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
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Sarah
re: Update: 32 days caffeine free
I posted a bit more than a week ago. I wanted to add that I've crossed the one month mark and I am amazed at how many mystery symptoms I have been having for years just went away since quitting caffeine. I have had the occasional cup of water-processed decaf but I even decided to give that up a few days ago. If you have a caffeine allergy and don't know it (most people don't) then even the decaf would be a no-no, but yet I still am getting great results drinking an occasional decaf. I wonder if my local store carries decaf pumpkin coffee...sigh..I'll always be a sucker for coffee, especially in the fall and winter, but I will never ever go back to caffeine! I am going to try Teecino soon as well.
In the first couple of weeks I noticed I was super irritable and very sensitive to noise. I continue to be somewhat sensitive to noise, always hushing my kids and stuff. I have to think perhaps my auditory system is readjusting. What's interesting is I was looking up Meniere's disease before I quit caffeine. I had a lot of the symptoms. Tinnitus, dizziness, nausea, sometimes a feeling of fullness in the inner ear, well all of those are GONE, and they actually went away in the first 2 weeks. I am so used to feeling dizzy and nauseous so often that to be free of these is truly incredible for me.
I also noticed I have a much higher tolerance for alcohol and get a much less severe hangover if I overindulge. It's like my liver is cleaned out and processes alcohol faster and better. I honestly have to wonder if coffee is worse for you than alcohol. My next challenge is to quit drinking! I don't smoke so that's not an issue for me. The more time that passes, the less I miss my morning coffee. On days when I really am missing it, that's when I have the decaf. When I feel strong, I go for Good Earth herbal tea (original) which I like because it's sweet and spicy.
My brain is working so much better! My husband has been mentioning my intelligence lately and I can only chalk it up to my mind is functioning at a higher level now. I AM still fatigued at times but only now do I feel this lifting, so for me about the one month mark is when I felt my energy levels returning to a normal level. Before then, I was really quite tired and glad I do not have a job outside the home because it would have been difficult. I am eating healthy, lots of good proteins and vegetables, watermelon juice works wonders. I juiced half a watermelon and sipped it slowly over about a one hour course, and the next day I felt fantastic. I slacked off on exercise this past week but it didn't affect my feeling more benefits.
I am more centered. I surf the net but instead of going from one site to another in a distracted fashion, I find I get into one site and stay there. I am looking forward to reading books again. That was difficult for me as I had a short attention span and my mind wandered. I feel my mind is really healing. I just need to quit the drinking as alcohol is also damaging to the brain. Nonetheless, I STILL feel and think better even though I drink more alcohol lately. My skin is clearer and my sandpaper-like rosacea is GONE. I am convinced caffeine is one terribly harsh chemical for our livers.
Back, neck and shoulder random aches and pains, gone. Sleeping better but still waking in the night, but I chalk this up to major personal stress going on in my life. Still noise and light sensitive. Craving sugar so much less! This was an unexpected benefit. I rarely want any sweets and I used to be a sugarhead, always wanting to taste my kids' candies and cookies. I drink water with meals and am happy with that now. Depression is going away although I am having some circumstantial depression but that icky, deeply sad feeling I used to have a lot is gone. Anxiety? What's that? I used to have it a LOT so I do know. I would think I heard things at night, a burgar or bad guy, and freak out. Now I hear stuff and it doesn't raise my heartrate a drop. I walk through the mall now completely unaware of myself whereas I used to be very self-concious and wonder how I looked to others. Not anymore.
I just feel so much cleaner inside and on a spiritual level. More in control. Attracting better things into my life. Quitting caffeine has been a bit like taking an anti depressant except there are no harsh side effects. I know it will continue to get better and better as time goes on. I will check in here at the 2 month mark and give you an update. Good luck everyone, remember, there is nothing healthy about this drug and your life will change when you quit it, just give it time, maybe a year even, to reverse caffeine-induced cerebral changes. Caffeine is a drug just like cocaine or marijuana, brain changes do indeed happen but the good news is the damage can be reversed.
