• davetortoise@reddthat.com
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    18 hours ago

    Caffeine is lowkey the most normalised and profitable drug addiction in the world, and it doesn’t really even do anything. The whole ‘giving you energy’ thing is a myth, all it does it make you tired without it. That’s why caffeine legally has to be listed as a ‘flavouring’ on the packaging, despite nobody on earth having a clue what it’s supposed to taste like

    • Dr. Moose@lemmy.world
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      1 minute ago

      Caffeine absolutely does something what are you even talking about. There are thousands of research papers of what caffeine does.

    • AnimalsDream@slrpnk.net
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      13 hours ago

      The primary effect of caffeine is to block adenosine from getting to the adenosine receptors, and that hormone is generally associated with sleepiness. So it’s kind of like caffeine creates an illusion that removes our awareness of sleepiness.

      However this also has a cascade of secondary effects on the central nervous system that leead to things like blood pressure changes, improved lung function, increased cortisol and adrenaline levels, etc. Taken together, these things quite objectively generally result in greater feelings of alertness and energy. And anxiety.

      As others have noted one case where it can have more of a calming effect is in people with adhd. It should also be noted that overconsumption of caffeine combined with other poor lifestyle choices quickly leads to chronic fatigue system, at which point no amount of additional caffeine is going to continue being helpful and it just becomes a slog of continuing to take it for no other reason than relief from withdrawal symptoms.

      One dose a day is all that should be necessary - ideally taken as early as possible. It should also be noted that for most people in industrialized countries, coffee or tea might be their most significant and pretty much only reliable source of polyphenols.

      And lastly don’t forget the most important reason for drinking caffeinated beverages: the pooping!

      • SuspciousCarrot78@lemmy.world
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        11 hours ago

        ^that.

        …Also worth pointing out: caffeine gets added to a lot of analgesic meds. So it’s very possible to have a background caffeine load and not even realize it, whether that’s from taking a couple of caffeine-containing painkillers or eating dark chocolate.

    • gandalf_der_12te@discuss.tchncs.de
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      11 hours ago

      well caffeine mostly makes me pee. it’s a diuretic which means it makes you pee. that’s the thing it’s most effective for for me. other side effects include having an easier time shitting because it increases bowel movements. apart from that it is a mild stimulant that maybe makes me a bit more creative. i’ve observed it a couple of times but it’s inconsistent.

    • [object Object]@lemmy.world
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      15 hours ago

      The whole ‘giving you energy’ thing is a myth, all it does it make you tired without it.

      Absolute nonsense. I don’t drink coffee or tea, and if I drink a couple cups of coffee I end up with a hundred more tabs in the browser, two programming projects started and abandoned, a hundred notes tagged and reorganized, and a bunch of unnecessary and vaguely mean comments on Reddit and Lemmy. Possibly also a sore leg or shoulder from impromptu exercise.

      You need to take control of your caffeine addiction.

      • MonkderVierte@lemmy.zip
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        9 hours ago

        Absolute nonsense

        No, science. (first result) \https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/does-caffeine-actually-give-us-energy

        The other one, sounds like caffeine effect on ADHD.

        • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world
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          11 hours ago

          By Josey Murray

          Josey Murray is a freelance writer focused on inclusive wellness, joyful movement, mental health, and the like.

          :-/

          Indeed, “the cognitive and physical energy is a temporary gift that instant-release caffeine gives,”* shares Ashley Jordan Ferira, Ph.D., RDN

          https://tc.netlify.mindbodygreen.com/about

          Ashley Jordan Ferira, Ph.D., RDN, mbg Vice President of Scientific Affairs

          :-|

          Citation Ouroboros

        • [object Object]@lemmy.world
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          10 hours ago

          Let’s also consult Wikipedia:

          Stimulants (also known as central nervous system stimulants, or psychostimulants, or colloquially as uppers) are a class of psychoactive drugs that increase alertness. They are used for various purposes, such as enhancing attention, motivation, cognition, mood, and physical performance. Some stimulants occur naturally, while others are exclusively synthetic. Common stimulants include caffeine, nicotine, cocaine (including crack cocaine), amphetamine/methamphetamine, methylphenidate, and modafinil. Most stimulants are highly addictive and damage health when addicted.

