How that caffeine hit tricks you into firing up
Coffee gets people out of bed in the morning, myself included. If it’s not coffee, it might be tea. If it’s not tea, dare I say it – it might be an energy drink.
This may have something to do with caffeine. Caffeine can trick our bodies into thinking we are not tired – cue the surge of energy after a strong coffee or a second wind during an endurance event after using a caffeine supplement.
A review of literature suggests your blood concentration of caffeine peaks after one hour of consuming it. This ‘‘high’’ might linger for three to four hours. And depending on tolerance, caffeine can theoretically stay in your system for more than 14 hours.
But we all know people who can drink coffee until they go to bed, while others get instant stomach cramps after a 50mg hit.
Caffeine may also increase your heart rate, play havoc on your gut, exacerbate anxious feelings or contribute to stress.
Caffeine metabolism and tolerance levels are wildly different among people. This makes caffeine such a grey area in nutrition and it is hard to establish a suggested intake.
What can be said is those sensitive to caffeine should watch their intake. Pregnant and breastfeeding women should stay under 300mg/day as it crosses the placenta and may also filter into the breast milk.
A 330ml coke has 30mg of caffeine, 50g dark choc (85-90 per cent) will have 43mg, black tea 53mg, green tea 65mg, 1 tsp instant coffee has 65mg and a 250ml Red Bull packs 80mg.
But the biggest of them all is a double shot espresso which gives you a 130-200mg hit of caffeine.
Like many of us, you may be working from home. If this means more tea and coffee, assess if the extra caffeine is impacting the quality of your sleep, making your heart race or contributing to stress levels/management.
If it is, hit up the herbal teas instead.
Maggie Radich is a registered dietitian.