Should Teenagers Be Allowed To Have Caffeine?
Did you know that 1 teaspoon of caffeine powder is equal to 33 Redbull beverages and 14 Venti frappuccinos from Starbucks (Crouch)? It has become increasingly clear that caffeine may not be safe for teenagers, even in small doses. Caffeine acts as a stimulant and is found in medicines and pain relievers that are used to help treat migraine headaches. But in recent years, more and more products targeted for teens have a large amount of caffeine and are advertised as energy boosters, when they are not. We can not deny the evidence that teenagers should not be exposed to caffeine because of the dangerous short and long term effects on health, it can cause abnormal sleep patterns, and many studies and
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Caffeine is a drug that is naturally produced in the leaves and seeds of many plants. It can also be produced artificially and is sometimes added to certain drinks and foods to give them an extra boost. Caffeine is defined as a drug because it stimulates the central nervous system, causing higher levels of alertness. It is commonly found in chocolate, tea, coffee and many soft drinks. Teenagers usually consume most of their caffeine from sodas and energy drinks. Caffeine is not stored in the body, but you may feel its effects for up to seven hours (University Health Service). The artificially produced products are advertised to teenagers as energy boosts and ways to increase your alertness, when in reality, caffeine is a drug that should not be used as a way to finish your English paper that you waited until the last minute to write. In moderation, caffeine does not have long term effects, but the amounts that teenagers are consuming is unhealthy and could lead to many potential health …show more content…
These short term effects can include difficulty sleeping, increased heart rate and sometimes an increased blood pressure. A major long term effect could include dehydration which is the loss of water in the body. Since caffeine causes a chemical reaction that blocks adenosine in the brain, teenagers often have trouble sleeping because they cannot shut their brain off. In other words, they feel physically tired but, are not able to go to sleep. Finally, teenagers like Logan Stiner prove the studies (like the one conducted by NASA) to be true. His case was extreme, but a real indication of caffeine’s deadly effects. In retrospect, even small amounts of caffeine should not be given to teeagers. If your teenager likes caffeinated coffee or sodas, try 7-Up, Mug Root Beer, or Sprite which have no caffeine to affect your kids. They still have the sugary taste without the harmful side effects. Caffeine is a drug and teenagers should understand that getting addicted to caffeine could be just as serious as marijuana or cocaine. So prevent your teenager from drinking caffeine, and stop them from becoming one of the 68 million Americans who drinks 3 cups of coffee a
Caffeine is found in many plant species, where it acts as a natural pesticide. It is found most commonly in cocoa, tea and coffee, but is also artificially added to some soft drinks such as cola to act as a flavour enhancer. When consumed by humans, caffeine works as a stimulant causing amounts of released neurotransmitters to be increased. High use of caffeine has been related with raised blood pressure, restlessness, insomnia and anxiety which, in the long term, can lead to heart and circulation problems.
Caffeine is a wildly use drug in today’s society. Caffeine is a methylated xanthine which acts as a mild central nervous system stimulant (MS & RL, 2001). It is a stimulant which acts upon the central nervous system and increases alertness, wakefulness and restlessness and it increases the release of catecholamine from renal medullar (Fernandez, 2016; Collines, 2007). It is present in many beverages. Caffeine is found in coffee, tea, soft drinks, products containing chocolate (cocoa) and some medication (Collines, 2007). It is used as a cardiac and respiratory stimulant (Collines, 2007).Caffeine is the most frequently ingested pharmacologically active substance in the world (Collines, 2007).
About 80% of American adults consume 200 mg of caffeine a day. “A 12-oz. (tall) coffee from Starbucks will run you about 260 mg, while a 14-oz. Dunkin’ Donuts coffee contains 178 mg.” The daily intake of caffeine differed between products; one should always check the amount before consumption. There are no limits on how many energy drinks a person can purchase, which make it easy to abuse. Especially in younger children the addiction rate outstandingly high. Which may lead to other drug usage in the future and the committal dependence on stronger drugs.
Caffeine is a psychoactive drug and potentially deadly in large amounts, especially for adolescents (Hershorin, Lipschulz, Schaechter & Seifert, 2011). Caffeine is one the most common energy drink ingredients and one of the most widely consumed substances in the world. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), caffeine is a chemical stimulant compound found in various plants that acts as a central nervous system stimulant. Caffeine is produced naturally and artificially. Caffeine is found mainly in coffee, tea, soda, chocolate, energy drinks and some over-the-counter medications. Due to the increasing demands placed on teenagers today, caffeine is becoming more prevalent in adolescents. While the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends children have no more than 100 mg of caffeine a day due to unknown medical conditions, the fact a teenager’s brain is still in a developmental stage, and the importance sleep plays in the developing brain. Table 1, shows the amount of caffeine for the energy drinks in this report. (Note-this does not include the caffeine from blend ingredients)
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.