          You must be like twenty years old to not know that stimulants give one an excess of energy that is later abruptly taken away.

        • [object Object]@lemmy.world
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          12 hours ago

          Thanks for your speculation as to what the nature of this effect might be, but I don’t need it. Unless you totally abstain from coffee, tea and fizzy drinks, you have no idea what caffeine is like after not consuming it.

          Especially, seeing as another guy here speculates that taking a nap after drinking coffee is a caffeine effect on ADHD, perhaps you two might want to speculate against each other as to whose speculation is more correct, speculatively speaking.

          • MonkderVierte@lemmy.zip
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            9 hours ago
            1. Yes, i have. And do you really think, you’re the first and only, geting off coffee?
            2. coffeine is known to have the whole fucking range of effects on neurodiverse, from worsening their symptoms over having no effect at all to making them sleepy. This includes getting a lot of ADHD antsy, jittery.
            • [object Object]@lemmy.world
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              9 hours ago

              from worsening their symptoms over having no effect at all to making them sleepy.

              Thanks for admitting that your guesswork doesn’t amount to jackshit since it contradicts itself.

              • MonkderVierte@lemmy.zip
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                9 hours ago

                With the info, that a “Syndrom” means a range of causes, displaying similiar effects you can roughly group together.

                Now calm down.

                • [object Object]@lemmy.world
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                  9 hours ago

                  Well then thank you for pulling the word ‘syndrome’ out of nowhere, since it figured nowhere in this conversation before. But you also say it means “displaying similiar effects”, so you mean that “worsening their symptoms over having no effect at all to making them sleepy” and “getting a lot of ADHD antsy, jittery” are “similar effects”?

        • [object Object]@lemmy.world
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          12 hours ago

          Oh really? And are the whooshing of blood in my ears and the cranked-up muscle tone also from the placebo effect? And the fact that the shoulder muscles stay jacked up for several days afterwards, pulling my neck forward while the back muscles pull it back?

          Stimulants stimulate the nervous system, who would’ve thought.

        • thermal_shock@lemmy.world
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          14 hours ago

          Nope. I can instantly tell when the wife has a Celsius or other “energy” drink because she doesn’t normally. I’ll full on addicted/dependant and it sucks trying to get off it, massive headaches, loss of focus. When she’s on it, kitchens get destroyed and other random things when she goes on a “cleaning spree”.

      • FerretyFever0@fedia.io
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        8 hours ago

        Most Mormons (especially the ones living in Utah) are hopelessly addicted to caffeine. They don’t drink coffee, but they do have “dirty soda shops” and diet coke. They love that shit.

    • Ricaz@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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      17 hours ago

      If you’re not already addicted, caffeine can definitely pep you up quite a lot. Not in a comfortable way, though, in my opinion

      • Honytawk@discuss.tchncs.de
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        16 hours ago

        If you cut out sugar completely, your brain/central nervous system/red blood cells would break down.

        We definitely consume too much sugar, but caffeine is not needed for anything.

        • thermal_shock@lemmy.world
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          14 hours ago

          I think they mean the bullshit that is in everything and causing major health issues, high fructose corn syrup. Everything in moderation, but easier said than done sometimes with addictive substances.

        • Valmond@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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          13 hours ago

          False. The liver can synthesise over 100 grams of glycose per day, enough for the brain and the rest.

          It’s hard and crashy to withdraw from sugars, and it’s hard because it’s in all processed food and wherever they can stick it, but you can absolutely do it.

