One of the world’s most popular psychoactive substances is a part of many student’s everyday lives: caffeine. Caffeine has become necessary for many students, often relied on just to function normally. With its ability to give students higher energy and keep them alert, many view the substance as a good resource to help them perform well academically. About 25% of Madison students drink caffeine at least once a day.
“I love coffee, it is part of my morning routine everyday,” said Tara Javan (’26) “without it I think I would be pretty exhausted during the school day.”
Despite its seemingly beneficial effects, this substance can negatively harm students’ health in a variety of ways; a fast heartbeat, insomnia and daytime sleepiness are all symptoms to be aware of when consuming caffeine.
According to the Mayo Clinic, some people can be more sensitive to the substance, and therefore small amounts can have big effects on their health and body. With this information, it is even more important to monitor caffeine intake in students. This information makes it even more vital to monitor student caffeine intake. The quantity of caffeine suggested before it becomes unsafe is 400 milligrams daily, which is equal to two Celcius drinks or four cups of coffee. Which seems like not too much, but really is a very large amount. Unfortunately, many students drink more than the recommended amount of caffeine to fuel themselves through study sessions and busy schedules.
“Coffee has a positive effect on my performance overall, especially in my first two periods,” Javan said.
Studies from Michigan Medicine at the University of Michigan have shown that regular caffeine intake can be related to stress and less sleep. When students feel drowsy or tired they usually will drink an energy drink or coffee.
40 years ago, coffee was the main source of caffeine- and was made at home. Back then, only about half of Americans drank coffee. However, businesses wanted to make coffee more popular and trendy, so they began to rebrand. Brands started to run advertisements showcasing the most popular celebrities of the time drinking their “delicious coffee”. Advertisements included voiceovers discussing the benefits of coffee and how trendy it was.
One brand started to emerge and change the culture of coffee forever: Starbucks Coffee Company. Coffee shops were a very small business, and not very popular for coffee lovers. However, Starbucks made coffee a trendy fashionable item with a lot of customizability. Today, Starbucks offers fun drinks for students to get in the morning for school to help wake up. Over 14 million people get a coffee or drink from Starbucks every morning.
It is obvious that caffeine has many negative effects, but there are also many benefits related to the substance, including feeling more awake and even happier . However, there are other ways to get similar benefits from caffeine without the caffeine. For example, getting all eight hours of sleep can help boost energy more naturally and sustainably than caffeine. Also, drinking decaf coffee or a low-caffeine tea in replacement can still be a fun morning drink, with the same taste, that can help with waking up. Simply reducing the cups of coffee or cans of energy drinks can reduce anxiety and help to maintain a healthier lifestyle.Soda also contains caffeine with smaller amounts and not as many unknown chemicals inside. With this knowledge, maybe next time you won’t be reaching for as much caffeine