Caffeine and What It Does to Us

[lydever91]

Alcohol is a drug. Caffeine is a drug. Meth is a drug. Marijuana is a drug.

What's the difference between them all? The legality!

After not consuming any caffeine for a while (a month or so?) I drank some warm Lemon Lift tea (without knowing the name). Then the title of the drink was brought to my attention: Lemon Lift.

I looked in the ingredients and lo and behold, it had black tea in it. I didn't feel too bad from the caffeine, so I drank one more cup of it because it helped my cold.

Not much later I was very jittery and had a thousand things on my mind. I wanted to clean. I wanted to exercise. I wanted to do some crafts.

I ultimately went on a walk, but was on edge. My dad went with me and so did my seven-month old son in the stroller.

Aside from being on edge, the temperature seemed to rise really quickly. After the walk and nursing my son, he was very crabby. All day. Even the next day was bad. I had a headache and was very tired and irritable. My son had also been crabbier than normal still. Aside from being irritable, I was also emotional. VERY emotional.

Today, however, we are both back to normal. There is no more Lemon Lift in the house, along with chocolate, soda, and even coffee.

Here is a seven part video of a sermon on caffeine:
[video=youtube;XMwU4L-CRjs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMwU4L-CRjs[/video]

 

[jb]

Here is a seven part video of a sermon on caffeine

LOL! That fellow wants to get a life!

 

[Rickee]

Alcohol is a drug. Caffeine is a drug. Meth is a drug. Marijuana is a drug.

What's the difference between them all? The legality!

After not consuming any caffeine for a while (a month or so?) I drank some warm Lemon Lift tea (without knowing the name). Then the title of the drink was brought to my attention: Lemon Lift.

I looked in the ingredients and lo and behold, it had black tea in it. I didn't feel too bad from the caffeine, so I drank one more cup of it because it helped my cold.

Not much later I was very jittery and had a thousand things on my mind. I wanted to clean. I wanted to exercise. I wanted to do some crafts.

I ultimately went on a walk, but was on edge. My dad went with me and so did my seven-month old son in the stroller.

Aside from being on edge, the temperature seemed to rise really quickly. After the walk and nursing my son, he was very crabby. All day. Even the next day was bad. I had a headache and was very tired and irritable. My son had also been crabbier than normal still. Aside from being irritable, I was also emotional. VERY emotional.

Today, however, we are both back to normal. There is no more Lemon Lift in the house, along with chocolate, soda, and even coffee.

Here is a seven part video of a sermon on caffeine:
[video=youtube;XMwU4L-CRjs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMwU4L-CRjs[/video]

Thank you for this post! I drink one cup of regular coffee a day, nothing fancy, just basic coffee. What is frightening, is seeing all these young people drinking Red Bull, etc. This stuff will eventually cause anxiety attacks, possibly a heart attack as well. Our bodies are not wired to tolerate that kind of abuse to our heart, and especially our nervous systems......

 

[Married_Richenbrachen]

Interesting guy, and I partly agree with what he says. I used to think the scriptures didn't speak specifically against drug use (except under alcoholism), but I have since read that in bible times, the use of drugs was called sorcery.

I try not to drink coffee, as I have found it has negative effects on me, although I do still sometimes drink black tea. I believe all drugs (e.g. alcohol, marijuana, heroin) can have a medicinal purpose, and I don't believe their use for this purpose is a sin, nor even all the man-made drugs that half the Western World is addicted to for their ailments. That being said, I don't think such man-made drugs are healthy or beneficial.

Scripture clearly teaches against drunkenness and sorcery, so using any drug in excess to achieve this state is acting against God's will.

 

[Misty77]

I agree with cutting out caffeine as much as possible. i always say that I only drink caffeine for medicinal purposes. As a single working mom, i don't have the luxury of giving it up permanently. But I fully support your liberty to make that choice in your life.

As for the sermon: Sloppy theology. God says don't be drunk. But His first recorded miracle was making high quality wine for people who had already been drinking for hours, possibly even days. And at the Passover before His death, He served wine. Traditionally, a Passover dinner includes four cups of wine per person, if I remember correctly. I can make an exhaustive list of positive experiences with alcohol in the Bible, if necessary. There are also negative experiences. That is where the key phrase "wherein is excess" comes into play. This sermon is another example of throwing the proverbial baby out with the bath water but then going a step further to apply that principle to a substance that actually has the opposite effect as alcohol.

I think stance based in accurate theology would be "whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."

 

[colalella2891]

I try to stay away from caffeine... I used to drink TONS of soda, but I switched to 100% orange juice. Much better, especially since i'm getting a lot of vitamin C instead of all that caffeine. There still is sugar in the juice I drink, but not nearly as much as soda.

I also don't drink coffee, I never liked it. But yes all those energy drinks are sick... I heard a number of people have died from drinking too much of those things... Scary.

 

[lydever91]

Thank you for this post! I drink one cup of regular coffee a day, nothing fancy, just basic coffee. What is frightening, is seeing all these young people drinking Red Bull, etc. This stuff will eventually cause anxiety attacks, possibly a heart attack as well. Our bodies are not wired to tolerate that kind of abuse to our heart, and especially our nervous systems......