          But if you pull through you’ll feel way better because the body upregulates the fat to atp cycle instead of using sugar, so instead of getting hungry all the time when the body needs energy (and you are supposed to eat a donut) it just uses fat from our fat cells.

          And if you eat a lot of sugar, as sugar is toxic to the body, it’s used up ASAP and triggers insulin spikes etc. not exactly good for you in the long run.

          Now, I guess you should try to figure out a good diet around all this of course, but sugar is just a toxic drug.

          • AnimalsDream@slrpnk.net
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            12 hours ago

            Sugar is only toxic when you get it from refined sources. When you consume whole, intact foods, in a balanced diet, sugar is totally fine and literally our primary fuel source. Our metabolic system prefers sugar as fuel so greatly that it 1) will use it over fat if available, and 2) will break down proteins in the body to get more glucose if deprived of it.

            How’s that acetone breath by the way?

            • Valmond@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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              7 hours ago

              Acetone breath? Nice argumentation.

              You’re just repeating what I said in another way:

              1. yes, it will use it over fat, because it’s bad for us, so smartly we’ll use it up ASAP.

              2. yes, other things (fat) will be used if you do not eat sugar.

              Sugar is sugar, your idea about “natural” has no foothold in science, it’s the glycemic index you want.

              Also, if your diet is your primary “fuel source” I wouldn’t like to be your arteries.

          • Dämnyz@lemmy.ml
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            13 hours ago

            The sugar reserves in your liver are like a last resort of your body when it can’t burn any carbohydrates in the cells. As a type 1 diabetic I can tell you that you shouldn’t fuck with that at all. Messing up your hormones (like insulin) is a really bad idea. Apart from that we obviously consume too much sugar. When your liver dumps all the sugar it saved up it also dumps a heap of the shit it is supposed to filter out. When you get hypoglycemic and your liver takes over, you gonna have a really bad time. When your body burns fat it produces Ketone, which is similar to acetone (or nail polish). In small concentration that’s not a concern, but in higher concentration, like when you don’t consume any carbohydrates, it fucks you up big time. Ketone is the reason why diabetics get blind, lose their legs and develop nerve damage.

            • Valmond@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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              7 hours ago

              I’m not talking about some storage, the liver creates sugar when needed if you want.

              Your unfortunate problem has little to nothing to do with the liver.

    • tigeruppercut@lemmy.zip
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      17 hours ago

      all it does it make you tired without it.

      Maybe if you’re already taking it regularly this is true, but we know that it blocks some adenosine receptors, preventing the buildup of adenosine, which is one component in making us feel sleepy.

      • colourlessidea@sopuli.xyz
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        17 hours ago

        Yes it makes you feel less sleepy/tired but it doesn’t ’give you energy’ - just tricks the body into thinking it’s less tired than it actually is

        • dmention7@midwest.social
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          8 hours ago

          This feels like grammar nitpicking.

          If someone is feeling sleepy/tired which interferes with them doing whatever, and something got rid of that sleepy/tired feeling, most people would say that thing gave them more energy.

        • Rooskie91@discuss.online
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          14 hours ago

          That’s not true. It sounds like you’re confusing nicotine with caffeine. Nicotine is often credited with “taking the edge off” when in reality, that “edge” is a result of nicotine withdrawal.

          Caffeine blocks the receptors that react to a chemical the body releases when it’s tired. You’re right that it doesn’t give you more energy, but it does stop you from feeling by tired.

          Out of all the common legal drugs (nicotine, alcohol, THC) caffeine actually provides some of the best benefits with least intrusive drawbacks.

      • davetortoise@reddthat.com
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        14 hours ago

        Making you not sleep isn’t really the same as giving you energy, and since most people take it in the morning anyway it doesn’t really matter

        • tigeruppercut@lemmy.zip
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          13 hours ago

          I know you said “gives you energy” originally, but is that how most people think of coffee? I tend to think of it as “When I drink this I’ll be less tired.”

