Caffeine, is it Helping or Hurting America?

This article discusses the affects caffeine has on several aspects of human health. These included toxicity, cardiovascular effects (arrhythmia, heart rate, cholesterol and BP), bone/calcium balance, behavior, and reproductive and developmental effects. It also discussing the affect caffeine intake has on children and reproductive-aged women.

Central Idea: Caffeine can be found in many places and comes in many forms. It can major effects on our body and we can experience major withdrawal symptoms.

Druggists have classified caffeine as a stimulant, that can give energize people. Caffeine is also psychoactive, which means that it affects your central nervous system. Caffeine can have some unwanted side effects such as: blood vessels getting smaller which makes it harder to pump blood throughout the body. Many people have medical conditions that can be made worse if they are consuming caffeine. Caffeine has been thought to cause certain types of cancer, thought it haven’t been proven. But the most serious cancer link to caffeine came from one study reported in 1981 that showed people who consumed caffeine had an increased risk of developing pancreatic cancer. Being psychoactive drug caffeine can alter a person’s mood and change their behavior. Caffeine can affect the reproductive and nervous system of men as well as woman. Studies have shown that drinking caffeine can highly increases heart rate and levels of cholesterol.

Ann Pietrangelo of Healthline.com lists these organs as the digestive and excretory system, circulatory and respiratory systems, skeletal and muscular systems, and the reproductive system. In the digestive and excretory systems, caffeine increases the acid in your stomach causing heartburn or upset stomach. Since it’s a diuretic, it tells your body to get rid of water. Nausea and vomiting can be triggered from caffeine withdraw. Caffeine overdose can cause excessive thirst, diarrhea, and increased urination. The circulatory and respiratory system can make your blood pressure go up. People with irregular heart rhythms, the caffeine can make the heart work harder than normal. Large amounts of caffeine consumption can interfere with absorption and metabolism of calcium. This can lead to osteoporosis. With the reproductive system, Pietrangelo points out that caffeine travels within the bloodstream and will cross into the placenta. This can cause a baby’s heart rate and metabolism to increase. Caffeine in large amounts can slow fetal growth and increase the risk of miscarriages. Painful lumps in the breast (fibrocystic disease) can also be a symptom of caffeine. Along with all the adverse side effects of caffeine, there are some health benefits when it’s taken in

Caffeine has become an integral part of most Americans lives, making it “America's most popular drug by far” (Brian). Most of the country will enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning or a few sodas during the day. Although most of the world’s population consumes caffeine in either coffee, tea, chocolate, energy drinks or sodas, the majority of those people are undereducated about the drug. There are many drawbacks to the drug, but also many benefits.

These Paleolithic humans may have chewed caffeine containing leaves, seeds, roots, and bark which caused increased alertness (Weinberg). The history of caffeinated beverages dates back to 2737 B.C. in China (IFICF 3). According to legend, a man named Shennong discovered tea while sitting under a Camellia tree with a pot of boiled water. When dried leaves from the tree fell into the boiled water, he decided to take a sip and was delighted by how revitalizing it was (“The History of Tea”). Coffee originated much later in 575 A.D. in Africa (IFICF 3). On an Ethiopian plateau where red coffee berries grew, a man named Kaldi found that his goats became energized and restless after eating from a particular tree. When these berries were brought to the head of the local monastery, he made an energizing drink out of them. News of the berries spread throughout the monastery and eventually to the Arabian Peninsula (NCA). There, coffee was cultivated and public coffee houses, or qahveh khaneh, were created, turning coffee into a social drink (NCA). European travelers brought back stories of coffee and the mysterious beverage spread to Europe by the 17th century. Initially regarded as "the bitter invention of Satan", coffee was very controversial. However, it was soon approved by Pope Clement VIII, and coffee's influence grew (NCA). Coffee houses became the centers of socialization in Europe and coffee turned

Caffeine has become a staple in many developed nations. As a stimulant, caffeine provides a viable solution to many individuals maintaining a busy lifestyle. Particularly in the developed world, individuals tend to work long hours, which creates vast amounts of stress. To help alleviate much of the fatigue that accompanies a busy lifestyle, many individuals elect to drink caffeinated beverages. These beverages range from typical colas to coffee, to energy drinks. Each has its own concentration of caffeine, or energy inducing ingredients. Through the consumption of these beverages, many individuals develop a habit of dependency. Those who consume, often do so in large quantities. Large amounts of caffeine can potentially be harmful to an individual's health when consumed vigorously. Below is a chart from the Specialty Coffee Association of America indicating consumption within America. According to the data compiled in the chart, 172 million Americans consumed coffee on a daily basis.

