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Quitting Caffeine

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Re: Quitting Caffeine

#251

Post by sambe »

simonklitj wrote: post #245

Wondering if Northern Europe has developed some sort of genetic immunity/reduced influence to caffeine. With the Netherlands having a an average of 2.4 cups of coffee a day, one would expect chronic insomnia, yet this is not the case. I live in Denmark, where the average is 1.27 cups a day, and I oftentimes go over 10 cups a day of coffee, and I know a handful of people who're either up there with me, or drink even m…

As I understand it, the research is not completely conclusive but the claim is that there is significant habituation effect. I've also heard that restlessness/insomnia are just as likely to be caused by withdrawal effects in the evening as they are by high consumption. Withdrawal effects have similarities to high usage, and anecdotally if I'm drinking a lot of coffee but stop early in the day I often have problems sleeping.

Re: Quitting Caffeine

#252

Post by dagw »

seanp2k2 wrote: post #153
exhilaration wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I overheard one of my male co-workers telling a female co-worker that he doesn't drink. Her reaction was a literal "eww". That's when I learned that - much like smokers - drinkers were a tribe.

Were? Smoking isn't very cool anymore, but drinking is still pretty cool. It's losing popularity in some circles, but in pop culture, rappers are still in the club ordering bottles, and not of Voss. Weed has a big chance to shake up the alcohol industry, because you can smoke like a Cummins 12-valve until you pass out, then feel fine the next morning. You also don't die if you have too much to smoke. It does have to…

make it classy (esp stuff like vape pens

I don't know. It feels like vape pens is one of the least classy things going on at the moment. I think the only thing that can make "weed" acceptable and "classy" is some variation on fancy edibles (or perhaps drinkables to bring the discussion full circle)

Re: Quitting Caffeine

#253

Post by brianwawok »

Myrmornis wrote: post #213
seanp2k2 wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ginger beer (as in fancy ginger ale) + lime juice + bitters, well-iced, is quite tasty. It's a Moscow mule without the vodka. You can mess with adding tonic water if you miss the vodka taste. A splash of Luxardo syrup, cherry juice, blueberry purée, of any number of other little flourishes (lychee is notably great, tumeric is interesting) can make it extra special. I drink occasionally but I also enjoy these NA conco…

Bitters (e.g. Angostura) is typically alcoholic though isn't it?

So is mouthwash but I doubt you put enough in to trip the drink past .1% ABV.

Re: Quitting Caffeine

#254

Post by anonu »

I love coffee but have often thought of quitting as well. I found that skipping coffee every other day does two things. First, it keeps the ever increasing coffee/caffeine requirement in check. Second, your enjoyment of that cup goes up so much more.

My life mantra is "everything in moderation". This method fits in a bit better with just quitting cold turkey.

Re: Quitting Caffeine

#255

Post by httpsterio »

gedrap wrote: post #170

I am a coffee drinker but I don't really get boost or anything. Nor do I feel tired or anything else that could be called withdrawal during the weekends, when I don't drink it. For me, making a cup of coffee is just a... ritual of sorts. Weighting the beans, pouring over water, all these things. And I really enjoy the taste, trying different beans. I don't want to sound pretentious, it's just a hobby for me. Maybe th…

I'm the same. I don't get any effects until I drink about a pot of coffee (about a liter) in an hour or two and even then it's just my stomach that complains. For the record, I've gone over a month without coffee and still nothing.

Re: Quitting Caffeine

#256

Post by epmaybe »

cvsh wrote: post #221
StanislavPetrov wrote: post #209

What the author didn't mention, and I haven't seen mentioned in these comments, are the extremely beneficial health effects of coffee (not caffeine, decaf has shown the same benefits). Most significantly, studies have shown that coffee reduces overall mortality rates significantly, with the reduced chance of dying from any cause increasing with coffee consumption (up to a point). >Compared with nonconsumers, particip…

I wonder if some of this is due to a subtle intervening variable like conscious or subconscious (i.e. fidgeting) decisions to exercise more accumulated over time because of increased energy, rather than caffeine per se.

