Are you wondering exactly much caffeine is in your cup of coffee. Trying to cut down a bit, or at least know how much caffeine you are ingesting each day with your morning cup of java or afternoon pick-me-up triple espresso Latte?
A typical cup of coffee contains approximately one hundred and twelve milligrams of caffeine. There is a bit less caffeine in a shot of espresso - a typical espresso shot includes about ninety milligrams of caffeine.
How much caffeine in coffee?This is important to keep in mind when making any espresso drinks.
While these numbers are typical, the amount of caffeine in coffee can vary considerably based upon multiple factors. The primary factors affecting caffeine content of coffee and espresso include the genetics of the coffee bean varietal, the particular roasting given to the coffee beans and how the coffee is brewed.
If the coffee beans being used are Arabica coffee beans then one cup of coffee that is approximately one hundred and twenty milliliters of coffee, if it is drip-brewed, will have about 112 milligrams of caffeine.
A 30 milliliter Espresso shot using Arabica coffee will have an estimated ninety milligrams of caffeine.
How Does Roasting Affect Coffee Caffeine Content?
When coffee is roasted it decreases the overall amount of caffeine in the coffee, but not significantly enough for it to be a serious way to reduce your caffeine intake.
Caffeine did not undergo significant degradation with only 5.4% being lost under severe roasting.
Source
Choose your roast based on your personal preferences, not based on caffeine content.
Roasting does have an effect on chlorogenic acid content - possibly what contributes to many of coffee's purported health effects, but another study also shows that caffeine is relatively unaffected by roast level.
On the other hand the Robusta coffee plant varietal has significantly more caffeine than the Arabica varietal. Robusta coffee beans are used primarily for espresso blends and to make instant coffee.
How Caffeine Metabolizes in the Human Body
Once a person consumes caffeine the body starts to metabolize it and this takes place in the person's liver. The result is three different metabolites. These three metabolites include paraxanthine (84%), theobromine (12%) and theophylline (4%).
In the first 45 minutes after consumption of the caffeine it is likely absorbed by the stomach and small intestine and begins to spread throughout the tissues of the human body.
Caffeine's Classification by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Considered safe for human consumption by the FDA, caffeine is classified as a food substance with multiple uses.
All About Caffeine in Coffee - Investigating the Side Effects of Caffeine and the Symptoms of Withdrawal from Caffeine continued:
Caffeine is a stimulant and is known scientifically as a xanthine alkaloid. When it is isolated from its source it is a crystalline white substance and is very bitter.
How does caffeine affect the human body?
Caffeine affects the human body by creating chemical changes in the human brain with a whole variety of effects including an enhanced alertness and energy level.
The way this is enhanced energy and alertness is achieved by the chemical caffeine is that the caffeine pretends, or mimics, another compound which is called adenosine.
The caffeine then binds on to the adenosine receptors in the brain with the effect of halting the true adenosine from doing its job which normally would be to slow down the body's nerve impulses and bring a very sleepy feeling to the person, a natural drowsiness that is warded off by the effects of caffeine.
Yes, some drugs may have an enhanced effectiveness when affected by caffeine. For example, some headache drugs include caffeine in their contents in order to help the effectiveness. This may be related to the vasodilating effects of caffeine.
Caffeine may be used in combination with ergotamine to treat cluster headaches and migraines. Some people prefer to use caffeine to overcome the sleepy qualities they feel when taking antihistamines.
Caffeine doesn't specifically, but coffee does.
However, some people who have shown to be at high risk for liver disease have been shown to have less severe liver injury associated with increasing caffeine consumption. This may include people with obesity, hemochromatosis and alcoholisms. [source]
Because of this, people who drink coffee but want to quit caffeine may want to look into decaf coffee instead of cutting out coffee entirely, so that they can continue to benefit from its health protecting properties.
Yes, some studies completed on ex vivo hair follicles have shown that caffeine may decrease hair growth suppression in vitro due to testosterone. In this regard caffeine may be a potential therapeutic agent in Androgenic alopecia, and caffeine has been added by some companies to their soap and shampoos.
Caffeine is found in nature in a wide array of plants, and it is found in plant fruits as well as plant leaves. This includes: cocoa beans, tea leaves, coffee beans and kola nuts. Less common sources are yaupon holly, guaryusa, yerba mate and guarana berries.
Caffeine often serves to help the plant by working as a natural pesticide against harmful predators on the plant such as insects.
What Products Contain Caffeine, and How Much?
A tablet of Excedrin contains about sixty-five milligrams of caffeine while a regular strength caffeine tablet has about one hundred milligrams of caffeine. There are two hundred milligrams of caffeine in an extra-strength caffeine tablet.
Another example of a common product with plenty of caffeine in it is chocolate. There are about ten milligrams of caffeine in an average milk chocolate bar. Dark chocolate, by comparison, may have about 30 milligrams of caffeine.
There are some dark chocolate bars that have as much as 160 milligrams of caffeine so it can vary considerably by the type and the quality of the chocolate.
Six ounces of a typical green tea will contain about thirty milligrams of caffeine while the very same amount of black tea will have about fifty milligrams of caffeine.
Amount of Caffeine in Coffee continued: You will get about thirty-four milligrams of caffeine from 12 ounces of Coke while a Mountain Dew will give you a whopping 54 milligrams of caffeine. A Red Bull energy drink has about eighty milligrams of caffeine while a Monster energy drink has about 160 milligrams of caffeine.
Withdrawal from Caffeine and Human Tolerance To Caffeine
People who consistently consume caffeine will gradually adapt to the continuous presence of the chemical in their body by increasing their overall number of adenosine receptors in their central nervous system. This occurs since caffeine functions as an antagonist to the receptors in the central nervous system for the neurotransmitter adenosine.
Tolerance adaptation to caffeine has the effect over time of reducing the chemical's stimulatory effects. These adaptive responses to caffeine also have the effect of making the person more sensitive to adenosine, and thus when the intake of caffeine is reduced then the adenosine's natural physiological effects will create withdrawal symptoms.
Of 49 symptom categories identified, the following 10 fulfilled validity criteria: headache, fatigue, decreased energy/activeness, decreased alertness, drowsiness, decreased contentedness, depressed mood, difficulty concentrating, irritability, and foggy/not clearheaded. In addition, flu-like symptoms, nausea/vomiting, and muscle pain/stiffness were judged likely to represent valid symptom categories.