User
re: caffeine withdrawls
Wow, how much caffeine were you drinking. I went cold turkey on tuesday 10-11-11 and I've had bad headaches, dizzyness, depression and a temper. I was drinking about 5 large iced teas (4-5 teabags in each) a day. Everyone tells me I should have tapered off slowly but for me it's all or nothing. I was barely able to function the last few weeks of drinking. I have come to realize that caffeine is most definately a drug that is not to be messed with for certain people.
ahuman
re: You will feel better
You should gradually cut down to prevent causing shock to your system. The symptoms are way more managable if you cut slowly. An example would be to cut half a can out every 10 days to gradually ween yourself off. Even doeses as low as 25mg a day have been shown to relieve most of the symptoms. Thats about 3/4 can of pepsi or half a cup of coffee. There is no reason to suffer too hard on this, i know it happened to me twice. Once 4 years ago and just recently. I didn't even know it was a condition until this time. I thought i just had a mid-life crisis or something 4 years ago. I quit cold turkey then when i thought i was having a heart attack one night working midnights. What i didnt realize was that the next few months would be hell from stopping my intake. About 2 days after stopping i started feeling crazy(anxious on a scale of 1 to 10 it was prob a 25), nausia, headaches, depression, body aches, etc. All of it would prob manageable except for the anxiety and depression. I had never felt like that in my life. Crying for no reason, no drive to work, feeling scared. This is coming from a person who is the most calm person he knows, i am the person that usually keeps it together for everyone. The scary part is how different you feel in such a short time From normal to crazy in 2 days. It took weeks for the basic symptoms to subside and months for the panic attacks to subside. Counsiling and CBT might help you if the anxiey is too strong and you need some help. IT WILL GET BETTER!!! don't rush it and remember they are not your feelings you are chemically imballanced your body wants the drug back. I would have recovered faster, i think, if i had known it was withdrawls.
After about a year i felt better than i ever could remember, time seemed to slow down and my mood was back to my half full maybe even 3/4 full menality. But since i just thought i was having panic attacks i started drinking pepsi again about 3 years after and after about 1.5 years of drinking it again i accienditally stopped when i thought i was gettnig the flu(it was caffine withdrawl) I couldnt figure out how i had lost my control again so i knew something was up and i drank some tea and about 4 hours later i was almost normal again. I started researching and talked to my doctor and realized caffine IS A DRUG and it really is a huge secret nobody wants to talk about. I thought I avoided most drugs in my life but i was addicted the whole time.. HAHAHAH what a joke.
Just be gentle and patient and you will fell better than ever eventually. Exercise, sleep and water all help. And try not to think about it too much i know that feels impossible but it helps.
Ashley
re: my addiction is "SODA" or "POP"!!
i know its not coffee but oh my goodnees i need help! i drink atleast 1 two liter of dr. pepper a day!! i know ive got to stop but im afraid i cant or that i will and basically relapse. please help me and give me all the info and advice you guys have!! Thanks in Advance!
Denise in Wisconsin
re: Hi Johnny V
Don't give in! Even if you're feeling somewhat less than perfect, trust me - if you go back to caffeine, the nightmare will start all over again. The first hit will be blissful, but soon you'll be right back where you started - addicted and once again facing a long withdrawal process.
Congratulations on making it this far - keep going!
Denise in Wisconsin
re: Hi Sarah
Congratulations for being strong in your resolve to quit. I don't doubt for one second that your one cup of caffeine was doing damage to your health, even though many people would scoff or call that "a small or modest amount of coffee". As you pointed out, would someone say it was OK to have just a small amount of cocaine? Or a modest amount of heroin every day?
I believe that there are just some people who shouldn't have ANY caffeine, ever. Maybe some can drink it their whole lives without any negative effects, but I seriously doubt it. Hang in there!
User
re: anxiety panic caffein
Caffein Im highly addicted been 2 weeks now
Sarah
re: I think I forgot to add...
My comment hasn't been added yet so I forgot what I said (memory loss is another thing I am dealing with going on the end of week 3). I wanted to add that the fatigue of the first 2.5 weeks was horrible. I am STILL so tired and my first instinct is to reach for a cup of coffee but I absolutely am done with it. Lucky for me I am in a place right now where I am not working and can get some rest. I really suggest people be easy on themselves going through the withdrawal. Take some time off if at all possible, more importantly, resist the urge to start the habit up again because you feel so awful. I got a nasty sinus infection after I quit. My kids had a cold that I caught but mine turned into a nasty 2 week sinus infection. I took no antibiotics, only rested, suffered and waited it out. I ahve to wonder if the caffeine withdrawal I began the day before didn't cause me to get so sick, like a detox reaction. Also had some underarm odor which I don't normally have. I think my liver was really damaged by that large mug of daily coffee I had for 20 years +. Some people may scoff at such a relatively small dose of caffeine but some of us are really sensitive to it. If I had even half a cup more, I was raging and picking fights with my husband and then crashing hard at 3 pm everyday and having all kind of hypoglycemia symptoms. Amazing what one cup was doing to my health.
