Monday, 20 August 2012

Key points


MENTAL HEALTH EFFECTS OF CAFFEINE



SUMMARY

  • People may not be aware that their mental ill-health may be being caused or exacerbated by their caffeine intake. In particular (a) anxiety is highly correlated with caffeine use, and (b) anxiety sufferers appear to often have high caffeine sensitivity.
  • People may also be over-estimating the benefits they are receiving from caffeine. Caffeine's perceived benefits may not be real, and it may have negative effects on personality, personal effectiveness and sleep quality.
  • Why not go caffeine free for 40 days (the first withdrawal days will not be fun) as a trial to find out?
RESEARCH: ANXIETY (incl. GAD, PTSD, panic disorder)
    Research: Summary
    • There is strong research support for association between caffeine and anxiety. E.g. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21797659  "we selected eight randomized, double-blind studies where caffeine was administered orally, and none of them controlled for confounding factors in the analysis. ... The eight studies all showed a positive association between caffeine and anxiogenic effects and/or panic disorder."
    • The research base for improving mental health by stopping caffeine intake is almost non-existent, but is positive (see below). 
    Anxiety and caffeine use are often correlated
    1. 1996, "there is clinical and experimental evidence that acute caffeine can exacerbate the effects of an anxiety-inducing situation, or worsen an existing anxiety disorder, especially panic disorder." http://www.psychology.org.nz/cms_show_download.php?id=766, 
    2. 2008, "These findings support the hypothesis that individuals with PTSD would report higher levels of caffeine than individuals without PTSD." http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xDNbBvYHAlkC&pg=PA21&lpg=PA21&dq=caffeine+ptsd&source=bl&ots=ALdzLLH_u0&sig=Mtn19vgHUwBcjV7Ft30sQbnGuzI&hl=en&sa=X&ei=JOELUMGDKcOw0QX3yaztCg&ved=0CE8Q6AEwATgK#v=onepage&q=caffeine%20ptsd&f=false)
    3. 2011, Literature review, "The 8 studies all showed a positive association between caffeine and anxiogenic [anxiety causing] effects and/or panic disorder." http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21797659
    Anxiety sufferers have high caffeine sensitivity
    1. 1985, "It appears that anxiety disorder patients have increased caffeine sensitivity"  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0165178185900782
    2. 1988, "panic patients have increased sensitivity to caffeine", http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/article.aspx?Volume=145&page=632&journalID=13, 
    3. 1992, "patients with GAD are abnormally sensitive to caffeine"   http://archpsyc.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=495937, 
    4. 2007, "Our data suggest that there is an association between panic attacks, no matter if associated with PD or MDP, and hyperreactivity to an oral caffeine challenge test." http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17445520)
    5. 2010: 'Caffeine-induced anxiety is associated with a particular gene variant."  http://www.nature.com/npp/journal/v35/n9/pdf/npp201071a.pdf
    This is a key finding; some people feel ‘surely I am fine because I am only drinking 1-2 cups per day’, but this 'low' dosage may be very high for their sensitivity.

    For some people, anxiety can be very much reduced by coming off caffeine.
    1. 1989, of 24 cases of GAD or Panic Disorder, 5 ceased caffeine intake and 1 significantly reduced caffeine intake; all 6 (25% of the sample group) saw much reduced symptoms many months later, and 5 took no further medication. In addition, 3 of the 6 took caffeine on one subsequent occasion and all 3 immediately saw anxiety symptoms occur.  http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=4996824 
    2. ".... I had worked with several different patients who came to me having made no progress in getting their anxiety under control, no matter what was tried. They were often at a point of desperation. When I asked about their caffeine intake, almost without fail there was an unusual quantity of caffeine in their diet. .... But once these patients got their caffeine intake under 200mg/day—and most of them went off of it completely—their anxiety improved dramatically." Alison Lighthall, http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/jcr.2011.1200
    3. Anecdotal testimonies, e.g. 
    http://blogs.psychcentral.com/panic/discuss/3270/
    On my GPs advice I slowly cut down then stopped my caffeine intake. My anxiety has decreased from being around 8/9 out of 10 every day to around 3/4 out of 10. This could be due to a few things but I believe that cutting caffeine out of my diet has had a major impact. The most positive thing I’ve done to reduce my anxiety ever!

