There's a saying: “I only drink coffee on days that end in Y.” If this mantra applies to you, welcome to the club. Caffeine, coffee's best-known ingredient, is estimated to be the most widely used psychoactive drug in the world, consumed by billions of people every day. Yet unlike other addictive substances, caffeine is largely unregulated, and no one flinches at the idea that they might struggle to function without it from the moment they wake up.
Coffee lovers may be onto something. Numerous studies have shown that caffeine, when consumed correctly, improves many things, including cognitive performance and alertness. What's more, getting a boost from coffee may also have a multitude of associated health benefits. But not all sources of caffeine are viewed equally. In recent months, there has been renewed attention on the health risks of caffeine, particularly in energy drinks. In June, the Labour Party, currently in power in the UK, pledged to ban their sale to children under 16 due to their “dangerously high” caffeine content. This came on the heels of a comprehensive report, “Excessive Caffeine Consumption is Harmful to Health”. The dark side of energy drinkshas documented cases of people who suffered serious health problems after ingesting it.
Dosage is another concern. Not all of us respond to it…
Source: www.newscientist.com