Sarah
re: Give it some time
Hey everybody, I quit coffee and all sources of caffeine including my beloved chocolate on Sept. 15th. I only drank one large mug of coffee a day so I didn't expect withdrawals to be bad, but they sure were! I was extremely irritable the first two weeks and even took some benzos to help with that rather than lash out at my young children. I fell asleep easily in the beginning of week 3 but would still wake in the night a bit. I am told that it takes one to two months of caffeine abstinence to get to sleeping well and that has been the case with me. I was also very depressed the first 2 weeks so I found taking 50 mg of 5-htp on an empty stomach in the morning helped with that. I continue to take 50 mg in the morning. If you choose to take this, don't overdo the dosage please. Most people do not need more than 50 or 100 mg. I also changed my diet and began a mild exercise program of 20 min of brisk up and downhill walking a day. It's been 3 weeks now since I quit and many of the awful symptoms I had in the beginning are dissipating. Since caffeine is a drug and affects your brain in the same way as cocaine for example, you may not experience the full benefits of quitting this drug for a full year. The damage is reversible though, and many people report their lives changed radically for the better once they got off the drug and gave time for their brains and bodies to heal. Btw, when I quit, one of the very first things to go away for me were my back pains and shoulder tension. I am amazed at how soft my shoulder muscles are now, they have been full of knots and tense my whole coffee-drinking life! I am so grateful I got off this crap now at age 38 rather than later. Good luck everyone.
User
re: I feel the same
I agree, I recently started my first full-time job. I have had some stressful situations in the past two months, but everything is great now. Its depressing that I feel so awful. I am the type to eat like 8 times a day. Now I am full of anxiety, shaky hands, nausea, ( to the point where I have to force myself to eat) and depressing thoughts, when everything in my life is going amazing. I am over analyzing everything. I am normally such a happy person. It's really scary to feel like this. My first week of the job, I was extremely tired, so I had like two cups of coffee each day instead of one like I am used to. (I am pretty sensitive to caffeine). Then the weekend, I had less, and then Monday on my second week of the job, I started out great in the morning, but drankk my coffe extra fast. Then by lunch time, I had a full mental break-down:( I was like crying in my car calling my boyfriend, mom, and dad. It got better as I drank more water. But I still felt a loss of energy with life. Tuesday seemed to start off a little better, but I was afraid to drink coffee, so I had like three sips the whole day. And by the end of the day, I was feeling crazy again:( Its now wed at 10:30 in the morning, I took a Bcomplex vitamin this morning, that seemed to mellow me out a little and I had half a cup of coffee cause I feel like drinking close to none yesterday was a bad idea. Right now, I still feel anxious, and a little shaky still. I wish I could just be my old happy self, now I am over analyzing life in general:( Its scaring me horribly. I have had almost a complete loss of an appetite too. That is not me at all:( How do I get better? Everything in my life right now is great, I don't want to ruin it with a depressing attitude.
Johnny V.
re: 2-months since I quit
Well, I posted here before noting my recovery process, and last post I stated that I was feeling better. Well, after quitting caffeine cold turkey two months ago, I finally got rid of all my physical and mental issues. I no longer feel dizzy, I can go through an entire day on only 4-hours of sleep, and I very rarely get bad panic attacks.
Sadly though, my anxiety is still present. Although it's weak, it's still present. And the degree of my anxiety varies from day to day. I have good days and bad days. On my good days, I feel like my old self, before the withdrawals and anxiety. On my bad days, my anxiety stings pretty hard and it comes with slight depression which can last all day.
I'm pretty sure quitting caffeine cold turkey caused my anxiety, but the reason it's lasting so long is because of the stress that I have been experiencing lately. My stressful routine is causing setbacks on my recovery, but I am slowly getting there.
Denise in Wisconsin
re: Hello "Say No to Joe"!
Thank you so much for writing in. It's good to read updates from people who have managed to beat the caffeine addiction. 13 months! That's fantastic. I think it's even more difficult to quit caffeine than nicotine, booze or other drugs because it's just everywhere - and everyone around us is "using" every day, all day. To avoid coffee makes you feel like some sort of freak - or an antisocial nutjob.