    http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/neuronarrative/201208/what-caffeine-really-does-your-brain-0/comments#comment-515252
    I am currently on month 7 of no caffeine (including chocolate)... It took me at least a month for my energy to come back to baseline and my motivation/focus is still slowly recovering. I haven't felt this good in years. My stress and anxiety levels are WAY down and I'm much more relaxed and calm around people.

    http://coffeefaq.com/site/node/11

    I am now 7 months clean, apart from 1 lapse 4 months ago.
    I definitely am way, way better than when on caffeine:
    1. GAD (generalised anxiety disorder) basically gone. finito. no more early hours high heart rate, sweating etc.
    2. energy level overall higher and much more even.
    3. thoughts and thinking better, more balanced, stronger (less garbled).
    4. personal relationships way better; less angry, aggressive.
    5. able to move onto other challenges and opportunities in life.

    See refs. in 'other people are exiting' section below, including http://coffeefaq.com/site/node/11  http://www.healthcentral.com/anxiety/c/8146/5936/coffee-anxiety 
    Rather than caffeine intake and mental illness being co-incident (for instance if caffeine is being taken as a stress reliever in a high stress environment, or as self-medication for mental illness), these examples show cessation of symptoms when caffeine intake is stopped, implying that caffeine intake is causal.

    Mental ill-health may not appear for a considerable period after caffeine intake begins. 
    1. We note that in the 1989 study referred to above, http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=4996824, in none of the cases had the onset of symptoms coincided with an increase in caffeine consumption.
    In general:
    1. 2012, "a trial of caffeine abstinence in cases of anxiety should always be encouraged"' Dr Malcolm Bruce (researcher; see 1989 above, NHS doctor).
    The US Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders , known as the DSM-IV-TR includes four caffeine-related disorders: 
    • caffeine intoxication, 
    • caffeine-induced anxiety disorder, 
    • caffeine-induced sleep disorder, and 
    • caffeine related disorder not otherwise specified. 
    A fifth, caffeine withdrawal, is listed under the heading of "Criteria Sets and Axes Provided for Further Study." (http://www.minddisorders.com/Br-Del/Caffeine-related-disorders.html#ixzz2ItLcaa7f0)


     (Note: A possible thesis; anxiety is due to caffeine withdrawal, rather than caffeine use.
    This thesis correlates with; 
    (a) strong anecdotal evidence of anxiety being experienced during caffeine withdrawal, and 
    (b) some anecdotal evidence that some caffeine users experience anxiety on waking up (i.e. in early withdrawal having not ingested overnight), although this could be due to other affects, e.g. alcohol hang-over effects for users in a caffeine-alcohol using cycle.)


    OTHER CORRELATIONS OF HIGH CAFFEINE INTAKE AND HIGH MENTAL ILL-HEALTH

    See Articles on this blog on;
    • Psychosis/Schizophrenia
    • Finland
    • US Military
    • Suicide rates in Western European and North American countries

    OTHER MENTAL HEALTH EFFECTS
      "Increased public education about potential health problems related to caffeine consumption is suggested, and further controls of caffeine in psychiatric settings are recommended."   http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/871104

      HIgh consumption of caffeine can itself produce effects similar to mental illness: 
      http://apt.rcpsych.org/content/11/6/432.full (the 3rd reply http://apt.rcpsych.org/content/11/6/432.abstract/reply# is also interesting) 
      http://www.livestrong.com/article/540592-caffeine-and-delusions/. 

      Mental ill-health effects can also be experienced due to other drugs which are being taken to counteract caffeine effects. For instance taking alcohol to dull the tension caused by caffeine; alcohol causes sleep disruption and depression.