In the fast paced life of a college student, it is not uncommon for tasks and due dates to quickly pile up, demanding more hours studying and less hours sleeping. Any amount of sleep deprivation can lead students to consume caffeinated beverages, particularly coffee, to help them stay awake and get their work done. According to the University of Michigan (2015), Caffeine acts in the body by effecting the central nervous system and may start to
Caffeine is a natural product that is extracted from the raw fruit of coffee plants over sixty creased alertness. Caffeine gives most people a temporary energy boost and elevates mood..species to be exact. kola nuts, cocoa, yerba maté, guarana berries, coffee beans and teas contain this. Caffeine is rapidly absorbed in about 30 to 60 minutes in our bodies after ingestion. Caffeine is defined as a drug because it stimulates the central nervous system, causing increased alertness. Caffeine gives most people a temporary energy boost and elevates mood.caffeine can also be in things like over the counter medications, and pain relievers.
Introduction: (bring a monster, sip it) alright. How many of you here drink coffee, energy drinks, or soda daily? Well we aren’t alone; according to Villanova Health Service about 90 percent of Americans consume caffeine in one way or another every single day.
According to “the American Academy of Paediatrics” it is advice not take energy drinks especially for young children and teens. They pointed out that since the main ingredient of energy drinks is caffeine it causes high blood pressure and sleeping disorders. And children and teens with existing health problems can contribute to abnormal heart rates and increase blood sugar especially with those that have diabetes (Cold et al., 2017).
Michele L. Pettit, MPH, Ph.D., reports that, “Participants with higher levels of perceived stress also revealed higher averages for days per week during the past 30 days on which energy drinks were consumed. Lastly, participants characterized by higher levels of perceived stress reported larger numbers of energy drinks consumed on any occasion during the past 30 days.” (Pettit 5). Energy drinks, drinks with a high caffeine level, is consume by many teenagers to improve their critical thinking or physical performance. There is no age limit to this supplement, so teens can get this drink any time without precaution. There is an interrelationship between caffeine and stress: because teens want to feel more alert, focus into school work, and activities, they would more likely to consume this popular drink, after the effect of caffeine reduce, teens would want to continue to consume more of this drink to maintain the same level of alertness. When it’s close to final projects or exams, this situation would repeat as long as teens are drawn into this drink, create more stress, lack of sleep, cannot concentrate, and poor grade. It can also affect their critical thinking, and decision making, because the side effects of this drink, which can lead to suicidal thoughts if the stress level is not
Many people start their day with a cup of coffee. According to John Hopkins, “Around 90 percent of Americans consume caffeine every single day in one form or another”. It seems if we need a wakeup call to our morning, many of us grab caffeine to give us that extra boost of energy. How much caffeine is ok for the average person each day? The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee from Healthgov.com recommend 3-5 eight ounce cups of coffee per day or up to 400 milligrams per day of caffeine for the average healthy consumer. Caffeine is a CNS stimulant drug known as trimethylamine. Caffeine is naturally found in chocolate, coffee, cocoa beans, kola nuts, and tea. It is also added to drinks such as soda and
Even though I do not possess a caffeine produced disease, I have experienced the consequences of drinking high amounts of caffeine which includes anxiety, insomnia, gastritis, colitis, mild tremors, and irritability. Although small quantities of caffeine may not substantially cause serious problems, if consumed in high quantities (>400mg.), it might worse the conditions of an anxiety disorder, diarrhea, bipolar disorder, bleeding disorders, heart conditions, diabetes, glaucoma, osteoporosis, epilepsy, irritable bowel syndrome, and high blood pressure (webmd, 2009). In addition to the consequences of caffeine mentioned above, new studies have linked caffeine to psychotic symptoms (Grimson, 2011). At the moment, I do not suffer any of the diseases previously mentioned, but I do have a family history of diabetes, depression, and anxiety disorders. Thus, the predisposition to any of the risks of a high caffeine intake increases. In summary, the consequences of consuming high doses of caffeine vary from person to person, and it may elicit different effects, which may range from a mild change of mood to a complex psychotic break; therefore I considered quitting caffeine an optimum choice for a healthier
One on the beneficial effects on caffeine, two the negative effects, and finally on trends in caffeine consumption
Caffeine is demarcated as a drug because it arouses the central nervous system, causing increased alertness. Caffeine gives most people a temporary energy boost and elevates mood. That’s why everyone generally uses it for plenty of reasons mostly dealing with work or school. Some people use caffeinated energy drinks to improve their endurance while playing sports or to dance for long periods. That’s just the beginning, these are the things that caffeine does to the brain, heart, fetus, and body.
Caffeine has many negative effects on humans, such as increased heart rate (Lane, J.D., 2002), depression (Goldstein, 2008), and addiction to this “drug.” You may be asking yourself, “What is caffeine?” Well, caffeine is actually a stimulant (Barone, Roberts, 2008) that is found in beverages such as tea, coffee, and soft drinks. In fact, caffeine is the highest grossing and most used stimulant in the United States (Barone, Roberts, 2008). It is estimated that 85% of adults living in the United States consume caffeine on a daily basis (Barone, Roberts, 2008). That means for every 100 adults, 85 of them have had a drink that contained caffeine on any given day. One reason caffeine is so widely available compared to other stimulants is