In experimental studies, the incidence of headache was 50% and the incidence of clinically significant distress or functional impairment was 13%. Typically, onset of symptoms occurred 12-24 h after abstinence, with peak intensity at 20-51 h, and for a duration of 2-9 days. In general, the incidence or severity of symptoms increased with increases in daily dose; abstinence from doses as low as 100 mg/day produced symptoms.
Research is reviewed indicating that expectancies are not a prime determinant of caffeine withdrawal and that avoidance of withdrawal symptoms plays a central role in habitual caffeine consumption.
Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15448977
Debate Over Adenosine Receptors, Tolerance and Caffeine Withdrawal Symptoms
There is some debate in scientific circles about the increase in adenosine receptors being the main cause of building up tolerance to caffeine's stimulating effects, with some evidence pointing toward a conclusion that there are also other causes at work which help to explain people developing a tolerance to large doses of caffeine.
The Discoverer of Caffeine
The evidence is a bit fuzzy but some say that the stimulating effects of caffeine are mentioned in Chinese legends dating to about 3,000 years ago.
Firmer evidence comes from 600 BCE as a Mayan pot dating to this time contains the first clear evidence of a cocoa bean, so we know caffeine was around by this time for sure.
Who First Isolated Caffeine from Coffee?
In 1819 the German chemist Friedlieb Runge became the first scientist to successfully isolate the chemical caffeine from coffee beans. Less than one year later the French chemist Pelletier and another scientist named Caventou also isolated the chemical caffeine, and Pelletier was the one to coin the word "cafeine" which he derived from the word "cafe" meaning coffee.
Who Opened the First Coffee House?
As early as 1530 there were coffeehouses in Damascus, Syria and Istanbul.
What began the spread of coffee all around the world?
In the 1600s the Dutch became the first people to carry coffee from the ancient port of Mocha. This movement of coffee by the Dutch began the rapid spread of coffee beans around the globe and it is still spreading, most recently growing rapidly in consumption in China and other emerging markets.
The Dutch were also industrious in cultivating coffee in other locations, first in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in 1658.
Caffeine withdrawal
Regular caffeine consumption reduces sensitivity to caffeine. When caffeine intake is reduced, the body becomes oversensitive to adenosine. In response to this oversensitiveness, blood pressure drops dramatically, causing an excess of blood in the head (though not necessarily on the brain), leading to a caffeine withdrawal headache.
This headache, well known among coffee drinkers, usually lasts from one to five days, and can be alleviated with analgesics such as aspirin. It is also alleviated with caffeine intake (in fact several analgesics contain caffeine dosages).
Even small amounts of caffeine (such as a green tea, compared to a full coffee) can do wonders to alleviate a withdrawal-induced headache.
The source of caffeine is important to consider as well. Coffee is generally considered to be healthy, due in part to its anti-oxidant properties. However, energy drinks and unregulated supplements may contain any number of other compounds that can have a negative impact, often working synergistically with caffeine.
Caffeine on its own, particularly coffee, is associated with an overall decrease in all-cause-mortality [4]. Simply put, this means that people who drink coffee are less likely to die from all causes.
Caffeine withdrawal symptoms
Often, people who are reducing caffeine intake report being irritable, unable to work, nervous, restless, and feeling sleepy, as well as having a headache. Many of these symptoms mirror having the cold or flu.
- Headache
- Sleepiness
- Irritability
- Fatigue, lethargy
- Constipation
- Depression
- Muscle stiffness, cramping
- Brain fog, Inability to focus
- Cold-like symptoms
- Anxiety
In extreme cases, nausea and vomiting has also been reported. These are very real experiences [1], and despite recurring jokes, can cause problems with normal functioning. If you experience severe symptoms, seek medical advice.
Is Caffeine Withdrawal Real?
In short: Yes. Negative effects from quitting caffeine have been scientifically documented in clinical studies.
Of 49 symptom categories identified, the following 10 fulfilled validity criteria: headache, fatigue, decreased energy/activeness, decreased alertness, drowsiness, decreased contentedness, depressed mood, difficulty concentrating, irritability, and foggy/not clearheaded. In addition, flu-like symptoms, nausea/vomiting, and muscle pain/stiffness were judged likely to represent valid symptom categories. [1]
Additionally, caffeine withdrawal is recognized by psychiatrists as a real disorder.
Caffeine withdrawal is a recognized disorder and is listed in the DSM-5. (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders)
How Long Does Caffeine Withdrawal Last?
The answer to this will depend on your level of consumption and the level you reduce your caffeine consumption to.
In experimental studies, the incidence of headache was 50% and the incidence of clinically significant distress or functional impairment was 13%. Typically, onset of symptoms occurred 12-24 h after abstinence, with peak intensity at 20-51 h, and for a duration of 2-9 days. [1]
That means you'll probably notice the start within 12-24 hours with the worst being the second day you after you quit. From there, it gradually gets better over the course of a week to a week and a half.
Your brain is miraculously resilient and adapts to life without caffeine in just 2 short weeks. The psychological habit of drinking caffeine can take 3 to 4 weeks to break, but can also be replaced with decaf coffee or another low-caffeine drink (eg. tea).
Reports of people having withdrawal symptoms months or years after quitting coffee or caffeine are more typically confused with general health maladies or other more drugs.
Unrelated Symptoms
Caffeine cessation is often associated with major lifestyle changes, and as such, it can be difficult to associated symptoms directly with caffeine withdrawal. As a best practice, you should isolate factors by making changes slowly, over time, unless under the advice and guidance of a medical professional.
Compounding factors such as other medications, and major health events that lead to discontinuing caffeine, can have a misleading association with caffeine withdrawals.
If symptoms such as kidney pain appears, seek immediate medical attention.
Tingling
There are no known mechanisms through which caffeine withdrawal may cause tingling. On the other hand, caffeine consumption can sometimes cause tingling due to restriction of blood flow to extremities.
Back pain
While back pain is not a symptom of caffeine withdrawal, symptoms may (re)appear when caffeine use is discontinued.
This may be due to caffeine's reported analgesic affect on pain [3] - in english, caffeine might help alleviate (back) pain by amplifying the effect of pain killers. The re-ocurring presence of back pain may be due to synergistic effect being lost, but is unrelated to the temporary effects of withdrawal itself.
