7 ms·

This is interesting, but the article just explains the benefits of coffee. What are the downsides? I would like to hear why he quit.

cpeterso 14y ago
Dr. Andrew Weil says, "On the down side are coffee's well-documented side effects: anxiety, insomnia, tremor and irregular heartbeat. It can also irritate the digestive system, bladder and prostate." http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA400146/Is-Coffee-Good-For-You.html http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA400146/Is-Coffee-Good-For-You...
- Androsynth 14y ago
  I realized as soon as I posted that I could just google it. But the guy did a good job explaining the underlying science between caffeine highs, I would have liked him to explain the negatives as well.
- KirinDave 14y ago
  There's also a lot of interesting data coming up mildly positive on Caffeine health benefits in the literature. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=caffeine%20cancer http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=caffeine%20cancer http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21907331 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21907331 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19581722 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19581722 Moderate caffeine intake is on track to be firmly in the green for most people. However, not everyone metabolizes and reacts to it identically, so the author of the article in question may be one of those people who does not get a lot of benefits. But there is this funny idea floating around that caffeine is carcinogenic and long-term use may cause cognitive impairment, and there is very little evidence for that.
CognitiveLens 14y ago
Exactly. The conclusion seems to be: Caffeine does not directly give you energy, so don't abuse it with the hope of having an endless supply of energy. Okay.
Dn_Ab 14y ago
From a sheet I used to keep: Caffeine: Stimulant/Vasoconstrictor/dopaminergic half-life: ~5 hours Fat + water soluble Ideal dosage < 200mg; 50-100mg per day Benefits: boosts working memory, reduces re-uptake and increases production of dopamine, improves alertness, attention span, memory retrieval, acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. Downside: increased blood pressure and sustained high levels of heart rate, adesonine reuptake inhibitor and mildly addictive through dopaminegic pathways, acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. Synergistic with: theanine, sulbutiamine Possibly: antioxidant effect+, MAO A and B inhibitor+ , protective vs Parkinson's+, damaging to hippocampus- , damaging to short term retrieval of unrelated tasks- Decision: Minimize usage to less than weekly.

cpeterso 14y ago

Dr. Andrew Weil says, "On the down side are coffee's well-documented side effects: anxiety, insomnia, tremor and irregular heartbeat. It can also irritate the digestive system, bladder and prostate." http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA400146/Is-Coffee-Good-For-You.html http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA400146/Is-Coffee-Good-For-You...

Androsynth 14y ago
I realized as soon as I posted that I could just google it. But the guy did a good job explaining the underlying science between caffeine highs, I would have liked him to explain the negatives as well.
KirinDave 14y ago
There's also a lot of interesting data coming up mildly positive on Caffeine health benefits in the literature. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=caffeine%20cancer http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=caffeine%20cancer http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21907331 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21907331 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19581722 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19581722 Moderate caffeine intake is on track to be firmly in the green for most people. However, not everyone metabolizes and reacts to it identically, so the author of the article in question may be one of those people who does not get a lot of benefits. But there is this funny idea floating around that caffeine is carcinogenic and long-term use may cause cognitive impairment, and there is very little evidence for that.

CognitiveLens 14y ago

Exactly. The conclusion seems to be: Caffeine does not directly give you energy, so don't abuse it with the hope of having an endless supply of energy. Okay.

Dn_Ab 14y ago

From a sheet I used to keep: Caffeine: Stimulant/Vasoconstrictor/dopaminergic half-life: ~5 hours Fat + water soluble Ideal dosage < 200mg; 50-100mg per day Benefits: boosts working memory, reduces re-uptake and increases production of dopamine, improves alertness, attention span, memory retrieval, acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. Downside: increased blood pressure and sustained high levels of heart rate, adesonine reuptake inhibitor and mildly addictive through dopaminegic pathways, acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. Synergistic with: theanine, sulbutiamine Possibly: antioxidant effect+, MAO A and B inhibitor+ , protective vs Parkinson's+, damaging to hippocampus- , damaging to short term retrieval of unrelated tasks- Decision: Minimize usage to less than weekly.