It affects many body symptoms causing serious health problems. It mainly affects the central nervous system, increasing the level of dopamine, and epinephrine causing a chemical rush in the brain. It also affects the gastrointestinal tract, the cardiac system, muscular system and the renal system. Caffeine can increase the risk of developing cancer or osteoporosis or cause hypertension, hyperactivity, or hypertension in muscles. Caffeine is a drug in the body, but is rules “safe” now considering it a hidden

There are many foods and drinks with caffeine found in them. For example, caffeine can be found in certain drinks such as, “Coffee, tea, caffeinated soda, and energy drinks. Some certain caffeinated soft drinks are Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Sunkist, and Mountain Dew. Also some energy drinks that caffeine may be found in are Redbull, Full Throttle, and Monster.” (Caffeine, para 2, 2015). Also, another example of sources of caffeine is that caffeine can be found in food, such as, “Caffeine is found in chocolate.” (Gavin, para 3, 2014). However, caffeine is not only in foods and drinks, it can also be found in medicines. For instance, Caffeine helps people with many medical issues, “Caffeine is sometimes consumed by many adults in order to kickstart medicine taken before hand. It improves the effect of many medications and is used for headaches or migraines.” (Bryant, para 21, 2015). In addition, caffeine can help a human with other things, “Caffeine that is treated with a citrate of potassium or sodium, can help breathing in premature babies. Also, it can help some children that suffer breathing problems, by helping them breath better.” (Bryant, para 20, 2015). So, basic sources of caffeine are coffee, tea, caffeinated soft drinks, chocolate, and

Caffeine is a pharmacological agent, a drug, which can lead to physical dependence if people use it on a daily basis. It has been reported that after only a week of daily caffeine consumption, people experience side effects such as, headaches, fatigue, decreased alertness and drowsiness, when they try to stop their consumption (Evans & Griffiths, 1999).

Many other things that are consumed along with the food or beverages that contain caffeine can lead to health problems. An example would be that most Americans consume many drinks and foods with caffeine in them but the caffeine is not causing the health problems necessarily. This is because Americans consume things like soda and chocolate along with many other unhealthy foods and beverages that all lead to obesity and if not properly proportioned and put with the right amount of daily activity it can lead to some serious health problems. One can say the same as with foods, caffeine is good in moderation along with the right diet and exercise. Another downside to consuming the drinks that contain caffeine is that the sugar in a lot of these drinks causes an increase in blood sugar

Thesis Statement: Caffeine is something that almost everyone has consumed and some people are even addicted to, it has negative and positive effects on one’s health.

When larger amounts of caffeine (over 500 mg per day) are ingested over long periods of time, they can cause sleep problems, depression and digestion issues

This article was loaded with information and references to studies done by doctors all showing how great caffeine can be for you. I never realized that we could actually help ourselves prevent common diseases just by doing something as simple as having a cup of coffee a day, which is quite enjoyable too. I knew I was not very educated in the subject so it wasn’t very hard to change my mind. I was only basing my beliefs off of common misconceptions but am extremely glad I got to read into the matter. I do believe caffeine is good for us, in moderation of course, but absolutely good for us. I wouldn’t tell everyone they need to start having caffeine right now if they want to be healthy, but if I see someone drinking it I’ll be sure to point out the little facts about how caffeine can improve our

One part of the human body that too much consumption of caffeine can affect negatively the your heart. Caffeine speeds up your brain cells, which speeds up your heart beat in the process. Too much caffeine will also raise your blood pressure. Caffeine using adults were polled on their stress levels given a 1 to 5 rating, with 5 being the most stressful. With each stress rating, each adult averaged a 1.7/0.4 mm Hg in blood pressure, and 1.8 beats per minute more in heart rate than adults in the lower stress rating (Lane, J.D., 2002). With further testing, they found that stress level and caffeine went hand in hand, with the highest caffeine users being the ones with 5 stress ratings. This study showed that consuming caffeinated beverages raises your blood pressure and heart rate by a considerable amount. In the same study as above, they used 500 mg of caffeine (close to 4 cups of coffee) to see how much it raised a person’s blood pressure throughout a single day. On average a person’s blood pressure was 4 mm Hg higher during than day than on a normal