Dealing with Caffeine Withdrawal
The severity of caffeine withdrawal symptoms vary with how extreme the restriction, and a gradual reduction can do wonders in avoiding symptoms. Simply starting by replacing one cup of coffee with a decaf coffee or tea will provide a much smaller dose of caffeine, allowing your receptors to re-acclimate to lower levels. Drinking coffee (decaf) or other warm beverage (tea) instead of regular coffee helps psychologically with the well established habit.
Timing large reductions in caffeine consumption is also a useful tool. Picking a time of rest and relaxation such as a weekend or vacation can lessen the burden of symptoms like brain fog and a lack of motivation.
Hydration is also key - while coffee is a diuretic it's also mostly water, and cutting back on coffee may also inadvertently cut back on your fluid intake. Many symptoms of dehydration overlap with caffeine withdrawal including headaches, muscle soreness and leg cramping, irritability and lethargy.
Without caffeine blocking your adenoseine receptors, your body's built up levels of adenosine will lead to a lot of sleepiness. Get lots of rest! Scientists are still puzzled by why humans need sleep, aside from getting tired. According to some research from the NIH (National Institutes of Health) has indicated that sleep enables your brain to drain built-up chemical by products of working so hard (you little genius), which is good for you!
Advil or Tylenol can be an effective method of dealing with the coffee withdrawal headache and muscle pain. Other natural pain relievers such as running / exercise and even an orgasm can provide temporary relief by dilating blood vessels in the brain.
The best solution may not be totally ceasing caffeine consumption though. Coffee does have health benefits, as it contains over 1000 known compounds, with many associated with lowering blood pressure and improving cardiac function, as well as liver protection [2]. Generally, the best coffees are grown at higher elevations will develop more healthy chlorogenic acids that are present in higher concentrations in light roasts than dark roasts. If you're a dark roast lover however, darker roasts cause less stomach acid production. A decaffeinated coffee with just 5-25 mg of caffeine will still retain a lot of its healthy chemicals and will provide health benefits in medium and dark roasts.
With these tips you can reduce the caffeine in your body and avoid the rebound of a caffeine withdrawal.
References
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15448977
[2] Coffee Consumption Decreases Risks for Hepatic Fibrosis and Cirrhosis: A Meta-Analysis
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0142457
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22419343
[4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28697850
Caffeine and Health. J. E. James, Academic Press, 1991. Progress in Clinical and Biological Research Volume 158. G. A. Spiller, Ed. Alan R. Liss Inc, 1984.
Xie et al "Sleep initiated fluid flux drives metabolite clearance from the adult brain." Science, October 18, 2013. DOI: 10.1126/science.1241224
User says
re: I just woke up, it is three
I just woke up, it is three in the morning the first morning after I quit cold turkey. I vomited from four p.m. until about eleven. I had a hard time eating before I vomited. A migrane set in about eleven. There was no real sluggishness for me. I felt relatively alert, but that could have been for the pain in my head. It is awful. It is more than you would expect. I had heard all of the advice about sluggish, head ache, just take an asprin. I needed more than an asprin, I needed a bottle. Then the vomiting started, dry heaving. I am going to try to never drink caffeine again. It is a luxury that had control over me. I never want to feel this again. I have drank caffeine in almost every way possible for over ten years.
Tampa coffee drinker says
re: Anyone tried the herbal
Anyone tried the herbal remedy from Liddell Energy Restoratives called Caffeine Free? I am just getting over horrible stomach pains related to something I ate. Decided to do the elimination diet to isolate the cause, which calls for no caffeine. My stomach feels better, but I developed a horrible headache. I never get headaches except when I don't have coffee, so looked up caffeine withdrawal and found this site. Anyway, I am scared of what is ahead of me now, so I ordered the herbal stuff just to see if it helps. Anyone else tried it?
User says
re: day 2
I ran out of coffee two days ago and did not realize how addicted I was. I have a nice espresso machine at home and do enjoy my cappuccino in the morning, but it pisses me off that this little beverage got the better of me. I felt dizzy and had light nausea this morning, and finally took a Tylenol.
I don't like feeling that I've lost control over something, so I think I might just keep up being off it and just replace it with orange juice or something.
Caffeine Addict says
re: Energy Drinks
I have been drinking Monster Lo-Carb for many years, and have just stopped, (cold turkey) I couldn't believe how I felt.
I have a massive headache, and felt miserable.
When I got home I crashed for the entire evening and woke up in the morning soaking wet from sweat. I did wake up a couple of times but felt totally miserable and quite annoyed. I'm not so sure it's the caffeine withdrawl as much as the added chemicals in the energy drinks (Taurine, Ginseng). This morning I have had 2 coffees and I feel better. I'm going to stay away from those things from now on however, just think of the $ I'll save also. My intake of them was much more than 1 or 2 per day, I'm talking about having 4,5 or even 6 (24 oz. size) even though the warning is on the can is 2 per day. I think that I'm going to stick to a couple cups of coffee per day and lots of water.
User says
re: My experience
I used to drink about 7 cups of coffee a day, since then I have cut back easily to about 2-3 (and felt much better). About 4 months ago the doctor told me to try to cut out coffee, so I did, I went cold turkey (didn't know that wasn't so smart). I didn't experience any headaches or huge cravings for coffee, but I was more drowsy than usual, and I still crave coffee on occasion. Anyway, I have been wondering lately why I am feeling so tired, and no energy, for no reason. I read somewhere that it could take up to six months for some people to completely get rid of the withdrawal. That might not be encouraging for someone thinking of kicking the habit, but it might be a help to someone who is still experiencing withdrawal after months, and doesn't know what is wrong.
User says
re: Looking forward to day 10...