Congratulations to you and please check back once in a while.
P.S. - Kikaida and Dave MN - if you're still reading this forum, please let us know how you're doing, too! 🙂
User
re: caffein pills
try taking a small amount of a cafein pill, this way you have still quit cold turkey but your body gets a bit of relief. I did this and it works. I know someone who went off coffee cold turkey by replacing coffee with cafein pills then he weaned off the pills (to avoid all the pain of going cold turkey) so your able to stop taking the drink cold turkey but you suffer less. good luck.
lmd
re: anxious...
I drank anywhere from 24-60oz of coffee every day for a period of about 4 years. I stopped cold turkey about 3 months ago. I was curious if this could cause the anxiety symptoms I have been experiencing. I deal with a lot of stress on a daily basis, but have always been able to handle it. For the last 3 months I have been experiencing panic attacks and a general shakiness....which seems to coincide with my quitting, but also coincides with some really stressful occurances in my work/home life that could be to blame! i have NEVER had anxiety issues before. My head is always foggy even after a good nights sleep and I feel like I can't concentrate on anything...like my head is swimming and I am just not myself. I am always tired, always tense, always down. I was curious if this could be a result of giving up caffeine or if I am just losing it!! It is a scary feeling...especially since I have always been a "glass is half full" type person and this is all new to me. I am hoping the glass doesn't need to be full of coffee to get back to that way of thinking!!!
lmd
re: confused
I drank anywhere from 24-60oz of coffee every day for a period of about 4 years. I stopped cold turkey about 3 months ago. I was curious if this could cause the anxiety symptoms I have been experiencing. I deal with a lot of stress on a daily basis, but have always been able to handle it. For the last 3 months I have been experiencing panic attacks and a general shakiness....which seems to coincide with my quitting, but also coincides with some really stressful occurances in my work/home life that could be to blame! My head is always foggy even after a good nights sleep and I feel like I can't concentrate on anything...like my head is swimming and I am just not myself. I am always tired, always tense, always down. I was curious if this could be a result of giving up caffeine or if I am just losing it!! It is a scary feeling...especially since I have always been a "glass is half full" type person and this is all new to me. I am hoping the glass doesn't need to be full of coffee to get back to that way of thinking!!!
User
re: Just curious... do you have
Just curious... do you have any issues with anxiety still? I'm at the 4-month mark and still having issues with the anxiety, though it seems to be diminishing. I also cut out sugar, which not only has taken the edge off, I've also lost about 15 pounds. Thanks for writing in 🙂
User
re: Try ginger tables or gum...
Try ginger tables or gum... they work pretty well to take the edge off.
User
re: How long did it take to get your energy level back?
I've been fasting from everything but chocolate for a week now and my energy seems to come and go. I'm doing my best to sleep a lot and that has helped this time around. How long did it take before you started feeling your energy levels be up on a regular basis?
Say No to Joe
re: Update
Hello everyone! Well, it's been almost 13 months since I quite caffeine cold turkey. No coffee, tea, chocolate, etc.! Before I stopped, I was drinking about 600 mg of caffeine per day. I quit because of anxiety and heart palpatations. While the withdrawal road was VERY long and hard, I made it. I experienced extreme fatigue, depression, anxiety, trouble concentrating, headaches, and intense coffee cravings. Somehow I pushed on and have made it this far. While I still feel different than I did when I was still consuming caffeine, I feel MUCH MUCH better than I did during the months following quitting. In short, I'm writing this to give encouragement to those of you who are struggling. It is not easy, but it is possible. Check this site every so often for updates from people who are going through EXACTLY what you are going through. Take each hour, day, and month at a time and you will make it. High Five!
CJA
re: Sympathizing With You
I tried quitting coffee cold turkey about 5 years ago. I almost felt like I died. My symptoms were the exact same as what you described, and it was unbearable. I couldn't go on like that, plus I missed the taste of coffee, and so I cut down to 2 cups of coffee a day (down from about 10). I absolutely recommend to anyone who is considering getting off caffeine to try doing it gradually over a course of a few weeks or so.
Chris
User
re: Must be nice for you...