      BENEFITS OF TAKING CAFFEINE ARE NOT AS GREAT AS BELIEVED

      "Consuming caffeine regularly does not appear to produce any net beneficial effects, based on the measures we examined." http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/148623.php

       We believe that most people have wrong views about the benefits they are gaining from taking caffeine. They are not noticing that;
      • their morning 'fatigue and grumpiness' before drinking coffee are not due to personality or fatigue, but are symptoms of caffeine drug withdrawal (after abstention overnight). (e.g. http://www.forbes.com/sites/travisbradberry/2012/08/21/caffeine-the-silent-killer-of-emotional-intelligence/)
      • the initial brief feeling of relief from stress and anxiety is more than net outweighed by increased anxiety for many hours later on (which may also lead to alcohol ingestion)
      • the initial 'energy boost' and 'caffeine high' they used to feel when taking caffeine is reduced over the long-term, as their bodies habituate to the drug. 
      • their physical energy through the day can be very changeable, with very low energy periods. (Exhaustion can result from being in 'fight-or-flight state for long periods due to being highly caffeineated, and sleep can be disrupted; http://www.naturalnews.com/012352.html#ixzz28CrsiFk9. Doctor quote: "You can always tell who the coffee drinkers are: they're the ones who are tired all the time.")  They may also experience other physical aches and pains. 
      • the impact of possible adverse personality effects caused by caffeine can be significant on their personal relationships (and their spiritual lives) through anger, tension, reduced humanity and ability to love, and sleep disruption. (e.g. the book 'Emotional Intelligence 2.0' apparently suggests that chronic caffeine consumption can lead to a decrease in emotional intelligence.)
      In a nutshell!; 
      http://www.theroasterie.com/about/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/drink-coffee-do-stupid-things-faster.jpg 

      A fun video! - notice how by 3.30 she is speeding up...
      http://www.howtogeek.com/129212/the-effects-of-caffeine-video/#comment-199195
      MANY PEOPLE EXIT, OR TRY TO EXIT, CAFFEINE
      56% of caffeine users report a desire or unsuccessful attempts to stop or reduce usage, and 14% do stop. (Substance Abuse: A comprehensive textbook" Juliano, Anderson, Griffiths, 2011).

      See e.g.;
      Both 2012 US presidential candidates were non-caffeine-takers. (Whilst one can be cynical about politicians, people who achieve this role are probably relatively highly effective in some ways.)


      WITHDRAWAL IS NOT EASY, BUT IS POSSIBLE
      Whilst withdrawal from caffeine is difficult and unpleasant, it is possible.

      A note on use of caffeine for self-medication.
      Many people take caffeine for self-medication; it may give a few precious minutes relief from their suffering. However in our view this is a lie; the net suffering, including the later anxiety that caffeine causes, outweigh the brief relief. Alternative self-medications, such as exercise, can be tried (see 'mindsets' below).

       Trigger motivations to withdraw:
      Factors that appear to finally trigger people to begin to attempt withdrawal are realisation and focus that caffeine is causing;
      - feelings of extreme fatigue, including feeling overtired upon waking in the morning (i.e. withdrawal from overnight non-caffeine).
      - increased anxiety; that exiting caffeine may reduce or stop my anxiety/GAD/panic disorder.
      - irritability, emotional highs and lows, and moodiness; personality impacts which are causing major hurt to me and to my loved ones.
      - poor quality of thinking; garbled and over-volatile.
      - day-to-day quality of life to be not as good as it could be; major damage to quality of life.
      - poor health; (a) body weight effects of milk/cream (if drink coffee that way), (b) teeth discolouring effects of coffee, (c) acne impact of caffeine.

      It is a good idea to write down your own motivation reasons, and set up a system that will regularly remind you of your reasons as you go through withdrawal.

      Methods:
      Cold turkey seems the most common method. 
      Some people reduce intake over a period before finally stopping. 
      Using substitute drugs does not seem to help. 
      An alternative approach is to increase dosage - so you are well and truly sick of the stuff and what it does to your brain - before going cold turkey.