...and I'm just finishing day 5. Thank you for the post re: finishing day 6, you give me hope for day 6, since day 5 has been pure hell too. Day 4 and 3 were pure hell as well. This is the second time I've tried to give up coffee. The last time was the same, I suffered through a week and then couldn't take the pain any more and went straight back on the coffee. Same unbearable symptoms as now (9 years later) but this time I am determined to get all the way through this coffee-withdrawal hell and stay off coffee forever. I am very much looking forward to this body pain being gone. As I write this on day 5, the body pain is still with me, especially in my lower back, top back of legs, upper arms. This body pain seems to be affecting my back overall, and sometimes joints. I get wandering pains - sometimes in one ankle, then a moment later in a wrist, then flashing to a thumb joint, then to my left ear, etc. On the whole: this body pain, especially my back and lower back, has been so severe that at times I feel like throwing up. And at night - wow - that has been really bad. It seems when I move, that the back pain comes on with a vengeance. If I manage to lie completely still for ten minutes or so (if that's possible, since writhing around seems the only thing to do through much of this) then the pain might go away for awhile. The pain feels like this: a very heavy, dull ACHE, a deep ache, a cold, deep heavy sickening ache that is just so damn severe. When I tried this 9 years ago, I was on the verge of asking my friend to take me to Emergency, I felt that bad. Now I am just trying to handle the ache as best as possible. I have actually found that continuing at the gym has helped: even though going was the last thing I wanted to do. When on the eliiptical, the pain went away today, and I seem to crave heat, so the sauna or jaccuzzi, and hot showers at home have helped a huge amount. Also a hot water bottle lodged against my back in bed at night has helped a lot. I really feel for all of you out there going through this!! Keep up the great effort - I know this is going to be worth it. Besides the body aches, I've also felt the sleepiness, cannot sleep at night due to the pain, can hardly work in the day, cannot get to tasks I need to do at home, headaches come and go - throbbing and heavy - and I have not been eating much at all. This is pure hell. I gave up smoking 2 years ago: it was WAY easier than this! I also gave up drinking alcohol altogether (4 months ago, I was a social drinker) and that was WAY easier too!!! Coffee: going off coffee is just one huge painful, sickening slog. I can not wait until this is over. Thank you everyone writing here - you really are helping me to get through this!
Trace says
re: Caffeine and pot
Ok, let me be honest here. I was raised on coca cola...I am 62 years old. I have suffered from what I call anxiety disorder and have tried various SSRI meds for my anxiety--not panic attacks, just generalized anxiety- fear, intrusive thoughts, head racing, heart palpitations, sweaty palms...The meds did not work so three months ago, I started smoking marijuana, with the hopes it would help the anxiety. It worked for awhile, but then everything exascerbated. A
A friend of mine noticed at dinner one night that I had 5 diet cokes and a cup of coffee. She told me she thought I was addicted to caffeine.
The light went on and I thought," my God, I have been spending all this money on therapists' when PART of the problem could be my excessive caffeine use.
So three days ago I threw away the pot ( which I had not used for 25 years) and the coffee, and replaced the diet soda with caffeine free.
I have not had any caffeine at all with the exception of an Atkins Peanut Butter bar which might have caffeine in the dark chocolate although it is not listed. I have felt lethargic,mental fogginess, headache all three days, but Motrin has helped and sometimes a tad queazy. But is has NOT been horrific, more annoying. I am eager to see that if in time the anxiety will lessen, the annoying intrusive thoughts and generalized anxiety will also go. It would be nice to wake up in the am feeling refreshed,not wired as I think the caffeine has done in the past. I will never use caffeine again, and regret my foray into pot smoking. IT does not help!
John says
re: Energy drinks
I truly want to share my experence with you! I drank 5 hour energy's, and another called Xtreme shock and I mean several times a day for the past few years. I have never done any drug of any sort in my entire life! I also always tried to take very good care of myself. Well two weeks ago a friend of mine and I were drinking about 2 Xtreme Shocks per day and sometimes a 5 hour, and Muntain dew the big bottle, and when the head aches started I hit em with BC powders which worked pretty go cause guess what,they also have about 35 mg of caffine in them. Well Thursday night exactly 2 weeks ago I drank an Xtreme Shock and began to feel strange. By morning my mother ask me what was wrong with me. I was pale, and had the horrible feeling radiating from my heart through my shoulder on down through both arms. It was like this unbarable energy in my body that I could NOT get rid of! I had a head ache along with it, and kept drifting asleep. I truly thought I was going to die! I even started say goodbye to people, and crying about not being able to wittness my 6 year old sons collage graduation! By the evening time the worse was over. I thought I was headed for recovery but 2 days later the Anxiety never left so I headed to the ER. They checked my blood, and Liver, and Kidney's and told me all was well. They gave me a half dose of Ativan (I think that's correct) I felt drunk, but over all the Anxiety did regress. The Doc perscribed me about a 5 day supply of he Ativan to be taken 3 times daily. I have only taken 1 the Anxiety comes and goes. I still feel only about 60 % of my regular self. I am very scared that I may never go back to normal again, but my sister told me that is takes someone addicted to drugs roughly 28 to 30 days for their body chemistery to recover. I never , EVER in 30 years, and 3 years of intense energy drinking ever had anything like this!NO ANXIETY! NO FREAKING OUT! Just none of this stuff! I just want to know if I am eve gonna be the same again? Thanks for your time!
a friend in need says
re: intervention
My friend, if she goes a few hours without coffee, develops excruciating headaches and general flu symptoms. They diminish when she guzzles a few more cups of coffee. She must be addicted to caffeine but she says she just drinks coffee for the taste, and she becomes evasive, even upset and irritated, when I try to discuss it further. She can actually drink a whole pot of coffee right before bedtime and then instantly fall asleep like a baby. The moment she wakes up she immediately starts with another pot of coffee "for the flavour". I can tell when the coffee starts to wear off because she becomes addled, mixing up songs and artists, especially duets. She'll also start giving bad hints to her questions, and she'll start asking her questions with the really really long answers, the ones everyone hates. Then she'll start taking forever to ask a simple question. She once took nearly 10 minutes to ask a single question about the Pulitzer Prize in Music. When she is all coffee'd-up, she will breizzza through the same question in no time flat.
So my question is, since she is a very successful person, and since her entire personal and professional functioning existence is dependent on caffeine, how can I possibly convince her that quitting caffeine would be good for her? The horror stories here about quitting this addiction are enough to scare the eyebrows off Ezra Pound. Why should she put herself through all that pain and trauma if she really gets along fine with caffeine, as long as she never runs out of it?
Martha says
re: War of Attrition
I found my caffeine withdrawal mantra! Love it, love it, love it!!
Martha says
re: Consequences of Caffeine
Thanks for your post Brian. I'm in the same boat as you-clean & sober and wanting to get off caffeine. I too am having back aches, headaches, body aches, just overall crappy. I would have never associated a back ache with caffeine withdrawal but I've seen it several posts here. I've weaned down to 36oz of pop a day from an insane 100oz plus when I started this journey. I've done it over several weeks and think I'll go cold turkey just to get this awful feeling over with. Was wondering how you've been doing since your last post. Good luck to us all!