Must be nice for you but I honestly did not read any of this info until after experiencing the symptoms. I drank between 6-8 cups of strong coffee per day, plus at least 2 cups of black tea and ate a couple ounces of chocolate with dessert most nights. Yesterday was my first day without coffee and I felt exhausted all day. I actually figured it was probably from lack of sleep (not anything to do with caffiene withdraw) because I stayed up late the night before, so last night I made sure to go to bed early so I could get a full 8 hours of sleep. I still woke up feeling tired, and then the headache came. My head is killing me, and I am very nauseas and tired. My neck and back hurt, and the pain in my head intensifies everytime I move it. I had decided to stop drinking coffee because I have anxiety problems and I wanted to see if stopping the caffeine made any difference. If the headaches and fatigue don't let up I don't know if I can keep going. I came to this message board to see how long my symptoms will last, it seems like they could be gone tomorrow, so that's what I'm going to hope for. I'm glad you had a good experience though.
User
re: Thanks, caffine & nausea
Well, thanks to this thread and peoples stories I can pinpoint the nausea I've been having! Cheers guys!
I have been drinking energy drinks consistently for the past 2 years, and 4 days ago decided enough was enough and quit cold turkey. Since then it's been nausea big time, sleeping a lot and a lack of general motivation, especially toward work. I hadn't thought about exactly what may have brought this on until I had a coffee yesterday, and seemed to get some temporary relief.... Caffine must be the culprit. The nausea is at times overwhelming, kinda the whole sea sick thing (in many ways worse than a hangover), and after reading the other stories I'm determined to keep up the resistance and get rid of this caffine dependence completely.
Here's hoping I start feeling better soon 🙂
User
re: Everyone is different. Myself
Everyone is different. Myself and a co-worker were drinking 3 to 4 Monster Energy drinks a day for over a year. We both quit after suffering from complications of consuming so much caffeine. My co-worker had little to no side effects from quitting. I had a severe headache (behind the eyes and forehead) for 4-5 days, a hard time concentrating, restless sleep, sweating, and lack of appetite. Most of the side effects are gone after 10 days. Still some excessive perspiring but sleeping like a baby now. So, everyone is different depending on their sensitivity to caffeine.
User
re: I too was like you, drank
I too was like you, drank mostly coffee though and quit several times with nothing more than a headache for a day or two. But since last time I quit i have been only drinking a couple cups a day,and let me tell you I don't know if it is age or what but I am freaking dying, Headaches going on three days now, aches in my lower back and hips, also between my shoulder blades. I do know it will pass and kind of expected the head aches, but just so you know it is not always the same when you quit! This time I'm a quitter for good.
User
re: Is terrible spelling a
Is terrible spelling a symptom?
User
re: want to feel better
I gave up caffeine 7 years ago as I constantly had flu like symptoms and seemed susceptible to illness. All sysmptoms disappeared and I had never been in better health.
Last week I was took tablets that had a very high caffeine content and I had to take 3 a day. I stopped taking the tablets 3 days ago and have never felt so ill: constantly tired although sleeping 10 hours a day, raging headache that will not go away, lack of energy and nausea.
I can honestly say after years of taking care not to even have a cold care tablet with caffeine in, i will never take anything with caffeine in again.
Just hope the sypmtoms fade and soon
User
re: I have the same thing going
I have the same thing going on with extremely bad anxiety. I don't know what to do and it is freaking me out. I'm only on like day 8 so I can't imagine another ten days of this 🙁
amakat
re: i'd Suggest not to just stop
i'd Suggest not to just stop drinking tea all together, but to rather wean yourself off tea gradually, it might be a little easyer. and painkillers arn't going to much good, some painkillers contain caffeine.
User
re: I am a 6-7 Cup of coffee
I am a 6-7 Cup of coffee person a day. I quit about 3 weeks ago cold turkey as you may say. I had migraine headaches, like I have never had in my life. Scared me a little actually, until I looked up coffee withdrawal symptoms. I also experienced and still am experiencing minor headaches that come an go, major fatigue, light headedness trouble concentrating. Mood swings and nausea but no vomiting. Thank Goodness, it has been three weeks, I have had about 10 cups of coffee in the past 3 weeks, and I still feel horrible. I am hoping this goes away soon, I am also constantly drinking water, and eating healthier. But this is my experience
zero
re: not so bad now
here it is sep 8th.
