About 90% of adults consume caffeine daily (from any source including soda,tea, and food). This begs the question, what would the world really be like if people did not get their caffeine? - yikes!! Coffee smells and tastes delicious and gives us the boost we need but make no mistake that caffeine is a psychoactive drug. Some of the information I found was interesting but much of the information stills leaves a big question mark.
According to the Mayo Clinic, coffee was long blamed for many ills. As with many things, the medical community has changed their perspective on this topic. It states that for healthy individuals there is no increased risk of cancer or heart disease as once suspected. In fact, newer studies have shown the reduction in Parkinson's disease, type 2 diabetes, and liver cancer. Coffee is also high in antioxidants. As with most things, everything in moderation is suggested.
That brings us to the second point. What is moderation? That may depend on the person from a couple of perspectives. According to MedicineNet, here is the breakdown of caffeine consumption:
Low to moderate consumption is 130-300 mg, Moderate consumption is 200-300mg, High doses is above 400 mg, and heavy consumption is considered 6,000 mg. Plain brewed coffee is about 135 mg, 1 oz espresso 40 mg, Tea (avg) 53 mg, and Soda 35-45mg (avg). The other point I found interesting is that decaf coffee actually has caffeine due to the process to make it decaffeinated. I knew this from being pregnant but never saw any of the numbers. Decaf can have anywhere from 5 mg - 32 mg depending on the brand that was tested. Also, remember that chocolate, chocolate candies, cookies, ice cream, and even some OTC drugs contain caffeine when figuring your daily consumption. You can look at MedicineNet.com for more specifics on different products including energy drinks.
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