Blake says
re: Off the energy drinks
I've been addicted to energy drinks for about 3-4 years now(at least 1 per day, sometimes 2-3 a day) and finally decided to go cold turkey 4 days ago. One symptom I've been experiencing is sluggishness, I'm usually a quick thinker and it has affected my thought process tremendously. My moods have been affected as well, I've been really irritable and have no interest in talking to people since then. Kidneys are also a bit sore. I'm hoping all of my problems are caffeine withdrawal related. Does anybody else here have an addiction to energy drinks?
SHOCKED BY WHAT I'M READING says
re: CAFFINE
I AM SHOCKED TO FIND OUT ABOUT CAFFINE WITHDRAWAL. AT THE SAME TIME HOWEVER, RELEIVED. I HAVE BEEN OFF OF COFFEE FOR 5 DAYS NOW. I WASN'T REALLY TRYNG TO QUIT, JUST RAN OUR ON THURSDAY AND HAVEN'T BEEN BACK TO THE STORE YET. I QUESS I STARTED DRINKING COFFEE REGULARLY ABOUT 3 MONTHS AGO.....JUST ONE CUP EVERY MORNING. AFTER THE FIRST DAY W/O COFFEE THE PAIN IN MY HEAD WAS ALMOST UNBEARABLE. I ALMOST WENT TO THE E.R. I TOLD MY HUSBAND THAT IF I WASN'T ANY BETTER BY TODAY (MONDAY) THAT I WAS GONNA MAKE AN APPT. WITH MY DR. MY SYMPTOMS ARE HEADACHE,CONFUSION, SLUGGISHNESS, BLURRED VISION, & RINGING IN MY EARS. I NEVER KNEW CAFFEINE WAS SO DANGEROUS.
greg says
re: Wrecked by this as we
Wrecked by this as we speak
Quit cold almost three weeks ago. Still sluggish... unmotivated. Have gotten minimal done since quitting. Impossible to concentrate or work... This is the second time coming off this year- will I ever learn? But those cappuccinos are SO tasty!
Anyway... have a nice blood pressure monitor- decided to test, thought it must be laziness- no way I could still have real physiological symptoms after three week... the headache finally cleared up after about four or five days.
Well....
just clocked a blood pressure of 88/56 (normal for me lately has been 115/65). THREE WEEKS after quitting. Nothing psychosomatic about that, friends. Looking forward to getting back to being myself again!
Hang in there... it passes... eventually!
Anonymous says
re: Right There With Ya
18th Day--Hang in there. I stopped cold turkey on the 7th of July. It took about 28 days for my neck/shoulder pain to go away. Still have mild headaches (1 out of 10) just about every day for a few hours but it's been improving every week. Still get a little lightheaded now and then but that is getting better as well. Also be careful not to overuse NASAIDs for pain relief as this could make things worse (from what I've heard). If you're still concerned or have questions on how to deal with the withdrawal, see your primary care physician. I did and he was very understanding and helpful. I guess that some of us are most sensitive to caffeine and thus it takes us longer to get over it.
Tom says
re: Been there.
I came off coffee last May, and had a terrible time - all the symptoms mentioned above. I must admit I was quite taken aback by the severity of my symptoms! I do still drink coffee - probably too much - but if you're thinking of stopping I would recommend you do so very gradually; people underestimate what a strong drug it is because of its ubiquity. Drop down by half cups over a period of two or so weeks and you should be OK.
Cold turkey is for turkeys!
T
Lisa says
re: Is this a joke?
OK, I bought caffeine free diet pepsi, I liked it so I continued to drink it. I have never even tasted coffee. I love diet pepsi, though. So for about a week I have been off the caffeine pop. My head at times is going to blow up. It finally dawned on me that I might be experiencing caffeine withdrawl so I searched google. I have never really suffered from headaches, but this actually wakes me up and keeps me up. what a pain. I really didn't even make a planned effort to quit caffeine and now I am in this mess. I was looking for some sort of idea as to how long this lasts, but the blogs don't make me feel any better. I have recently been diagnosed with diabetes and my blood pressure is on the high side. Don't really know if I should just go back to drinking caffeined pop or are the benefits of not consuming caffeine worht the effort. Help....
serious sufferer says
re: Thank you Denise.
I'm not going back to coffee et. al. ever. I just wanted some hope that the symptoms will go away someday, that there will be a time when my head stops hurting and I can think and act clearly again and to know if anyone else in the world has ever had them last for such a long time.
Denise says
re: Reply To 18th day
Hi - first of all, I apologize ... I don't want to be a board hog, but I wanted to share the experience I had when I was successfully caffeine-free for over three months. The first whole month was pretty bleak - I was always tired, felt depressed and started wondering if I was just being stupid ... I mean, the whole world consumes this crap, so how bad can it be? My own grandma drank at least a pot of coffee every day and she lived into her 90s. But then I realized that my grandma's life was a heck of a lot different than mine is. She never held down a full-time job (and all the stress that goes with it), never drove a car, etc. - life was simpler then. In fact, I'm willing to bet that the coffee in those days was less toxic than what we're consuming now with the depletion of nutrients in the soil, over-processing, the use of more and more pesticides, etc. Please just hang in there, Serious Sufferer. In three months you will feel so different! And if you don't, you can always start back on coffee. (I'm betting you don't!) Best of luck to you. {{{HUGS}}}
serious sufferer says
re: 18th day
This is the 18th day and I am still having symptoms -- unrelenting headache, spacyness, disorientation (like being drunk from wine) and backache. Sometimes I think it's getting better and then it comes on again strong. I quit cold turkey because no one told me not to and I didn't know any better. I tried drinking two cups of coffee a week ago, out of frustration, but it didn't make any difference anyway. I'm 66 years old, maybe age is a factor. Has anyone ever heard of it lasting this long? All the blogs etc say two weeks at most. I'm getting scared. Could this be forever.
Denise says
re: Hope and Day 4! 🙂
Good luck to both of you, OMG Caffeine and bdougher! How wonderful that you successfully kicked a drug addiction. What you said is so true - this is an insidious, really scary substance. The bottom line is that if you are consuming Caffeine, in any form (chocolate, soda, coffee, tea, energy drinks) and you try to kick it out of your life, you are going to SUFFER. There is no way around it - you have to go straight through. The only saving grace in all of this is the fact that now I know ... 100% and without any doubts ... that Caffeine is a poison, one in which I will never indulge again.