      Common withdrawal experiences:
      - bad headaches for 2-5 days
      - feelings of strong anxiety and uncertainty for c.4 days, and then at a reduced but changeable level for another c.10 days; i.e. anxiety (GAD) goes up in the early stages of withdrawal
      - possible high emotional volatility on days 5-6
      - possible low/flaky energy for maybe 70 days (operate in 'float', 'blind way', without needing  
        the 'inner visibility check' of energy level that caffeine gives)
      - possible various physical aches and pains, for 30-90 days
      - possible sleep disruption, for 30-90 days
      - very strong temptation at times for c.40 days
      - possible continual temptation for a lifetime.
      - feel very, very good, when withdrawal is advanced. E.g. "I've been off caffeine for 30 days and feel better mentally and physically than I have since high school." http://coffeefaq.com/site/node/11

       For more on withdrawal methods;

       Beware 'hidden' caffeine 
      Note that decaff coffee is still significantly caffeinated.   http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061012185602.htm
      Other sources of caffeine are energy drinks, cola's, chocolate, non-cola soda, guarana, 'energised' oatmeal, weight-loss pills, pain relief pills, breath fresheners, etc. (see http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/12-surprising-sources-caffeine#0, and our links page).
      Read the labels of what you are ingesting!

       Successful sustained withdrawal may need stopping other drugs also e.g. alcohol.
      Testimonies show that some/many people find that to achieve sustained withdrawal may need withdrawal from other brian-barrier drugs e.g. alcohol, chocolate, maybe even sugar, etc..
      Having a 'clean' brain;
      (a) reduces temptations and up/down experiences, which means that both the needs and weakness opportunity for taking caffeine are reduced, 
      (b) gives very positive feelings of clarity, cleanness and happiness, that add to motivation to stay clean
      (c) enables progress on life in general, which again also adds to motivation to stay clean.

      Mindset suggestions for withdrawal include;
      • "timing: cease caffeine when it feels relatively right inside to do so; this may not be a logical time, but one when things just feel relatively right, when you feel right to 'catch the wave'. This may be for instance when you feel good and strong, or alternatively when you have been struck afresh by how much damage caffeine is doing to your and your loved ones lives.
      • the human brain is complex, and multi-faceted. Primitive drivers co-exist with rationality. Consciousness, and conscious determination, are only part of the story. This makes the 11th Commandment, Avoid Temptation, very important and powerful. Your human self can out-wit the primitive driver by not physically going near a coffee shop, meeting friends somewhere else, and not having coffee or coffee equipment in the home.
      • be aware this is a very fragile and subtle situation, and you could crack at any point
      • accept failures, and relapses, as stages in the learning journey; just accept, don't beat yourself up, and start again
      • vanity can be a strong motivator; think about whiter teeth, cleaner breath, no acne, being a nicer person!
      • do not say you are doing it for someone else; you have to do it for yourself
      • treat this as a withdrawal from addiction, e.g. http://www.spiritualriver.com/51-things-you-should-know-about-addiction-recovery/
      • consider using daily exercise (e.g. long runs, walks) (see no. 50 here; http://www.spiritualriver.com/51-things-you-should-know-about-addiction-recovery/)
      • you may hear yourself thinking lies, e.g. that you will have no energy, will die, etc; ignore; test it! think, even if so, I want to go through there
      • that you will remain in recovery, and at risk of temptation, for a lifetime."
      Advice for partners includes; 
      • "help him/her avoid temptation; make your own coffee when the user won't see, smell or hear it. when with him/her avoid even driving near coffee places. go someplace else for your trips.
      • do not react too much if his/her mood swings; anxiety, anger, fatigue, quiet, whatever; this is withdrawal, it will not last, just keep loving him/her.
      • don't criticise if he/she uses other drugs a bit more than usual in this phase e.g. alcohol, sugar.
      • find another hot drink he/she likes, e.g. fruit tea, and give it to him/her at the same times and as often or more often than he/she had coffee."
      Interestingly one therapist said to me; "some clients report perceived benefits of " coming off" high levels of daily caffeine and, I would say, even more often, their partners observe positive changes." It may be that caffeine users have poor self-awareness of the impact of the drug on them.


