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Show HN: You Need Less Caffeine Than You Think
- johncoltrane 3y agoYou need zero caffeine if you never get addicted in the first place.
- sparrow98 3y agoGold. Too late for me :'(
- quickthrower2 3y agoIt is not addictive. Just stop. Yes you will feel shit for a week but then OK. I am more addicted to the taste of good coffee :-). If the only source of caffeine was tablets I would not look back lol. Can’t say that about many other drugs.
- thejazzman 3y agoPeople are absolutely unquestionably addicted. I'm one of them. And I successfully quit for months as an attempt to resolve my chronic headaches. Someone who quits caffeine long enough to end their dependence will realize most/all of the things mentioned above. But it takes weeks if not months. And you will inevitably go back because it's delicious and effective. Or y'all are better than me and I am envious. Either way. That's my first hand experience :)
- al_borland 3y agoI had chronic headaches for years due to caffeine. Before I knew what it was, my dad was at the point of wanting to take me to a neurologist or something, but I was able to talk him out of it. I finally had the thought that it might be the caffeine and if I stopped drinking it, the headaches would stop as well. I gave it a shot when I started college. It was a good time for it, as I was too lazy/cheap to go buy Mt Dew (my main source). I had a headache for a week straight, which was annoying, but then they stopped. Over 20 years later and I can probably count my yearly headaches on 1 hand. I went several years without having any soft drinks at all, as the headaches weren't worth it for me. The soft drinks weren't good enough to risk the pain. Eventually I did try one after probably at least 8 years, and it tasted gross to me. I will occasionally have caffeine, but use it as a tool... or it's just a mistake. If I eat some dark chocolate (a lot of it), that's a mistake as I don't always think about the caffeine in it when I eat it... I'll be up all night. As a tool I'll use it if I am tired and need to drive for some reason. This happens less than once a year. If I'm just tired in a place where there is no risk to my life if I fall asleep, I just suck it up. I spent 6 years working the night shift with no caffeine as well. It's all about what you get used to and what you'll allow. I just really don't want to go back to having chronic headaches. Maybe if I was a coffee drinker at some point it would be different. There was no ritual to Mt Dew. I've never even tried coffee, and with the way people seem addicted to it, I'm not sure I want to.
- RobotCaleb 3y agoHot take: if you ever started again you never quit. Maybe you gave it up, but not quit.
- sparrow98 3y agoAround 74% American consumers drink coffee everyday, I guess it's not hard addiction but lots of people do have a strong habit of consuming coffee or caffeinated drinks almost daily. ref: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1327743/coffee-consumption-frequency-in-the-us/ https://www.statista.com/statistics/1327743/coffee-consumpti...
- lebca 3y agoThe "feel shit for a week" are basically withdrawals, right? So...addictive? In terms of addicted to the taste of good coffee (+1), curious if you've found good tasting decaf. I struggle to find decaf flavors that are as rich and flavorful as caffeinated coffee.
- gardenhedge 3y agoI think I've built up a caffeine tolerance. I've drank coffee and tea habitually for over a decade and for a period of time I drank a lot of coca cola. I don't drink coffee to feel awake/energized or stay awake. I just drink multiple cups a day out of habit. I like having a hot drink to sip on while I am doing other things. I've given up coffee for 1-2 months before and didn't feel any different. I didn't get any buzz when I started drinking it again. I've tried to replace coffee with just hot water but it's not the same.
- whatwhatnewacct 3y agoI agree with liking to have a hot drink to sip on while doing other things. Herbal teas have been pretty good for me in that regard but primarily have just tried switching to decaf coffee later in the day/evening.
- Zelphyr 3y agoSeveral years ago I switched to decaf to help with my anxiety. It did help but I also crashed almost every afternoon so I went back. Unfortunately, the coffee started giving me nasty acid reflux so I switched to drinking Earl Grey tea every morning. About six years ago I changed my diet and started Keto. Now that I'm keto-adapted I drink a cup of green tea each morning more out of habit than necessity. Sometimes I need a little 15-minute nap in the afternoon but otherwise I'm good. On a recent 5-day trip I had no caffeine at all and didn't miss a beat. So, for people who say they need caffeine to get through their day I say, take a look at what you're eating. You might be surprised at how it's slowing you down. n.b., I'm not saying everyone must do keto. That's just what worked for me. I'm convinced after six years of researching nutrition that eating real[1], idealy organic food and moving their body on a regular basis is all anyone needs to generally stay healthy and have energy. 1: If you look at the ingredients of the food you're about to eat and you can't find them in your kitchen, then it's not real food.