I hope we can all check back in six months and still be clean and happy without Caffeine! And wherever you are, thank you Stephen Cherniske!
OMG Caffiene says
re: This is day 4 for me on going
This is day 4 for me on going cold turkey and I am miserable! Severe headache and yesturday the back ache started and is relentless from top to bottom, vomited this am and came home from work. I have no fever so I started looking up withdrawl symptoms and landed here. I will never drink coffee again. I only had 2 cups every am not a soda fan either. I hope tommorrow is a better day.
bdougher says
re: Hope!
I would like to thank everyone who has shared their struggles and successes on this page. I've been reading it for a couple of years now, always knowing deep down that someday I was going to find the strength to finally quit caffeine for good. I have found hope from others on this blog who have triumphed over this insidious little chemical. I'm a recovering drug addict (clean/sober 4 years), and while caffeine is certainly not the worst addiction I've had by any means, I've become increasingly aware of its negative effect on my life and recovery. I've struggled with Depression, anxiety, anger, irritability, paranoia, obsession/compulsion, and ADD, and while I'm not going to blame it all on caffeine, I've started to notice that these seem to come and go in direct proportion to how much I consume.
I've been weaning off for a couple of weeks now and at the moment I'm down to 1 cup of tea in the morning. I've tried to quit many times before, and never made it for more than a month, but this time I'm in for the long haul. I'm determined to see this through, and for the first time I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, thanks in part to some of the success stories I've read on this site. There's not much out there on caffeine addiction, and even less about people who have actually been successful in quitting long-term. So please, if you do quit, come back and tell us how great it is on the other side! I know I will!
Brian
Denise says
re: Caffeine Withdrawal More Horrible The 2nd Time Around
Hi Paul - Congratulations on kicking the alcohol addiction! You're a little further along than I am; I'm still getting body aches and pains and my dreams are crazy! I've been sleeping deeply, but I can still feel my stomach and kidneys aching while I sleep (if that makes any sense). As for coffee, I've been drinking it since I was fifteen (plain old Hills Brothers), but lately it's been Dunkin' Donuts, which is delicious. I'm still praying for everyone on this board that we can kick Caffeine out of our lives for good! 🙂
Paul says
re: Caffeine Withdrawal More Horrible The 2nd Time Around
I would like to thank you for your prayer and apologise but this is Paul her husband i used her email address and her name must have come up on the page becouse we have the roboform fill. Coming back to the point its day 9 and i fill a bit better. The morning was preaty hard, still a bit of a head spin and my gut fills weird, also my kidneys are just a little sore. The alcohol widthdrawl wasnt that bad compering to this it took about a week and i drank for about 7 years. (everyday) Coffee on the other hand very very bad. I dont know what coffee you drank but i been drinking Nescafe 43 blend and i use to drink abou 10 cups a day, my wife drinks expresso but i couldn't , it was making me fill very bad in the stomach and real hyper. I should have not tried coffee it in the first place but i didnt know what effects i would bring if you drink too much.
Denise says
re: Caffeine Withdrawal More Horrible The 2nd Time Around
Hi Alina,
Just hang in there. It is now Sunday evening (just finished Day 4) and I feel somewhat better. But I can't get enough sleep and I have horrible body aches and pains. My legs feel like cement and the headache is just as you described ... like a train going through it! I honestly was not kidding - at the end of Day 2 I was praying to God that he either intervene or just take me now. Wow ... I truly understand now what a terrible drug Caffeine is. I will never hurt my body with it again. This also has given me new respect for anyone fighting ANY addiction - drugs, alcohol, etc. It's very difficult to stop something you are addicted to.
I'll say a prayer for you, Alina!
🙂
alina chmura says
re: Caffeine addiction
It's been 8 days of living hell and i know perfectly well what you going through. I yose to drink a lot of alcochol and i had to quit for health and family reasons, so i decided to start drinking coffee in stead. It was good at first, something new it gave me planty of energy, i stated with one good size coffee in the mornings but down the track i started to fell like i was getting hypperactive, to much addrenline going through my body
evon thoe i had deppresion since i was 20 years old and im 33 now. Eny way i developed stomach ulceors dou to the caffeine so i decided to give up coffee for the first time , i stoped cold turkey but some body tald me to dink decaf and that helped me out a bit. but like you i had a cup one day after 3 months just to try to see how it tasted, and it was pretty good. That carried for another 3 months and i was back where i started originaly if not worse. I satarted to get the some symptoms again so i decided to go cold again last Sunday. For the past week i experienced fellings i never knew, everything you have mentiond and more especialy my head it felt like a train was going through it non stop but no headaches and very tired (extremnly). and you a right THIS ONE IS A KILLER!!!!! Sorry about the spelling. Sunday,02-08-09
User says
re: Don't be daft ! An espresso
Don't be daft ! An espresso with water is still an espresso ! If I drink 5 a day with 4 shots in each one that's 20 shots no matter how much it's diluted with water.....Dummy.
Denise says
re: A Withdrawal Warning
For the last twenty years I have been struggling with my caffeine addiction. It was always in the form of plain old coffee - I was never a soda or tea drinker, but every day would begin with 2-3 cups of black, strong coffee with an occasional cup in the evening. I knew that the caffeine was interrupting my sleep and was probably causing some of my strange thoughts (I tend to be somewhat paranoid, like people are out to get me or saying bad things about me). Anyway, I quit cold turkey about six months ago and experienced all of the ugliness you are familiar with - crushing headaches, exhaustion, body and muscle pain, etc. But I was strong and made it to three months, when I felt better and prettier than I ever had. I definitely didn't need the caffeine. However, one day a few weeks ago I succumbed ... yep, it a cup of hot black coffee tasted like Heaven. That led to "just one more cup". The next morning I had another. This went on for two weeks which put me right back in the old addicted mode ... so I decided to go cold turkey again. THIS ONE IS A KILLER!!!!! Today is Day 3 and I honestly was praying to God last night to just take me. The second "withdrawal" is a thousand times worse. Being off of Caffeine must have overly-sensitized my body, because I swear - I will NEVER touch Caffeine again - this horrible withdrawal has just about killed me. 🙁
Matt says
re: I have been specifically
I have been specifically looking for answers about kidney pain after severely slashing my caffeine intake. I am on day three and have had only 2 sodas, when I normally drank absurd amounts every day. So it is nice to know I'm not alone.
lakia 23 says
re: Quitting coffee
Over the years you have been drinking a Double Tall non-fat mocha, Your kindenys are severly dehydrated. Now all you need to do is drink plently of water to rehydrated your kindneys. I have kindey stones in both kindeys, and its the worst pain ever. I even had surgery on the right kindey, now the left is on the way. I guess once you realizes the damage that coffee do to the body it make you want to change your habit. It's not the caffenine in the cofffee, it's the sugar. Instead of white sugar, try brown sugar. You don't need as much. I still have a cup of coffee a day,but i don't drink it 3 to 4 times a day like i use to.
