual metabolism. (http://www.pp.okstate.edu/ehs/kopykit/caffeine.html)
Caffeine also increases dopamine levels in the same way that amphetamines do (heroine, and cocaine also manipulate dopamine levels by slowing down the rate of dopamine reuptake). Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that, in certain parts of the brain, activates the pleasure center. Caffeine’s effects are obviously much lower than heroin’s, but it is the same mechanism. The long term problem with caffeine is the effect it has on sleep. The half life of caffeine in your body is about 6 hours. That means that if you have a big cup of coffee with 200 mg of caffeine in it at 3:00pm, by 9:00pm about 100 mg of that caffeine is still in your system. You will still be able to fall asleep but your body is going to miss out on the benefits of deep sleep. The next day you are probably going to feel worse, so to make yourself feel better, you will need caffeine as soon as you get up and out of bed. This cycle can start to continue day after day. This is why 90% of Americans consume caffeine everyday. Once you get in the cycle, you have to keep taking the drug (home.howstuffworks.com).
Although individuals try to stop using caffeine, some cannot because it has a strong hold on them and some people can stop. The people that doesn’t stop may fit the clinical definition of caffeine addiction. “In this study, 94% of participants experienced withdrawal when they attempted to stop using caffeine, and 94% continued to use caffeine even though they knew that they might be harming their health with their use.” Women stop taking in caffeine during their pregnancies. Studies suggest, caffeine can be harmful to a growing baby. Most individuals with mental illnesses might be asked to stop taking caffeine. (Caffeine Addiction). All races of women consume 200 milligrams of caffeine daily. They drink coffee, black tea, green tea, and soda. About 89 percent of United States women ages 18 to 34 consume two cups of coffee a day. Even though caffeine affects men more strongly than women, caffeine changes women's estrogen levels; it has different effects in Asian, white, and black women. Studies showed that the effect differ between men and women based on the caffeine intake they consume. Men consume 7 milligrams of caffeine a day. Other men consume 85 to 170 milligrams of caffeine a day. Thirtynine percent does not drink caffeine at all.
Scrutiny of caffeine and its effects has increased dramatically in the last 20 years, due in part to an increase in consumption of caffeine. In fact, coffee consumption among young adults rose to 3.2 cups per day in 2008 from 2.4 cups per day in 2005 (Rokerya 1). For instance, in a one hour period, on Richland College’s on-campus Starbucks, the author took note of how many customers arrived and purchased a cup of coffee. Between 8:00 and 9:00 AM, there were 51 customers, implying that – especially at college - many people are dependent on coffee in the mornings. However, the results from these studies are inconclusive and often somewhat contradictory – many studies (such as that by Tetsuya Ohara et al.) show that caffeine is a great boon to
Sloviter, V. (2007). Caffeine or no caffeine: What’s a pregnant woman to do? Pediatrics for parents, 23(8), 7. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/200502571?accountid=41057
Although there is very few data that caffeine containing energy drinks may temporarily improve alertness, but they enhance strength and decrease power (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health). Excessive intakes of beverages lead to adenosine receptors prone to feeling increased anxiety. Energy drinks cause insomnia, which is effect of caffeine. Lack of sleep has been seen to cause impaired body function. They also cause some people to shake and be anxious. This can cause emotional issue. Where people used to take energy drinks regularly they eventually become addicted, which is one of the serious psychological effect. Beverages are the cause of increase in stress hormone, which leads to stress among consumers. In general, other psychological effects are impaired cognition, risky behavior, stress and nervousness.
There are many different kinds of addictions like addiction to chips, soda, alcohol, drugs, etc. My addictions is soda, I drink soda once or twice a day. This is something I cannot help but to crave it when I eat lunch or dinner. Soda is very bad for the body, it has a lot of sugar. What are the solutions for this? Well first of all I have to realize the things that happen when you crack open a can, I have to drink more water than soda, and learn methods to do so the soda will not harm my teeth as much.
The anti-reward system plays a major role in the occurrence of aversive effects in the body like jitteriness, and nausea; and is responsible for the negative-reinforcement that occurs through resumed drug taking. Negative reinforcement is responsible for bringing about the aversive effects that occur during withdrawal (i.e., when one intends to stop consuming the drug). This highlights the importance of the neuroadaptations that occur with prolonged drug use and can occur with over-consumption of caffeine (Meyer & Quenzer, 2005). In addition, caffeine can cause detrimental physiological effects, such as over-consumption.
When people hear the word addiction, most people picture an alcoholic that spends hours a night at the bar, or meth addict that sleeps in the streets and prostitutes herself out to obtain money for another hit, but what various people refuse to realize is that addiction has become an epidemic in the United States. Addiction is everywhere from the UPS man that takes smoke breaks every few delivery’s, to your best friend 's dad whose appears to have everything put together but spends his evenings at the casino. In my opinion, it 's essential to share your story, I’m restless to tell you experience with addiction.
Americans are obsessed with a lot of things: our smart phones, celebrities, and finding a good bargain. But perhaps the thing we’re most obsessed with is good ol’ coffee. For many of us, our mornings are perfectly diabolical without at least a cup or two or three of the stuff. And, come 2 o’clock, when we know in our heart and bones we’ll never make it ‘til five and we need that pick me up, many of us head to the nearest deli or barista to grab a cup of “second wind.”
Not exactly, caffeine still a drug which means almost always comes with side effects. Notably caffeine seems to have the same high as cocaine, just to a lesser degree. Some evident effects of caffeine and related stimulants range
Coffee is the first thing that people associate with instant energy on a groggy morning. “In the U.S., coffee is king of beverages” (Reinke) Research has been done that has named coffee as an addiction to the people who consume large quantities of it. Coffee was named the top source of antioxidants. This is partly because of the amount consumed each day. Some of the antioxidants that coffee has are quinines and chlorogenic acid. It also contains trigonelline, an antibacterial compound. This is where coffee acquires its delicious aroma. Now let’s step back for a minute and just think about how much caffeine people consume. In an 8oz cup of coffee it has about 85 milligrams of caffeine. This is about double the amount that tea contains. Studies have shown that caffeine stimulates the brain and nervous system. This is where you get that energized feeling. After about the third cup, knees start to bounce, pens are clicking and people start running laps around the office. Caffeine can become addicting if you drink too much. Coffee can become that addictive habit people are unable to shake.
htm medsafe.govt.nz/profs/PUarticles/caffeine.htm http://www.realsimple.com/realsimple http://media.highlandernews.net - http://media.highlandernews. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.