& i,m still here,
it,s not so bad now.
jittery feeling is almost gone & lightheadness is almost non existant.
slight headache. but so far , it,s possable the worst is over.
too soon to tell, ..................................................................................gosh i hope so.
hope for the best
zero
re: statred august 26 . here it is september6. how long will this ?
how long will this last.
about 2 weeks ago i was real sick flu stuff, i usauly knock off caffieene wile sick due to weak immune system & weird feelings.
well on the 25 of agust i hit the cokecan hard 4 in 1 night from 1030pm till8am. the usaul sweelyness but on the 26th at 1130pm i conked out right away. i woke up the next day with jittery feeling/ almost like irregular heart beats. so i checked my bp it was high. so i relaxed & checked it again & was normal. is this withdrawl.????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
had this ounce before & lasted a month.
the simptoms include :
nervousness :light now
slured/stuttered speach: that,s gone i think
slight stuffyness:hard dyng flu type,just won,t clearup
cloudyness,light focusing: almost like drousyness slight.
jittery feeling: like freaking out.
sweating:only at night
it lightens alot some times but under activeness it gets high.
weird though, i don,t feel weak or drousy .mostly like i got a light rush & burning energy but feel semi-drained ; kinda like when you exert yourself before you try to relax.
i often check my bp blood sugar & so far it might be a little low,sometimes, usauly when i,m hungary.
but it seema to be dissipating & only gets bad for a few hours :ex
i wake up, i feel fine , i go to work :i walk so i exert a little, by the time i reach my work im all jittery like someone scared me . not shaky hands? ready to passout or panic , jittery? more like a stressed jittery.
was real bad last week, but now is manigable. & seems to be getting better but changes at the drop of the hat. it worrys me.
made an appt with my doc :just in case. but what,ll probbubly happen like the last time i.ll be fine like before.
just figured to post if anyone has theese feelings ... you,re not alone.
any comments???????????/z
:(
re: Quitting nearly killed me
today is my third day without a cup of tea €€and i cant believe i stayed alive this long.my head is literally cracking with pain.it gets worse every day.this morning i couldnt open my eyes.painkillers seem to be making it worse.insomnia,shaking,vomitting,chills,sweating,nausea aare some of the few symptoms that am experiencing.i am so miserable.i wish i never started drinking tea.i desperately need help.i cant even keep water down:(
zero
re: not sure is it,s caffieene or lowbloodsugar or just my nerves.
sheesh, im not sure is what i have is it?
ok lets begin, ......................................
8/15/11 that,s when it started.
i caught a cold,or flu, not sure.
i think............................................. well anyhoo, i usauly kick off when im sick................. to prevent bad side effects.
well just as i was feeling better(coughing subsided, stuffiness lightned.so i went back to the coke habbit , well a few days later i woke up in the night feeling weird/hot & sweaty, next morning i noticed a new effect. anxeity & jittery /heartrate/panic,y symptoms.i might be exagerating.
now it,s 9/3/11 .2 weeks after still same simptoms, sometimes rapid jitters . mostly light . like nervousness, a bit of stuffyness .
light slured speech. hard to concentrate. weird dreams...........
it,s not to bad now, but still freaky, last week was the worst,stuffyness jitters in my head possable elevated heartrate but i think i,m getting better, but not sure, checked my blood pressure alot, most of the time it,s pre-hypertension after a while it lowers to normal but heartrate is normal, but at times i feel panic,y.
so i,m making a change (water/juice & gaterade. went back to 1vitamin
& 1 antioxident tablets per day. tryng to eat better, no soda/coke.
even though i was a massive coke fanatic, strange ......no headaches. fateague & sweats but only under exertion.
might be my diet so i changed it from junkfood to rabbit food for a while.
made an appointment to see a doc & get a checkup. just in case.
weird thing is ........i had almost the same thing when i was 20 .i,m 31 now(that was from now sleeping , way to much coke, & eating peproni& velveta cheese& high salt instant noodles all the time. basicly too much crap,
i changed alot since then & cutback on soda & junkfood,
maybe i need c,a, (caffieene ananomyus)
might be becouse i don,t sleep alot & when i do is all day,
not sure.................... what do you think?????????
z.
User
re: no drama here
User
re: I have been a Mountain Dew
I have been a Mountain Dew addict for a good 20 years, drinking as many as 8 cans/bottles per day. health issues have persuaded me to amoung other things quit the caffeine. I am on day 7 with no sodas. Put simply, it suuuux. I have had a headache from moderate to severe the whole time, muscle aches, fatigue, and irritability. I am going to tough it out, although I have a whole new respect for what caffeine can do to you.
User
re: Well, you could be right
Well, you could be right about that. But caffeine withdrawals don't happen to everyone. It only affects 50% of the population. Also, the effects differ from person to person depending you physical and mental health.