Brad says
re: same pains, not sure myself
I came upon this posting because I'm looking for the same answer. This is day 3 of cut back on caffeine, last three days I have had only one small cup of coffee to kick the headache (no sodas). Today no headache but my back is killing me. Guess we can say in two out of two cases yes it does cause back pains. Anyone else know something involving a bit larger of a group?
Willow says
re: Quitting Coffee- Going on Day 4
I'm not as much of an extreme case as some that I read, but still. I've been getting a Double Tall Non-fat white mocha from Starbucks every morning for about 3 years. That's $3.25 a day, around $100 a month, and $1,200 a year that I have been spending. I have never felt I really was dependent on the caffeine as much as I just enjoyed getting out of the office in the morning and made some really great friends at Starbucks over the years. But, alas, I'm trying to save money, and if I quit coffee, over 6 months I'll save $600. That's pretty substantial.
Today is Day 4 for me and it hasn't been too bad. Luckily my addiction wasn't too severe. But I am having some dull pain in my back and I can't tell if it's typical back pain, or if there's a chance it could be my kidneys? Has anyone else every experience kidney pain when they quit coffee? I know headaches are normal, overall icky-ness and fatigue is normal, but what about the kidneys? Anyone??
Bigubee says
re: Addicted to Pepsi
I am a Seventh Day Adventist learning about what God says we are to eat. We are bombarded with energy drinks, coke-aine soda drinks (anyone should be put in jail for drinking it, it's a barbituate like cocaine),Coffee, and cigarettes. What an interesting thing to know that the Bible says we are to eat a healthy drink- WATER - and excercise daily. We do not listen but shrug it off. I have been reading this blog of what happens to one who is having caffeine withdrawal and amazes me that my doctor could not find anything wrong with my symptoms of :
dizzines
headache
crashing to go to bed
anxiety
moody and angry with anyone getting in my way
the other day. I am now taking the first steps to stop listening to my body for those caffeine craves and begin to apply God's principles. I will let you know how my outcome has resulted cause I am ready to go cold turkey.
Courtney says
re: Old article, but...
I decided Sunday to seriously cut down on my caffeine when I realized that anything less then 2 cups of black tea and a soda would give me headaches. I cut back to only one cup of tea a day, and figured it wouldn't be so bad. I've been a heavy consumer of caffeine in coffee, espresso, soda and tea for 13 years. This includes a period working in Starbucks and taking full advantage of a free coffee every 10 minutes.
Starting Tuesday night, how wrong I was. I was sure I had food poisoning paired with an anxiety attack, and it wasn't until my girlfriend suggested that it might be because of caffeine that I started doing some research.
Ugh. My resolve to quit has only increased now that I can see that it probably is the caffeine. After a cup of tea yesterday I felt worlds better, and now I'm feeling like a train hit me. My sleep schedule has been completely ruined and I've only gotten about 4 hours a night the last two nights.
Guess I'll take some benadryl and try to catch some sleep, since it sounds like I've got about week to go on this!
nicholas says
re: Good for you
Well done. I have quit too, have quit before but lapsed back in to the coffee as a social thing. Started a new job, habit of getting a coffee to go in the mornings. They always insisted I get a loyalty card and I always refused. The other day the guy put one into my hand. Ironic that I have been caffeine free since Friday last week. I had coffee on this day, none Saturday although I had some chocolates, I realized they contain caffeine and it is in everything.
If you quit caffeine, quitting smoking is a piece of cake. The trick with smoking is to keep your mind occupied. I'm not saying it is easy to quit smoking but quitting caffeine is a lot more uncomfortable. With the smoking you will notice within days benefits to your vision. Your body will have more oxygen in it as the CO from smoke is not taking the Oxygen away from your blood.
Caffeine is worse because it is more mental, your brain functions go sleepytime and this is a complete inconvenience if you need to function correctly. A wonderful drug, the side effects are lack of intelligence so you repeat dose. Very naughty and everywhere, even for children.
Once you get on a good path you can progress to good health in little stages. Good luck.
User says
re: 3 weeks and still no caffine
i made the decision to quit caffine about three weeks ago.i woke up one morning and a relized that i was really addicted.i was drinking any where from 1 to 3 2 liters of dr. pepper a day and i know to sum people its not the same as drinking coffee but to me it was.if i did'nt have my morning dr. pepper i was an asshole plain and simple!!i'd have headaches my body felt like it could'nt function without it.i still feel like i have withdrawal symptoms from time to time but i did it.i feel like this is the start to something good.i've quit caffine my next step is nicotine im a chain smoker and thats my next step on my list.then a good diet!!!!!!!
Version 2.0 says
re: 3.5 days into Cold Turkey
3 1/2 days ago I went to the library to study Korean, since I will be starting a new job there in August. Since no food or drinks are allowed, I downed a mug of iced coffee as fast as I could before I went inside. I had never, ever, been able to study without caffeine, so these things needed to be done. As I walked through the stacks during a break, I came across "Caffeine Blues". On the way to the library, I had been thinking to myself about what a caffeine addict I was, so I had to take a look. I was so shaken by what I was reading that I decided to go cold turkey right then and there, even though the author strongly recommended weaning instead. I felt that if I weaned myself, I would always feel the temptation to go back. If I had to suffer to meet my goal, I would be more likely to stay away from it in the future.
I was surprised to find that my first 24 hours went much better than expected. My last cup was at about 5 PM, and the next morning after I didn't have any coffee, my body surprisingly didn't seem to mind that much. I studied for a while at home, took a nap, and then went to the library. The only problem was having to study while being drowsy, without caffeine to wake me up. At 6 PM, 25 hours in, withdrawal kicked in, all at once. I started to develop a mild headache, and felt my energy level start to crash. I tried to continue studying (and reading Caffeine Blues) but couldn't focus, and went home. I continued to have a mild headache, and felt that all I wanted to do was sit and watch TV.