In epidemiological studies we refer to these variables as confoundimg variables. There's another term as well that I can't seem to remember.

When you try and correlate one specific variable, like coffee, to trends like mortality, you must control for every other variable. Socioeconomic factors like income generally cause confounding of your results.

For example, there was a recent paper that showed that women with gum disease were at higher risk for certain cancers. Is it a wide stretch to believe that people with gum disease may be of lower socioeconomic status, and also probably not take care of their diets and health anyways?

Can someone link the PDF? My login for the acp journal article the parent linked to describing the health correlations won't work for some reason. I want to see how they controlled for some of these factors.

Edit: I found the full PDF through my institution. They note that their study may contain confounds, and note possible ones that they tried to control for. The paper isn't perfect, but I applaud the authors for being as thorough as they could. That being said, this sort of article is bound to go viral as soon as possible, with many misleading headlines.

Re: Quitting Caffeine

#257

Post by 6d6b73 »

StanislavPetrov wrote: post #209

What the author didn't mention, and I haven't seen mentioned in these comments, are the extremely beneficial health effects of coffee (not caffeine, decaf has shown the same benefits). Most significantly, studies have shown that coffee reduces overall mortality rates significantly, with the reduced chance of dying from any cause increasing with coffee consumption (up to a point). >Compared with nonconsumers, particip…

Coffee industry is huge, so it's not hard to imagine that at least some of the research is fake. Also, I'm not aware of any research that explains WHY coffee has the supposed health benefits.

Re: Quitting Caffeine

#258

Post by simonklitj »

sambe wrote: post #251
simonklitj wrote: post #245

Wondering if Northern Europe has developed some sort of genetic immunity/reduced influence to caffeine. With the Netherlands having a an average of 2.4 cups of coffee a day, one would expect chronic insomnia, yet this is not the case. I live in Denmark, where the average is 1.27 cups a day, and I oftentimes go over 10 cups a day of coffee, and I know a handful of people who're either up there with me, or drink even m…

As I understand it, the research is not completely conclusive but the claim is that there is significant habituation effect. I've also heard that restlessness/insomnia are just as likely to be caused by withdrawal effects in the evening as they are by high consumption. Withdrawal effects have similarities to high usage, and anecdotally if I'm drinking a lot of coffee but stop early in the day I often have problems sl…

Huh, seems almost comical that withdrawal produces these symptoms. Thanks for your insight :-)

Re: Quitting Caffeine

#259

Post by DiThi »

throwaway0071 wrote: post #229
DiThi wrote: post #216

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did those expressos and sodas have sugar?

Sodas.. of course? Expressos, no. I didn't stop taking sugar. I only dropped coffee and stopped taking caffeinated sodas... I didn't stop taking sodas.

Then, if you cut out sugars completely you'll discover a new height of energy. Probably after a few days of withdrawal.

Re: Quitting Caffeine

#260

Post by sdenton4 »

cjg wrote: post #206
nowherecat wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hm..reading this makes me wonder ... I noticed that life is running extremely fast lately and I am having a hard time being "in the moment" ... and I drink a lot of coffee. I really enjoy everything about coffee from roasting to brewing though, so it would probably be quite hard giving it up. Anyway, thanks for sharing this, I will take a long look at that.

Making a drink doesn't sound like it would be something inherently enjoyable. Perhaps you believe it is because of the boost you get when you drink it. Would making it for others be enjoyable in the same way? When you next make a cup, try to tease out exactly what it is that you enjoy about making it. What is it about that experience that makes it enjoyable?

See: tea ceremony, Japanese.

Ritual itself can be very satisfying. I've taken apart also in Ethiopian coffee making, which is an awesome process. Beans get roasted on the spot and then brewed into coffee, and everyone gets there small cups of the brew, in decreasing concentration. It's a precise ritual, and at the same time very social. It's great!

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