I felt the symptoms pretty bad because I would drink a lot of caffeine and stay plopped in front of my computer all day long. And this was during the time when I was sort of a shut in. No exercise was pretty bad on my health and caffeine would make me feel like I was having a heart attack.
To make matters worse, I have a pretty weak psyche. I scare easy and am really gullible. So coming off caffeine all of a sudden might have caused me to freak out and then overreact when I read up on the symptoms.
So yeah, I guess I kind of agree. It is most likely the person freaking out... but caffeine has a lot to do with it.
User
re: A little overdramatic
I think a lot of people are being extremely overdramatic about this whole thing. I'm not saying this to troll but to inform people that might be scared away from doing this. A lot of people in these comments cite that they drink something like 1-2 cups of coffee a day (I saw 1 person say a single can of coke) and now that they quit cold turkey they are getting cold sweats, massive headaches, flu like symptoms, etc. They act like they're coming off heroin or something.
Its really not as bad as they're making it out to be. For 10 years (I'm 26) I've drank at LEAST 1-2 two liters of pepsi a day along with random cups of coffee/tea and chocolate. Every single day I drank at the very least a two liter. I never drank water, only Pepsi. I never ever exercise and am an average weight (145pounds 5'9''). Now this may be because I've become fully and completely tolerant of the effect, but I stopped completely cold turkey last week and haven't noticed any really horrible side effects. I have had 0 headaches. No aches, pains, etc. I've noticed nothing different at all really. The only problem I've been having is sleeping. I seem to wake up every hour or 2, whereas before I could sleep for 12+ hours straight. Sleep is the original problem I stopped drinking caffeine for (I didn't like sleeping so long), so I'm hoping it will sort itself out soon in this following week.
Maybe I'm just lucky or something, but I'm literally the worst case you could have for caffeine overdose and I noticed no real effect at all from stopping completely cold turkey. The effects of stopping are NOT BAD at all and I think if you're experiencing great difficulty with this, its probably a placebo of reading all this oversensational stuff on here or an outside factor apart from the caffeine.
User
re: 18th day of withdrawals
First of all, I am underweight, have a nervous deposition, and am really sensitive to caffeine. After five years of drinking at least one coke a day, and then suddenly quitting caffeine cold turkey, I was naturally going to get some withdrawals. It's not as bad as going through hard drug withdrawals, but since I had more mental symptoms than physical, it might as well have been. It was terrible!
When I first started experiencing withdrawals two days after I stopped drinking caffeine, I thought I was developing an anxiety disorder since the only thing I felt at the moment were strong attacks of pure fear and sheer terror (as exaggerated as it may sound, that is how it felt like). Luckily, I found this article when I thought to myself, "maybe its because I stopped drinking caffeine".
As time went on, I started getting other symptoms as well. Headaches, body chills, feeling feverish, fatigue, and more. I must have had every withdrawal symptom on the list... and then some (never vomited though).
But as time went on, I started to feel better (although my anxiety attacks peeked at around 8 days after the start of my withdrawals). Almost all my withdrawals symptoms are gone. But my anxiety, fatigue, headaches, lack of clarity of thought, and dizziness wont seem to go away though. It scares me to think that it might be something else.
Oh well. I'm still not losing hope, and I am still toughing it through. I feel better than the first few days of withdrawal and definitely A LOT better than when my anxiety and panic was at its peek.
I never felt any cravings for more coca-cola when I was going through the worst of my withdrawals, but right now, as I am feeling much better, I really want to grab a can of coke. I grew a lot of will power by going through this ordeal though, so I know I wont pick up the bottle again.
I wish everyone going through this good luck and please don't worry, we will be back to normal in no time.
