Thursday, October 17, 2013

Decaf yourself

I work two part time jobs and I'm a full time student. I drink two cups of coffee every morning and while I'm working here at the call center, I drink coffee as well.

I feel your pain
I had a midterm this morning and I ended up drinking three cups of coffee along with a cup of green tea. Maybe it's time for a caffeine detox.
Caffeine exhibits the features of a typical psychoactive substance of dependence. It is valuable to recognize caffeine dependence as a clinical syndrome, since some people feel compelled to continue caffeine use despite desires and recommendations to the contrary (x). 
Mind that caffeine dependence happens when you drink about 5-7 cups of coffee daily.
Excessive consumption of caffeine will produce problems, and appropriate information should be given to minimize effects in psychiatric patients and other sensitive groups. It is important to balance this with information on the benefits of caffeine, for most consumers can usually control their intake to maximize the beneficial effects and reduce or prevent adverse effects due to over-consumption or consumption at inappropriate times (x). 
While there are health benefits derived from caffeine, it's probably not healthy to be sleepy around 3 P.M. and have to drink another cup or two of coffee to be able to function and get rid of a headache. I've decided to start a caffeine detox and have a bit better relationship with coffee after that.



While there's no consensus on the best way to go about it, it's generally advised to slowly wean off caffeine. Let's get our schedule in order!


Day 1: Regular amount of coffee
Day 2: 10% decaf 
Day 3: 25% decaf
Day 4: 50% decaf
Day 5: 75% decaf and black tea
Day 6: just tea
Day 7: regular tea and a cup of decaf tea
Day 8: decaf tea
Day 9: decaf tea and water
Day 10: just water


Once we've gotten past out caffeine deficiency, we can better enjoy an occasional cup of coffee instead of always waiting until our next one.

If anyone is joining me next week in this, let me know how it goes!

1 comment:

Unknown said...

decaf green tea
Just wondering how much caffeine is still in your decaf tea bags? I know it is minimal in comparison to ordinary tea, but how much is still there?

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