3 ms·

What's toxic with caffeine?

drew1492 8y ago
The word "toxic" is overloaded and there are at least two main types of "toxicity" - acute and chronic. Caffeine is indeed more acutely toxic than cannabis in the sense that one could die from taking waay too much caffeine at once, but no deaths from THC overdose have ever been observed. Caffeine however seems to be almost entirely non-toxic chronically. Aside from addiction, regular caffeine intake doesn't seem to harm one's body or mental functioning in any way. Frequent habitual cannabis use has more negative effects, such as impaired memory.
gamache 8y ago
The LD-50 of caffeine is around 2.5g, or about 25 strong cups of coffee. (Marijuana has no known lethal dose.)
moosey 8y ago
It is difficult but not impossible to overdose on caffeine and die. I'm not sure if this is the toxicity that the previous poster meant, but it could be. It appears that 30 cups of coffee is about the threshold where you get to serious danger, but that sounds insane... I've got terrible nausea after four or five cups of light roast (which has more caffeine). Caffeine pills & powder are far more dangerous. It is very easy to overdose on them, and death is not out of the question. It still isn't common. With marijuana, it is virtually impossible to have an overdose that kills you (It's very difficult to find sources on CBD/THC overdose): > An overdose on marijuana is dissimilar to overdoses on other drugs because marijuana consumption, in and of itself, is not life-threatening. But using too much of the drug can have hazardous results, which may increase the risk of death. > For instance, someone who consumed a lot of marijuana may be unaware of their environment, which can lead to accidents or falls. Furthermore, marijuana intoxication has been linked, in some studies, with psychosis,3 a condition in which the individual is disconnected with reality, typically resulting in hallucinations, delusions, or extreme paranoia. A person who is having a psychotic episode may put him or herself in dangerous situations due to confusion or detachment. [0] Synthetic MJ (K2) is far more dangerous, though. [0]: https://www.projectknow.com/research/marijuana-overdose/ https://www.projectknow.com/research/marijuana-overdose/
- lev99 8y ago
  > Caffeine pills & powder are far more dangerous. It is very easy to overdose on them, and death is not out of the question. It still isn't common. Caffeine pills usually come in 200mg. Caffeine has an LD50 of about 200mg/kg of body mass. In US units a 150lb person would have to consume 68 caffeine pills to reach LD50 levels.
ravenstine 8y ago
Caffeine overdose is extremely rare but its LD50 is a lot lower than the THC/cannabinoids in cannabis. From this page: https://www.westword.com/news/dear-stoner-how-much-thc-equals-a-lethal-dose-5124769 https://www.westword.com/news/dear-stoner-how-much-thc-equal... > For THC, there are varying figures, ranging from 1,260 milligrams of THC per kilogram of body weight down to 666 mg/kg. Even going with the lowest figure, a 175-pound man would have to consume more than 53 whole grams of pure THC all at once. [...] Need more perspective? Caffeine has an LD50 of 192 mg/kg, and nicotine is around 60 mg/kg.

The word "toxic" is overloaded and there are at least two main types of "toxicity" - acute and chronic. Caffeine is indeed more acutely toxic than cannabis in the sense that one could die from taking waay too much caffeine at once, but no deaths from THC overdose have ever been observed. Caffeine however seems to be almost entirely non-toxic chronically. Aside from addiction, regular caffeine intake doesn't seem to harm one's body or mental functioning in any way. Frequent habitual cannabis use has more negative effects, such as impaired memory.

gamache 8y ago

The LD-50 of caffeine is around 2.5g, or about 25 strong cups of coffee. (Marijuana has no known lethal dose.)

moosey 8y ago

It is difficult but not impossible to overdose on caffeine and die. I'm not sure if this is the toxicity that the previous poster meant, but it could be. It appears that 30 cups of coffee is about the threshold where you get to serious danger, but that sounds insane... I've got terrible nausea after four or five cups of light roast (which has more caffeine). Caffeine pills & powder are far more dangerous. It is very easy to overdose on them, and death is not out of the question. It still isn't common. With marijuana, it is virtually impossible to have an overdose that kills you (It's very difficult to find sources on CBD/THC overdose): > An overdose on marijuana is dissimilar to overdoses on other drugs because marijuana consumption, in and of itself, is not life-threatening. But using too much of the drug can have hazardous results, which may increase the risk of death. > For instance, someone who consumed a lot of marijuana may be unaware of their environment, which can lead to accidents or falls. Furthermore, marijuana intoxication has been linked, in some studies, with psychosis,3 a condition in which the individual is disconnected with reality, typically resulting in hallucinations, delusions, or extreme paranoia. A person who is having a psychotic episode may put him or herself in dangerous situations due to confusion or detachment. [0] Synthetic MJ (K2) is far more dangerous, though. [0]: https://www.projectknow.com/research/marijuana-overdose/ https://www.projectknow.com/research/marijuana-overdose/

lev99 8y ago
> Caffeine pills & powder are far more dangerous. It is very easy to overdose on them, and death is not out of the question. It still isn't common. Caffeine pills usually come in 200mg. Caffeine has an LD50 of about 200mg/kg of body mass. In US units a 150lb person would have to consume 68 caffeine pills to reach LD50 levels.

ravenstine 8y ago

Caffeine overdose is extremely rare but its LD50 is a lot lower than the THC/cannabinoids in cannabis. From this page: https://www.westword.com/news/dear-stoner-how-much-thc-equals-a-lethal-dose-5124769 https://www.westword.com/news/dear-stoner-how-much-thc-equal... > For THC, there are varying figures, ranging from 1,260 milligrams of THC per kilogram of body weight down to 666 mg/kg. Even going with the lowest figure, a 175-pound man would have to consume more than 53 whole grams of pure THC all at once. [...] Need more perspective? Caffeine has an LD50 of 192 mg/kg, and nicotine is around 60 mg/kg.