Are You Addicted to Caffeine ... and Is That Bad?

August 01, 2011, By Jack Heffron 1 comment

Jack Heffron

“Coffee makes me nervous when I drink it,” Karl Childers mentions (in his inimitable way) a few times in the movie “Sling Blade”—and he’s not alone in his reaction. Nervousness is a common and not-so-pleasant side effect of caffeine overload. But can too much caffeine actually be dangerous?

Let’s face it: Americans have gone way over the top in our caffeine fetish during the past decade or two. The proliferation of specialty coffees and coffee purveyors as well as the explosion in popularity of “energy” drinks have jacked up our intake of caffeine.

More recently, our self-improvement fetish has led a lot of people to go cold turkey—“detoxing” caffeine from their lives. It seems everyone I talk to lately is either slugging down a cup of some esoteric java or trying to wean off caffeine completely. 

The detoxers, however, made me wonder if I’m drinking too much coffee and is that really an issue. Now, we’ve all heard horror stories about high school and college kids having heart attacks or even dying from far too many energy drinks mixed with alcohol, but I don’t think anyone debates the risks of that behavior. I’m talking here about the health concerns of drinking a couple of cups of coffee every day.

Dangers?

When we drink a cup of coffee, tea, cola or energy drink, the caffeine in the liquid stimulates the central nervous system, making us feel more awake, alert and energetic. Given the hectic pace of most people’s lives today, we have come to rely more and more on caffeine. The drug also has been shown to elevate your mood.

Various studies have been published in the past ten years that speculate on possible harmful effects of all this caffeine. Too much caffeine, they said, might impact blood pressure, cause inflammation and could lead to heart problems. None of these studies has confirmed any serious health risks on moderate consumption.

The smart docs at mayoclinic.com advise that 200 to 300 milligrams of caffeine—roughly two to four cups of coffee per day—for adults will do no harm. Exceeding 500 milligrams per day can trigger some issues, such as insomnia, nervousness, accelerated heartbeat and muscle tremors. The American Dietetic Association offers the same suggested daily intake as the Mayo Clinic and notes, “Overconsumption of caffeine can cause anxiety, nervousness and digestive problems, and if consumed late in the day, it can prevent a good night's sleep.”

Neither mentions high blood pressure or heart problems as a result of too much caffeine.

On his “Brain Candy” blog on psychologytoday.com, Garth Sunden writes, “There are four caffeine-induced psychiatric disorders recognized by the DSM-IV, the diagnosis manual of the American Psychiatric Association: caffeine intoxication, caffeine-induced anxiety disorder, caffeine-induced sleep disorder, and caffeine-related disorder not otherwise specified. In other words, coffee can make you nervous when you drink it.

Of course, these psychiatric disorders are worth taking seriously. I don’t mean to scoff at them. People who are sensitive to caffeine or who take certain medications that increase the effect of caffeine or who are prone to anxiety and nervousness should be very conscious of how much they consume or consider eliminating it from their diet.

NEXT: Benefits