- sparrow98 3y agoDiet is an interesting angle, do you think diet would contribute to a better sleep? I tend to find a high quality sleep leads to a energetic day for me.
- Zelphyr 3y agoIt made a huge difference in my sleep. Before, I kept waking up at night for no clear reason and it was getting worse. Within a week or two of changing my diet I started sleeping like a baby and, aside from some periods of high stress, that hasn't changed.
- AnthonBerg 3y agoFunny thing with carbohydrate metabolism: Histamine is an essential part of glucose metabolism, and histamine is an alertness neurotransmitter.
- sparrow98 3y ago
- darthrupert 3y agoCaffeine is not the problem, but coffee. At least for me.
- sparrow98 3y agoI drink decaf coffee and caffeine pills to control the dose nowadays.
- justinlloyd 3y agoI don't drink coffee because I need the caffeine. I drink coffee because I like the taste. There is an addiction component. I've given it up in the past and had the two week headache that wouldn't go away. But if good coffee isn't available, I will go without.
- sparrow98 3y agoAndrew Huberman brought up that caffeine can bias individual's preference of beverages, though I haven't looked into related research papers. ref: https://youtu.be/iw97uvIge7c?t=8063 https://youtu.be/iw97uvIge7c?t=8063
- cainxinth 3y agoI had to give up caffeine for health reasons. My energy level returned to normal after a few months, but man do I miss the taste (decaf still has some caffeine).
- DriftRegion 3y agoA cup of hot water (no tea, no coffee, nothing) can in fact be quite pleasant to drink.
- carstenhag 3y agoWhile I don't necessarily disagree, why drink hot water when you can drink flavored hot water (tea)?
- wodenokoto 3y agoThen why not drink coffee?
- Moomoomoo309 3y agoWell, there's herbal tea, for one...
- carstenhag 3y agoBecause it has a very strong coffee taste? I don't like it at all! :D
- PartiallyTyped 3y agoCaffeine does nothing for me, I drink it for the taste / force of habit, and can actually cut it out indefinitely. Yes, I also have adhd.
- zoover2020 3y agoDid you try taking it before or during a night trip by car? That's the only moment I realize its true effects. As others in this thread have mentioned, the taste of coffee is just too good to give up for me. Instead, I limit myself to: 1) 2 cups of coffee a day before 12pm, 2) allow myself to drink decaf after 12pm I also allow myself to become caffeinated if I have to drive in the dark for long periods at end (e.g. 2+ hours). These moments are rare enough for me to make caffeine one hell of a drug ;-)
- PartiallyTyped 3y agoOnly in coca-cola it keeps me awake, but it doesn't give me any energy. It just keeps me from sleeping.
- j1elo 3y agoI'm the only one not being able to see the first graph? it just doesn't fit horizontally, and it also doesn't allow me to scroll to the right either (on mobile, using Android Firefox)
- sparrow98 3y agoSorry I can't reproduce the issue since I don't have an Android device. But I do find the caffeine habits diagram is broken hmm. I will see what I can do. Thanks for the headsup!
- ninesnines 3y agoI gave up caffeine about 6 months ago now, and did it because I’ve had persistent anxiety since I was a teenager and was desperate for something to help. I had been drinking about 6 cups a day, which was a bit cultural, but also just way too much caffeine. When I came off of it, I stopped having anxiety attacks and had a huge reduction in anxiety. To the point where I think most of my anxiety throughout my life has been due to caffeine intake. Just something to keep in mind if you in general are a high key person and tend to drink a lot of coffee.
- sparrow98 3y agoPer my experience, L-Theanine really helped to counter anxiety, I rarely take caffeine alone without L-Theanine nowadays.
- replwoacause 3y agoQuitting alcohol made a noticeable difference in reducing my anxiety levels to almost zero.
- furtugoth 3y agoDoes the quality of coffee change something? I always wonder as usually better quality is..better
- sparrow98 3y agoIn terms of caffeine it may change the dose of it. On the other hand, high quality of coffee I presume they taste better, and I want to drink more of it lol.
- dinkleberg 3y agoIf you’re getting side effects, obviously it might be worth stopping your caffeine intake. But if you aren’t, there are a host of benefits of taking caffeine beyond just wakefulness: https://examine.com/supplements/caffeine/ https://examine.com/supplements/caffeine/