The Caffeine Epidemic

The Preface The most socially acceptable drug in the world is caffeine. Caffeine is a mild psychoactive substance that can be naturally found in the leaves and or fruits of some plants, such as cocoa beans, green tea leaves, and of course coffee beans from the coffee plant. This substance is added in energy bars, energy drinks, soft drinks such as soda, and non-prescription medication such as cough syrup. Caffeine is the most widely used drug in the world, which makes it the number one drug addiction. Even though caffeine is a mild drug it is a drug none the less and has its fair share of negative side effects. Coffee has absolutely changed the course of history in many ways. Coffee has helped fuel wars, the industrial revolution, the rise of capitalism and has even been responsible for introducing graveyard shifts in the workforce.Since its introduction and consumption, Caffeine has made us a lot more productive by overriding our natural circadian sleep rhythm, which is our body’s 24 hour internal clock that regulates the cycle of sleepiness and alertness by responding to light changes in our environments. Our sleep cycle and alertness solely depended on the sun. When the sun was up, we were up and alert. When the sun goes down our alertness goes down and our sleepiness kicks in. This stimulant has given us the ability to override that natural sleep cycle and has allowed us to become a lot more productive by changing our perception of reality but not reality itself. Even though caffeine has made us a lot more economically productive, it has taken a toll on our physical and mental health. Throughout this book we will be looking at caffeine's history, how caffeine changed the entire world, and its effects on our mental and physical health. Read more