uncle_w
re: Caffeine Withdrawal
Thought i'd jump in here and share my experience. Recently my coffee habit was basically two double espressos a day with an occasional Diet Coke in the mix. From what i've seen, the espressos amount to approx. 150 mgs. of caffeine each. Nothing excessive it seems? I've had many more Diet Cokes in the past. Anyways, prior to being diagnosed with a double hernia, I decided to quit temporarily to avoid any anxiety over my unknown ailment. It took about a week or so for the withdrawals to begin. Massive neck headache (which is where I usually experience headache pain), night sweats, and calve cramps in the morning. Along with the pain from my hernia and not knowing I was withdrawing from caffiene I was admittedly panicking. Thank god for this sight. Not sure what led me to search caffeine withdrawal but needless to say this site kept me from bothering my doctor with a multitude of questions. The second week I started having intense pain in my back muscles and tightness in my chest which was very unnerving. After about a month I still have frequent nightmares followed by waking up feeling depresed every few hours. Luckily I feel rested during the day. I should add that once I figured out it was the caffiene, I started to drink a bit of Diet Coke to ease the headaches. Recently after eating I feel as though my food is "stuck" in my stomach as though i've overeaten though I haven't. I've upped my fiber intake and am not constipated but was curious about other's gastric issues? I would have never imagined what an insidous drug this is. Though I really have no actual need to quit I decided to stick with it as I don't want to ever deal with this if I do have to quit in the future...
User
re: That feeling is probably due
That feeling is probably due to all the aspartame not the caffeine
User
re: How terrifying. I read up on
How terrifying. I read up on the symptoms and they match some of my symptoms which I thought was from my caffeine withdrawal.
Is caffeine anaphylaxis permanent? No article I read so far has stated anything about its duration.
aspendougy
re: CAFFEINE WITHDRAWL
I have experienced headaches and low energy, etc. as well.
They are working on caffeine free coffee
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2004/jun/24/food.research
User
re: im with you on that
im with you on that
User
re: Today's day 1 of quitting!Â
Today's day 1 of quitting! Glad I found all these comments! We need to start up Caffeine User!
User
re: Caffeine Anaphylaxis
Research it...most of you are probably no longer able to metabolize caffeine (like me) and the symptoms can be severe...in otherwords, you are allergic. Yes, getting off it sucks...but staying on it sucks more. Best of luck.
User
re: Caffeine is very much a
Caffeine is very much a source of panic attacks and anyone saying otherwise doesn't understand caffeine allergy/toxicity. Research caffeine anaphylaxis and see what you find. It should give you enough of a boost to keep going. Leave it alone. I'm currently detoxing from the evils of caffeine (yes, a DRUG). Not easy, but very worth it. Good luck...it takes some time. It also means no chocolate or otc pain-killers/analgesics, especially if you are allergic...and it sounds as if you are.
User
re: quit diet coke- cant get rid of anxiety or dizziness
I started getting panic attacks a few weeks ago, so I thought that I needed to get off of caffeine, since I was drinking like 5 or so diet cokes a day. I had bad headaches for a few days along with bad anixety and this foggy, dizzy feeling ALL DAY LONG. Is this the caffeine withdrawl or do you think my anxiety it worse than I thought? So confused on what to do, my doc prescribed a low dose of Wellbutrin, so I cannot decide what is making me feel so bad, the anxiety, the medication, or the caffeine withdrawl!
User
re: Encouraging Comments
What a great repository of comments. Good luck to all of you. I am heading into my 7th day of being caffeine free. I am a 40 year old guy who since high school has had caffeine as a daily companion. 4-6 diet mountain dews per day + 1-2 diet red bulls per day plus the occasional cup of coffee, not to mention the caffeine in chocolate or other products.
I am convinced that a gradual reduction would have merely been a stall tactic for me... not sure I could have quit that way. A medical event on the front side of this (heart issues) caused my abrupt love affair with caffeine to end. It is worthwhile to note that the doctors wanted to lower my heart rate for a particular test, but it took literally 10x the normal amount of medicine to do so since my heart was used to being so amped up. It literally was a battle between the caffeine that ravaged my body for years against the medicine to slow down my heart rate.
If I can do this, you ALL can do this. I understand like most people here the headaches and symptoms that go along with this... but in the end it will be worth it. This drug is legal, prevelant, and consuming. For some reason, it is socially acceptable. Break the pattern. My kids are now hooked on caffeine also and will have to be reprogrammed... I am hoping I can be an example of more healthy living for them and drag them out of this just like I dragged them into this.
Good luck everyone!
User
re: If you are still experiencing
If you are still experiencing panic attacks you may want to consult your doctor. caffiene is not a cause of panic attacks, although can make it easier for them to occur.
gatokat
re: caffeine withdrawal symptoms
airjordan8: hang in there buddy. im going thru the same symptoms after quitting coffee four weeks ago. i still have mild panic attacks, body aches, sleepness, but getting better already! im trying a drug for anxiety(dr. prescribed) that seems to be working. will let you guys know more about it later as i find out more.