When I woke up the following morning, it was very hard. From that point until now, the symptoms have been:
mild/ medium strength headache
dizziness
sleeping a lot, and when not sleeping, watching TV
body aches, especially in lower back
mild chills
The symptoms got worse from the 2nd to 3rd day, but now it seems that it's finally starting to slowly taper off, or at least not get any worse. I've been taking Ibuprofen, but it doesn't seem to help much. I'm pretty lucky in the sense that I'm at a stage in my life now where I'm not working and don't have any social responsibilities to anyone. I am free to suffer in peace. If I had to go through this while holding down a job, or with important things to do, this would be impossible. I could only suggest going cold-turkey under these circumstances.
I have also had an unusual craving for high-carb/ sugary food during this time. I'm usually careful about what I eat, but for this time frame I'm making an exception. It seems to help with the symptoms.
Looking forward to the payoff!
User says
re: I used to get up in the
I used to get up in the morning and drink 3 coffees before doing anything else.
Once the water supply was shut down in our building for repairs, so I just ate the coffee grounds.
I was so hooked on coffee I used to put coffee grinds in my toothpaste just to get the taste of coffee more often.
User says
re: Cold Turkey
I just finished quitting/ greatly reducing my coffee intake. I was drinking 6-12 cups of coffee every day (about 70 cups per week) and quit cold turkey. It was very hard to do and I got really sick. My symptoms were flu-like including:
headaches
nausea/ diarrhea
extreme fatigue
insomnia
joint and muscle aches
uncontrollable hunger/ thurst (making the nausea worse)
These symptoms lasted about a week.
Nicola says
re: effects of caffeine
Hi there. I have been suffering from depression for quite some time. I also drink about 2 litres of coke per day, and drink coffee. I figured out yesterday, when my mood kept going up and down all day, it seemed to be worse 20 minutes after drinking caffeine. All last night and this morning, I felt fine, just very tired, after not having any caffeine. But today my neighbour made me a coffee, and without giving it much thought. Not long after I felt very lethargic, and got very emotional. So I decided to go online to see if there was any truth to my logic. In doing so, I came accross your very informative story. This is going to be my inspiration, to be depression free, for life!!!
Thank you for sharing your words of wisdom. Now I know what to expect, when not drinking coke or coffee.
Kind regards
User says
re: you are so right. I too was
you are so right. I too was drinking caffeinated soda, probably six cans a day, and started staying up all night. I have also experienced panic attacks and depression at various times. Huh? No doctor ever said do drink caffeine, before examining my head...
User says
re: "just like drugs" -I compared
"just like drugs" -I compared it to some story I heard about a heroin addict the other day- Super scary! my head aches have been terrible-I wonder now if every time i had a bad headache it was because I failed to feed my addiction unknowingly..It hurts! I have been so irritable and I wonder if that is the soda too. Im really a healthy and nice person-I swear-I just need a cup of coffee or not, i don't know, haha. Oh my goodness, I cannot not wait to break free from these chains-I will never look at it the same again...(coca cola, anyone?)
User says
re: Weaning from coffee
I was drinking 6-8 shots of espresso from my espresso maker in the morning, or a triple latte from starbucks- then following up with regular American coffee at work throughout the morning- sometimes an additional 3-4 cups. Then a tea or soda with lunch - I was feeling like crap by 3-4 with a huge drop in energy and it really didn't "supress" my appetite as some claim.
Last week I stopped my espresso in the morning and started drinking the coffee at work.
Yesterday Sunday I had no coffee - I was unusually tired all day.
Today I made it through but had about 1 cup around 10am and a diet pepsi for lunch - by end of day I had a hurendous headache- it's just so hard at work - the smell, the habit.
The taste wasn't as appealing as before and I did not finish the coffee or soda.
I hope i can shake IT by end of week- who knew something like this could creep up into your life so quick?!?!
User says
re: coffee for a lot of peole
coffee for a lot of peole stimulates the bowels to release, and from my experience that if u over stimulate then the body will naturally go the opposite way, or become sluggish. Also, coffee is very dehydrating, even tho, it can still produce loose stools. Wen stopping coffee, the body is dehydrated from consuming coffee regularly, so will not have much water in the bowels, it has also been overstimulated so, when not drinking coffee it goes sluggish. Giving it time your body will get back into balance, even tho u may b tempted to have coffee just to produce a bowel movement, this is prob not 4 the best, instead u could do an enema or try some herbal, mild laxatives and ween off them.
orltu says
re: normal healthy
Just goes to show most people are fat because they are greedy and eat too much - not 'metabolism' blah blah blah.
Now if they could just get the willpower without having to by hypnotised they would be a normal healthy size book search.
User says
re: I cannot go a day without
I cannot go a day without drinking Coffee!!
Joe
User says
re: i got sick a day or two ago
i got sick a day or two ago think it was food poisoning couldn't keep anything in didn't go to the hospital and didn't get my regular caffeine fix. i think the food poisoning is gone but the caffeine withdrawal is still there headache cold sweats pain in behind my eyes wierd sensation in mouth and it scares me i don't drink or smoke because i don't like the thought of being addictted to anything but here i am in the cluthches of something so seemingly innocent as coffee i don't think i drink alot of caffee only four or five cups a day. i just don't want to be dependant on anything to enjoy my day like today i don't have the energy to run and play with my daughter and thats not good coffee
Tom says
re: Coffee quitting: on 5-23 I did..6 days after..
Was drinking: a) 2 or 3 regular brewed at home american coff. at 7 am 2) 1 expresso with milk(cortadito in Miami) (small latte) at 9am 3) 5 same as latter between 10am and 5pm...for years (mixed in with some capuccino's/black tea/misto's etc).
Today: a) attention dissipated 2)Jitters 3)Minor headaches
no desire to go-back to coffee 4)drink green tea in the morning and water during day 5)Must eat-snack less to avoid substituting coff with snacks.
Main problem: coffee to me was a social thing, hard to substitute with water!
User says
re: An Americano is an espresso
An Americano is an espresso with a whole bunch of water. It is NOT equivalent to 4 espressos. So you are NOT having 24 - 32 espressos a day, more like 6 - 8, or the equivalent a typical Italian citizen might consume on a daily basis.