      DISCLAIMER

      This site expresses personal opinions only, in some cases with supporting links and in some cases not. These opinions should not be taken as factually correct, or be relied upon, used or otherwise acted upon in any way. No liability will be accepted for any results of reading or other use of this website.

      Posted by at 1 comment:

      Suicide rates correlation with coffee consumption


      We note a general correlation between coffee consumption and suicide rates in Western European and North American countries (sources, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_coffee_consumption_per_capita, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_suicide_rate#cite_note-1)


      South Korea has the highest suicide rate in the OECD (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_OECD_countries_by_suicide_rate), having more than doubled from 1999 to 2009 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-14784776).
      South Korean coffee consumption did not appear relatively high in 2009, at 1.8kg per person p.a. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_coffee_consumption_per_capita)., having grown strongly in the 1980s (http://blog.wolframalpha.com/category/socioeconomic/). South Korea's tea consumption was also not relatively high (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_consumption). (It is not known if South Koreans tendency to drink vending machine coffee (http://davidreport.com/201202/coffee-korea/) effects coffee consumption data).
      There has been a 10x increase in the number of coffee shops from 2006 to 2011 (http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/08/21/uk-korea-coffee-idINLNE87K00O20120821). This may imply that overall coffee consumption has increased markedly since 2009.

       If South Korea's coffee consumption has risen after the increase in suicide rate, this may imply that coffee's relationship with suicide rates is not causal, but co-incidental.

      Movements in Japan's suicide rate (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/Suicide-deaths-per-100000-trend.jpg)
      do not correlate with the big increase in 1970-85 in coffee imports (although coffee may have replaced other caffeine sources e.g. tea, and there may have been a co-incident reduction in social norms of suicide) (http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?hl=en&sa=X&tbo=d&rlz=1C5CHFA_enGB506GB506&biw=2560&bih=1155&tbm=isch&tbnid=NpWweScHxjJm2M:&imgrefurl=http://paradisocoffee.blogspot.com/2010/11/chinas-coffee-market-waiting-for.html&docid=xpchXwzIsm5YbM&imgurl=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_cgv3vP_vnSw/TNhTXdjN7XI/AAAAAAAAAAM/FVsD2Ls6cww/s1600/KeijiOhta_%2525E9%2525A1%2525B5%2525E9%25259D%2525A2_03.jpg&w=1600&h=1237&ei=W40XUcjELOuZ0QXOuoHIBg&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:25,s:0,i:166&iact=rc&dur=493&sig=104730183005075819911&page=1&tbnh=167&tbnw=254&start=0&ndsp=54&tx=172&ty=76)

      80% or more of suicides have a mental health component.



      Posted by at No comments:

      Monday, 30 July 2012

      US Military personnel in combat; High mental ill-health? and high caffeine intake?

      Recent media coverage has noted apparently high prevalence of mental ill-health (PTSD, depression, suicide) among US Military personnel who have been in combat situations.

      Consumption of caffeine by US military:

      1. Appears high;

      (a) in absolute terms

      Studies have shown average consumption levels among US Military personnel, not in combat, of:
      We suspect that military caffeine consumption may be much higher than these levels in combat situations due to (a) higher desired performance level, (b) higher stress, and (c) actual or anticipated sleep deprivation.
      (b) relative to average US consumption

      Measures of US average adult consumption have been between 120-250mg,
      http://www.foodinsight.org/Resources/Detail.aspx?topic=Fact_Sheet_Caffeine_and_Health
      http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0278691504001589
      http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK3985/table/a20015f31ttt00015/?report=objectonly
      http://www.ehowspace.com/how-much-caffeine-is-consumed-by-the-average-person.
      This 2004 study found, on average, caffeine consumers’ intakes were 193 mg caffeine per day (the average for the entire population would be lower as c.10% of the population do not consumer caffeine). http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S000282230401702X

       We believe current average consumption may now be higher, due to larger and stronger coffee servings, and growth of energy drinks and other caffeine sources. However we believe average levels probably remain below the military levels mentioned above, and particularly below likely combat usage.