  • kamen@lemmy.world
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    18 hours ago

    Reminds me of the case when anon found out that very cold and very spicy foods don’t cancel each other out.

      • RamenJunkie@midwest.social
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        13 hours ago

        Be me

        Bet I can consume an entire Ghost Pepper

        $4 on the line

        Rember cold is opposite of hot

        Grind up and freeze ghost pepper into a popsicle

        Take a lick

        Still incredibly spicy

        Still need that $4

        Realize the bet was to consume not eat

        Popsicle looks like a dick

        Shove popsicle up ass

        Burning pain

        At least I had $4 in ones to buy some chips and a soda while at the ER waiting room.

      • kamen@lemmy.world
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        17 hours ago

        No, I’m pretty sure it was about eating. But hey, whatever tickles your imagination…

  • QueenHawlSera@sh.itjust.works
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    20 hours ago

    One time I got a contigo, and it got me drinking purified water for a week straight. It tasted so good, I felt better. I was urinating more often.

    Then suddenly around the week mark. I felt violently ill, massive headaches. I don’t feel like refilling the contigo, grab a can of coke instead. It tastes funny because I haven’t had one in awhile.

    Headache clears up immediately and I’m back to perfect health

    Mfw, I have a caffine addiction.

      • shane@feddit.nl
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        15 hours ago

        You can.

        If you cut our about one half a cup of coffee a day, you can stop taking caffeine without withdrawal symptoms. You can even switch to decaf if you want to keep your habits in the same pattern.

        • thermal_shock@lemmy.world
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          14 hours ago

          Sounds good on paper, but not that easy. We’re talking years, maybe decades of addiction, quitting overnight and trying to keep a job, household running, dependants alive… Not always that simple. It’s a vicious cycle.

          • shane@feddit.nl
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            13 hours ago

            It’s not overnight, it takes a few weeks.

            It does require some discipline and willpower (like figuring out how much coffee you currently drink, then remembering how much you can drink now).

            If you are ADHD or just scatterbrained then yeah might not work, but you really can do it.

            • thermal_shock@lemmy.world
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              11 hours ago

              I’m not interested in doing it right now. With work, home, other things going on, it’s just going to be how it is. That’s why I said it’s way easier said than done.

  • ruuster13@lemmy.zip
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    1 day ago

    Or OP is neurodivergent and stimulants help their brain. As with all greentexts, autism should probably be the first suspect.

  • ChickenLadyLovesLife@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    I quit smoking weed five years ago and I have no more anxiety. Food and sex aren’t that great any more and everything is boring, but so what?

  • Skullgrid@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    I did not respect drugs and now I have to suffer the consequences

    If it affects your brain, it is a drug. Respect drugs.

  • FinjaminPoach@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    Cutting out caffeine is so fucking hard because people try and bring you cups of tea or coffee all the time and then get upset if you say no thank you

    And then there’s the self will power because after abiut 2 days wsuccessfully without i will want some anyway and just succumb to offers of it

    And then it’s present in chocolate which is even harder to go without

  • TheTechnician27@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    Broadly speaking, anxiety is an elevated mood; the reason stimulants exacerbate anxiety is the same reason stimulants are contraindicated in people with bipolar disorder. For someone trying to achieve concentration while suffering from an anxiety disorder, a prescription medication like guanfacine might be better if possible; it has an off-label usage for anxiety disorders, and its two main usages are in treating ADHD and lowering blood pressure (neurostimulants like caffeine, by contrast, elevate your blood pressure).

    Caffeine withdrawal thankfully only lasts about a week at the worst.

    • Gladaed@feddit.org
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      2 days ago

      As in the severe symptoms last upto a week? Because I would have expected long term changes such as resistance and mild tiredness without it to last longer.

  • 11111one11111@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    General rule of thumb in life: if you use withdrawl symptoms as the comparator to measure the vslue of a commitment you will never empirically understand the outcome of the effort.