4 ms·

> small 20mg And if you're someone like me - beware that 'decaf' really isn't. Even as little as 5 mg of caffeine causes me everything from sleeplessness to

by dmd 3y ago

> small 20mg And if you're someone like me - beware that 'decaf' really isn't. Even as little as *5 mg* of caffeine causes me everything from sleeplessness to migraines (verified with a double blind study administered by my wife!)

olalonde 3y ago
Nitpick: assuming your wife knew which sample was decaf and which was regular coffee, it would be a single-blind experiment.
- dmd 3y ago
  Correct, which is why I said it was double-blind.
  - matsz 3y ago
    Could you describe the steps you took to perform this experiment? I'm curious and would love to do that myself.
    - dmd 3y ago
      It's definitely easier with a 3rd party, but here's what we did. Note that before this experiment I hadn't had any caffeine at all for several years because I was pretty sure it affected me badly. (1) Experimenter dissolved measured weight caffeine powder in water, and divided it into various measured portions, and labeled them with unique numbers. Then made identical measured portions of pure water, also labeled. She sealed the number assignments in an envelope. (2) On experiment days, I chose a water portion, recording the day and number in secret - she could not see which portion I chose or what number it was. I then poured the water into whatever (zero caffeine!) drink (or whatever else I could mix it in with) I was having. I used drinks and food with strong enough flavors that I definitely could not taste the possible caffeine addition. So now neither of us knows whether I took one of the caffeine ones. (3) I recorded the day's results.
LeafItAlone 3y ago
How did you account for the placebo effect? Decaf coffee tastes about the same as regular coffee (some people claim to tell the difference, but I can’t except that when I get decaf it’s the cheap mass produced stuff and for regular coffee I like to support local roasters). Maybe the taste was triggering the same effects?
- dmd 3y ago
  See my comment here. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38101401 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38101401

> small 20mg And if you're someone like me - beware that 'decaf' really isn't. Even as little as *5 mg* of caffeine causes me everything from sleeplessness to

by dmd 3y ago

olalonde 3y ago

Nitpick: assuming your wife knew which sample was decaf and which was regular coffee, it would be a single-blind experiment.

dmd 3y ago
Correct, which is why I said it was double-blind.
- matsz 3y ago
  Could you describe the steps you took to perform this experiment? I'm curious and would love to do that myself.
  - dmd 3y ago
    It's definitely easier with a 3rd party, but here's what we did. Note that before this experiment I hadn't had any caffeine at all for several years because I was pretty sure it affected me badly. (1) Experimenter dissolved measured weight caffeine powder in water, and divided it into various measured portions, and labeled them with unique numbers. Then made identical measured portions of pure water, also labeled. She sealed the number assignments in an envelope. (2) On experiment days, I chose a water portion, recording the day and number in secret - she could not see which portion I chose or what number it was. I then poured the water into whatever (zero caffeine!) drink (or whatever else I could mix it in with) I was having. I used drinks and food with strong enough flavors that I definitely could not taste the possible caffeine addition. So now neither of us knows whether I took one of the caffeine ones. (3) I recorded the day's results.

LeafItAlone 3y ago

How did you account for the placebo effect? Decaf coffee tastes about the same as regular coffee (some people claim to tell the difference, but I can’t except that when I get decaf it’s the cheap mass produced stuff and for regular coffee I like to support local roasters). Maybe the taste was triggering the same effects?

dmd 3y ago
See my comment here. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38101401 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38101401