      2. May have risen in recent years

      It seems likely that military personnel caffeine intake has increased in recent years, given
      The Army appears to have little sense of restraint or health concern in usage of caffeine by soldiers.
      http://www.aolnews.com/2010/11/30/military-looks-at-ways-to-give-soldiers-caffeine/
      (We also note recent increases in use by military personnel of prescription drugs, particularly pain-relievers (as downers after high caffeine use?); http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/ondcp/newsletters/ondcp_update_february_2010.pdf)


      3. Further observations: Alison Lighthall, 
      http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/jcr.2011.1200

      DISCUSSION

      Other facts may explain this correlation;
      •  past mental ill-health prevalence may have been equally high, but undiagnosed (although the measure of suicide rates appear higher)
      •  recent combat situations may have carried different stresses than those in the past. The goals may be more complex, and the enemy not easily identified or attacked (although these factors also applied to some previous conflicts)
      • caffeine may be being consumed as self-medication for mental ill-health caused by other factors.
      • use of other drugs by the US military has also increased strongly in recent years (e.g. ' there has been a 700% increase in the number of psychoactive drugs — antipsychotics, sedatives, stimulants and mood stabilizers — prescribed to our troops between 2005 and 2011 — despite a steady reduction in combat troop levels since 2008.' Richard Friedman, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/07/opinion/sunday/wars-on-drugs.html?ref=opinion&_r=2&)
      We should not expect a direct correlation between caffeine dosage and illness in individual cases, as some people are very sensitive to caffeine, and thus may not need a huge dose to be effected.

       However in our view it is strongly worth investigating whether caffeine is a key causal or exacerbating factor - and whether caffeine cessation would, after the withdrawal phase, reduce US military mental health suffering. 





      DISCLAIMER

      This site expresses personal opinions only, in some cases with supporting links and in some cases not. These opinions should not be taken as factually correct, or be relied upon, used or otherwise acted upon in any way. No liability will be accepted for any results of reading or other use of this website.



      Posted by at No comments:

      The caffeine industries; influence on media and research?


      THE CAFFEINE INDUSTRIES, AND MEDIA AND RESEARCH FUNDING


      Whilst avoiding conspiracy theories, we do need to remember that caffeine products are supplied by large and profitable industries that may be active in influencing public opinion and research around us.
      Internet searches:

       Searches for coffee information bring up organisations such as the below, which appear to make consistently caffeine-positive comments, and to be funded mainly or totally by coffee-involved companies and/or countries. 

       Scientific research funding:

      Journalism: 

       Media organisations often publish caffeine-positive articles, including comment by caffeine industry funded consultants, perhaps because balancing caffeine-negative sources are not available.
      http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/11/the-case-for-drinking-as-much-coffee-as-you-like/265693/ 
        

       Documents and books:

      An example of documents with apparently neutral titles, but funded by the caffeine industries, is "Coffee and Health: New Research Findings" (http://dev.ico.org/event_pdfs/proceedings.pdf), which 
      • includes only caffeine-positive research, and 
      • states "Grateful thanks go to ICO, CafÈ de Colombia, Illy Coffee, ColcafÈ de Colombia for providing financial support for the preparation of this book."




       RESEARCH DISCUSSION

      One recent piece of research that gained wide media coverage ( http://www.natap.org/2012/newsUpdates/051712_01.htm - a study of over 400,000 people, with the cohort excluding people with prior diseases) concluded that coffee increased longevity. 
      However the basic finding was "In age-adjusted models, the risk of death was increased among coffee drinkers." 
      The writers then applied an adjustment for tobacco-smoking, which reversed the result; this seems questionably simplistic and subjective. 
      Furthermore, in the analysis in this research between caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee (Fig 1), the results seem roughly equal for men, and decaff gives better results than caff for women.
      Perhaps this study should be retitled "Warm beverage consumption linked to lower risk of death" or 'coffee/decaff neutral for men, decaff better for women'...

