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The case against caffeine

zantafakari.substack.com

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Re: The case against caffeine

#61

Post by richrichie »

alkonaut wrote: post #56

I have been drinking a lot of coffe my entire adult life. Many cups of really dark coffee. But a cup is small . And dark coffee doesn't necessarily mean loaded with caffeine. Nothing prepares you for the kind of watery-yet-caffeine-loaded juice you get at a US coffee shop. It's like they think someone would enjoy drinking a half liter hot beverage, and get half a lethal dose of caffeine. Even though I drink 5-10 cups…

It is customary for me to enjoy an espresso (occasionally two) with a bar of dark chocolate after dinner. I sleep well not much later. 100s of thousands, if not millions, do this as a matter of culture.

Re: The case against caffeine

#62

Post by raccoonDivider »

harimau777 wrote: post #7

At least personally, I've found that starting to drink coffee has had a pretty dramatic positive impact on my depression. I wonder if the difference in experience could come down to the specific circumstances and nature of the issues that someone faces?

Since we're exchanging anecdotal evidence, I also feel better with coffee. It lets me control how energized I am. Helped me avoid burnout and generally makes me feel a bit better no matter how much I take.

Re: The case against caffeine

#63

Post by teraku »

Stronger By Science[0] recently did a longer piece on caffeine, trying to argue against it (from the perspective of lifters who actually enjoy caffeine as a performance enhancer). You know, scientifically trying to disprove your believes.

TL;DR: Probably mostly harmless in medium quantities, but no real proven long-term benefits. So if you enjoy coffee, just drink in moderation.

[0] - https://www.strongerbyscience.com/pros-cons-caffeine/

Re: The case against caffeine

#65

Post by dappermanneke »

popular strain of Neo-puritanism trying to dig under consumption habits long attested to be perfectly safe and not harmful to your health, if not good for you

yes, not drinking coffee makes you a super special person. good job you!

Re: The case against caffeine

#66

Post by zeta0134 »

I tried this! I went completely caffeine free for over a year and was... fine? But way more tired all the time, and generally having trouble focusing on tasks. In my particular case, I suspect caffeine is a self administered coping mechanism for mild ADHD tendencies, and without that I became much more sensitive to the food I was eating and my changing energy levels throughout the day.

Eventually I realized I had stopped coping with caffeine and, instead, started coping with *sugar*, and gained 20 lbs in the process.

I'm back on caffeine again, but the rules are: one (1) cup in the morning, however I like it. Then water for every other beverage all day long. That seems to have done the trick, and now I again sleep through the night and can more easily remain focused throughout the day.

The point is, experiment, yes! But it's your body and your mind. Take notes and figure out what works best in your case. Everyone is a little different.

Re: The case against caffeine

#67

Post by raccoonDivider »

The graph titled "Caffeine Accumulation With Long Half Life" is weird. Isn't that not how half-life works? A higher blood level should mean faster elimination, but here it acts like the baseline changes each day. No matter how slow the user's clearance is, the ratio should always take the same time to get halved.

Edit: actually this graph implies that people like the author would end up poisoned by a lethal dose of caffeine after a few weeks to months. Maybe these people exist but it can't be common.

Re: The case against caffeine

#68

Post by Aeolun »

pjc50 wrote: post #14
harimau777 wrote: post #7

At least personally, I've found that starting to drink coffee has had a pretty dramatic positive impact on my depression. I wonder if the difference in experience could come down to the specific circumstances and nature of the issues that someone faces?

You're not going to suggest that different people have different baseline biochemistry and would benefit from different things in different ways? No! That's not allowed! All health advice must fit all people, and people who don't fit the health advice shouldn't be allowed to complain about it. /sarcasm, but I've seen serious versions of this argument

I do think it would be nice if we had health advice that applied to all people.

Re: The case against caffeine

#70

Post by Aeolun »

martinky24 wrote: post #8
swader999 wrote: post #4

High amounts shrink the brain, increase dementia risk. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1028415X.2021.19... And very few people drink 1-2 cups. The travel mugs and typical coffee place cups are close to this danger range.

> After full covariate adjustment, consumption of >6 cups/day was associated with 53% higher odds of dementia compared to consumption of 1–2 cups/day So what they're saying is too much of a (good? fine? reasonable?) thing can be a bad thing? Not sure this supports a case against caffeine. You should look up what happens if someone consumes too much salt!

Sometimes it feels like if you just abstained from everything, you’d be immortal.
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