Caffeine
Way too much coffee. But if it weren't for the coffee, I'd have no identifiable personality whatsoever. ~David Letterman
How much caffeine do you consume a day? It may be more than you think. Some sweets and over-the-counter medications have caffeine (note Excedrin at the top of the chart below.) Sunkist Orange soda has more caffeine than Pepsi or Coke.
The MayoClinc says most people can handle 200-300 milligrams a day although there are individuals that are affected by as little as one cup of coffee, 100 mg. At levels of 500-600 mg/day you may see the following side effects:
· Headaches
· Irritability
· Anxiety
· Nervousness
· Restlessness
· Insomnia
· Nausea or other gastrointestinal problems
· Muscle tremors
· Fast or irregular heartbeat
Caffeine can be addictive. As the brain gets used to the drug, it takes ever more caffeine for the same energy “boost”. Caffeine withdrawal results once a person stops consuming caffeine. Withdrawal symptoms are consistent with other drugs, but without the life-threatening severity of alcohol or Valium withdrawal. Caffeine withdrawal typically begins within 24 hours and can last for a week or more with these symptoms:
· Headaches
· Irritability
· Anxiety
· Fatigue
Ironic huh – the top three symptoms can result from too much caffeine or too little.
Product | Size in Oz. | Total Caffeine in mg |
Excedrin, Extra Str, | 2 tablets | 130 |
Mountain Dew Game Fuel | 20 | 120 |
Brewed coffee | 8 | 60-120 |
Double espresso | 2 | 45-100 |
Snapple Elements | 18 | 108 |
Ben & Jerry's Coffee Fudge Frozen Yogurt | 8 | 85 |
Red Bull | 8.5 | 80 |
Instant coffee | 8 | 70 |
Tea - black | 8 | 45-60 |
Mountain Dew | 12 | 55 |
Lipton Iced Teas | 20 | 50 |
TaB | 12 | 47 |
Diet Coca Cola | 12 | 45 |
RC Cola | 12 | 43 |
Sunkist Orange Soda | 12 | 41-42 |
Dr. Pepper | 12 | 41 |
Pepsi | 12 | 38 |
Coke Classic | 12 | 35 |
Dark Chocolate bar | 1.45 | 31 |
A&W Cream Soda | 12 | 29 |
Barq's Root Beer | 12 | 22 |
Tea - green | 8 | 20 |
Tea - white | 8 | 15 |
Chocolate Bar | 1.55 | 9 |
Chocolate milk | 8 | 5 |
Hot Chocolate | 8 | 5 |
Decaf coffee | 8 | 1-5 |
Herbal Tea | 8 | 0 |
7-up, Fanta, Fresca, Sprite | 12 | 0 |
Yoo-Hoo Chocolate | 8 | 0 |
Bottom Line
Use the chart above get a perspective on the caffeine strength of common items. Suppose you want to set a limit of 100mg per day. That would mean a limit of 1 coffee, 3 Cokes, 4 Root Beers, 11 Milk Chocolate bars or 20 glasses of chocolate milk.
Resources
http://coffeetea.about.com/library/blcaffeine.htm
http://www.energyfiend.com/the-caffeine-database
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/caffeine/AN01211
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/caffeine/NU00600
http://www.myaddiction.com/education/articles/caffeine_addiction.html
Labels: Addictions, Caffeine, Coffee, drugs, Health, Soda drinks
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