      Other research may be distorted by very ill people (e.g. near to death) being on extreme feeding patterns which include not taking in normal foods (such as coffee); the inclusion of such people could bias the overall health results of such studies towards coffee.

       The deeper point is that caffeine may have some physical health benefits, but sufferers should be made aware of all possible health effects, including mental health. 

       For many people the benefits of reduction or elimination of anxiety and other mental health effects will strongly outweigh possible positive physical effects. 
      APPENDIX

      Other caffeine industry bodies include
      • http://www.ico.org/ed_e.asp  International Coffee Association. "The Organization is financed by contributions from Member Governments who pay a contribution based upon their average coffee exports or imports as a percentage of total exports or imports." The Executive Director's CV includes Director of the Coffee Department in the Brazilian government, Secretary‑General of the Association of Coffee Producing Countries and Secretary‑General of the Brazilian Federation of Coffee Exporters.
      • http://www.ncausa.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=1  National Coffee Association USA - trade association.
      • http://www.britishcoffeeassociation.org "The BCA provides the representative voice for all the UK coffee trade and industry and promotes and safeguards members’ interests..."
      Other bodies of interest are

      World production of coffee has grown from 113m bags in 2000/1 to 131m bags in 2011/12 (http://www.ico.org/new_historical.asp).



      DISCLAIMER

      This site expresses personal opinions only, in some cases with supporting links and in some cases not. These opinions should not be taken as factually correct, or be relied upon, used or otherwise acted upon in any way. No liability will be accepted for any results of reading or other use of this website.


      Posted by at 7 comments:

      For people unable to exit caffeine


      HOW CAN CAFFEINE BE TAKEN FOR BEST POSITIVE EFFECT?


      (a) take caffeine in small, frequent doses. 

      http://scienceblogs.com/developingintelligence/2008/02/11/optimally-wired-a-caffeine-use/


      We feel this may fit with Warren Buffet's regular drinking of Cherry Coke through the day (only 34mg of caffeine per can, c.f. 150mg in a Starbucks Grande Cappuccino). We also feel this may be very hard for many users to do.

      This would also fit with the thesis that the anxiety experienced by some caffeine users on waking is due to early caffeine withdrawal (having not ingested overnight), and could be avoided by frequent ingestion overnight or immediate ingestion on waking.


       (b) choose appropriate cognitive tasks whilst being effected by caffeine; speed not depth of thought.

      http://scienceblogs.com/developingintelligence/2008/02/11/optimally-wired-a-caffeine-use/

      The body habituates to caffeine, depriving the user of any 'caffeine high' or energy boost if used continuously. Thus logically a person seeking the best 'highs' should take a break from caffeine for as long as possible, to de-habituate the body before re-starting ingestion. During that break they may re-evaluate their intake desire.
      (c) take breaks, to maximise the high when you return

      "I do, in fact, take a break for a day, or a few days, max, once in a while to reduce the tolerance effect and feel again the effect of coffee at lower doses."

       "If/when you go back to coffee after a break you can expect a whirlwind of mental activity and new ideas will fizz up. So, don't waste the opportunity: drink alone and have a notebook ready to jot them down! Somewhat countercultural advice, I know. I agree that getting 'high', as well as stimulating and mixing ideas, does seem to impair our judgement about them. That's why I suggest writing them down. They may then be criticised at leisure to see if anything valuable remains, because, of course, the truth of an idea depends on its content and not upon its source or the mood the source happened to be in!"



      DISCLAIMER

      This site expresses personal opinions only, in some cases with supporting links and in some cases not. These opinions should not be taken as factually correct, or be relied upon, used or otherwise acted upon in any way. No liability will be accepted for any results of reading or other use of this website.

      Posted by at No comments:
      Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)