There’s no denying that today’s drug of choice is caffeine. It’s most widely used psycho stimulant in the world. And in standard practice, about 85% of Americans use caffeine regularly may help bolster wakefulness in the morning or to stay alert throughout the day. There is no nutritional need for caffeine in the diet, Moderate caffeine intake, however, is not associated with any recognized health we’re willing to throw upward of five dollars over the counter for drug in the form of a designer coffee.

Every working day, Star opens four new outlets somewhere on the planet, hiring 200 employee But caffeine isn’t ubiquitous due to popular coffee and tea hangout found in soft drinks, medicine (especially cold medicines and pa relievers), candy, ice cream and other desserts, and even water. (Yes, it’s true. Some bottled water companies market “Java water.”) Multiple sources of caffeine make it incredibly easy to consume, sometimes unintentionally.

About 78% of us drink at least one cup or can of a caffeinated beverage daily, and 25% of us drink four or more cups or cans a day. In technical terms, our average daily intake is about 280 milligrams or over 16% above the recommended daily allowance. Caffeine’s effects on sleep are determined by a variety of factors, including amount, the time between caffeine ingestion and attempted sleep, individual differences in metabolism and sensitivity and/or tolerance to caffeine.

People differ greatly in their sensitivity to caffeine; some people can drink several cups of coffee, tea, or soft drinks within an hour of sleep and notice no effects, whereas others may feel stimulating effects after one serving. Caffeine does not accumulate in the bloodstream or body and is normally excreted within several hours following consumption. (Caffeine can begin to take effect within fifteen to twenty minutes and reaches peak concentration in the blood in sixty to ninety minutes after ingestion, then gets metabolized in the liver, complete clearance of caffeine from the body, however, doesn’t occur until twenty-four to forty-eight hours after the last cup! Keep in mind that excretion rates vary from person to person based on age, weight, sex, hormonal status, and metabolism.)

Thus, there is no one grande mocha half-caf, fat-free fits-all set of guidelines for using caffeine responsibly. I love a good cup of joe myself, but I also know my limits. You, too, can get in tune with how your body responds to caffeine and can make adjustments so that it’s less likely to disrupt your sleep.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 10th, 2009 at 5:56 am and is filed under Insomnia. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.