Effects of Caffeine

I recently experienced insomnia the night before a day-long class and was exhausted the next day. On my way to class I popped into a PAX and grabbed a small cup o' joe to give me energy... now, I stopped drinking coffee regularly last May and have had a cup here and there because I genuinely enjoy the flavor. I must tell you, the effects of this one small cup of coffee were awful! It did not wake me up as I had hoped, but rather jacked my nerves up to full-speed ahead while my brain remained sleepy... so while I was falling asleep in class I was fidgeting like a maniac. The people behind me must have thought I was crazy!

What are your experiences with coffee? If you drink it everyday, are you willing to experiment what it is like not to live your life chained to your morning cup of coffee?

A lot people have said to me "oh, I can never give it up, I need it." No, you don't. You are addicted to it, and addictions make us think we need the object of our addiction. Coffee puts a lot of stress on your adrenal system. For those of you who think you need it everyday think for a moment... do you really need it?? If you are a normal, healthy individual there is no reason for you to need coffee to wake you up in the morning. You are just accustomed to drinking it every morning. Since I've stopped drinking coffee I find I wake up just fine, the same as I used to if I drink a nice cup of water or a cup of water with a packet of EmergenC in it.

There are cultural customs associated with drinking coffee... coffee with friends at the local coffee house, coffee on a lazy Sunday morning with your significant other, etc. You can replace coffee with tea. At first I was like "but I like sitting on the couch with my cup of coffee in the morning before getting ready for work..." Then I realized I could sleep an extra 20 minutes if I didn't drink coffee.

Cutting coffee can be tricky because withdrawal is no fun. BUT, if you drink many cups a day, start by reducing the amount you drink. If you drink 3 cups a day, go down to 2 for a couple of weeks, then reduce to 1 cup. When you are ready, drink half caf/half decaf for a while, then move to a cup of tea... this if what I did and really helped reduce withdrawals.

It can't hurt to experiment... see how you feel when you don't have that addiction. You can always go back... and it isn't like you can never have coffee again... And you may find you like not being chained to the coffee pot or the local coffee house.

Also, I would like to address the issue of some studies touting coffee's benefits... consider the source. Who is funding these studies? Most likely, the coffee industry. More on all this in a later post! Please post any experiences you have with coffee or caffeine. Be well!

The Food of Gods

Not only is February Heart Health month, but February 14th is Valentines Day. At first glance one might not think the two go together, but they do. How? The sinful answer… dark chocolate! I love chocolate. I don’t need an excuse to eat it, but after finding out it can be good for your heart some of my guilt for overindulging was eased.

The Greek botanical word for chocolate, Theobroma Cacao literally means, “food of the Gods”. I’m inclined to agree with this definition. For more on this article, click here. Please post your thoughts! Happy Valentines Day!