I'm glad you enjoyed the post

I'm very surprised that children are able to buy these at the stores. They're not even FDA approved (that I know of) and my ten-year-old can get one anytime he wants! But he did tell me that there's going to be a law preventing children from purchasing them, which is a step up.

If caffeine makes us jittery physically and mentally, I can only imagine what it does to our insides.

 

[Relena7]

Not all caffeine is bad. And in moderation, natural sources can help keep you healthy and help you live longer. Not all forms of caffeine are the same, and no two people react from it the same. Saying "I got sick from caffeine so all of it must be terrible for everyone" isn't a well informed judgment.

There is a big difference between having a couple green teas per day, and having 5 cups of coffee per day. (One green tea packet contains the same amount of caffeine as half a cup of coffee). And the antioxidants in green tea have been found to lower the risk of cancers, and help keep your weight down, and lists of other benefits. 11 Benefits of Green Tea That You Didn`t Know About

Too much of anything can be bad. But it's not fair to lump in natural sources of mild caffeine in the same category as 5-hour energy shots and redbulls. All things in moderation, and of course, listen to your own body.

 

[ServantStrike]

I'm glad you enjoyed the post

I'm very surprised that children are able to buy these at the stores. They're not even FDA approved (that I know of) and my ten-year-old can get one anytime he wants! But he did tell me that there's going to be a law preventing children from purchasing them, which is a step up.

If caffeine makes us jittery physically and mentally, I can only imagine what it does to our insides.

They are not sold as drugs and as thus are not subject to FDA regulations. For food products, the rule is generally a producer can put whatever they want into a product in whatever quantity and it's up to the government and/or private citizens to prove it's not healthy. So, a large number of the products people eat and drink on a daily basis have had no government oversight whatsoever before reaching the market.


As for caffeine being unbiblical, I'm not so sure about that. I stay away from the stuff personally as it destroys my ability to sleep, but there is a balance between an energy drink and absolutely zero caffeine.

Not all caffeine is bad. And in moderation, natural sources can help keep you healthy and help you live longer. Not all forms of caffeine are the same, and no two people react from it the same. Saying "I got sick from caffeine so all of it must be terrible for everyone" isn't a well informed judgment.

There is a big difference between having a couple green teas per day, and having 5 cups of coffee per day. (One green tea packet contains the same amount of caffeine as half a cup of coffee). And the antioxidants in green tea have been found to lower the risk of cancers, and help keep your weight down, and lists of other benefits. 11 Benefits of Green Tea That You Didn`t Know About

Too much of anything can be bad. But it's not fair to lump in natural sources of mild caffeine in the same category as 5-hour energy shots and redbulls. All things in moderation, and of course, listen to your own body.

This. Many products which are very good for you naturally contain trace amounts of caffeine. In fact attempting to remove that caffeine is more unhealthy than leaving it in as those processes are always chemical in nature

And caffeine is a natural remedy for a lot of issues, including headaches. That said I still stay away from it as it causes me grief if I try to sleep at night.

 

[lil_christian]

Not all caffeine is bad. And in moderation, natural sources can help keep you healthy and help you live longer. Not all forms of caffeine are the same, and no two people react from it the same. Saying "I got sick from caffeine so all of it must be terrible for everyone" isn't a well informed judgment.

There is a big difference between having a couple green teas per day, and having 5 cups of coffee per day. (One green tea packet contains the same amount of caffeine as half a cup of coffee). And the antioxidants in green tea have been found to lower the risk of cancers, and help keep your weight down, and lists of other benefits. 11 Benefits of Green Tea That You Didn`t Know About

Too much of anything can be bad. But it's not fair to lump in natural sources of mild caffeine in the same category as 5-hour energy shots and redbulls. All things in moderation, and of course, listen to your own body.

It's definitely not fair to categorize marijuana and caffeine under the same category, too. Marijuana is a mild hallucinogen and it plays with your emotions and destroys your short-term memory and even your reflexes.

I'll add a little bit of scientific perspective to this discussion:

Caffeine is a stimulant. It's mostly found in coffee, tea, and chocolate. Caffeine is not has been used with different drugs, one of them being the over the counter pill, Excedrin. And caffeine typically stimulates the central nervous system and can higher blood pressure and heart rate (so caffeine consumption is not recommended for those who have severe anxiety issues, high blood pressure, and/or fast heart rate).

Now for some people, caffeine does absolutely NOTHING to them. And for some people, it can make them practically bounce off the walls with energy.

Caffeine has even been known to help with ADD.


Caffeine in low doses (300mg or less is what I've read is safe, but I'd say 200mg or less) is perfectly fine. You function like a normal human being and usually does not alter your mood (though I've seen articles before on how caffeine has helped with depression). If you're not careful you can have some issues (like if you skip out on your cup of coffee you're tired or have a migraine), but that's only if you allow yourself to be dependent upon it and consume it in higher doses.

 

[MissCris]

Caffeine, lumped in with meth?

...I like it. Good, sound logic there.

Sorry, I don't mean to poke fun at this topic. I'm an avid coffee drinker- half a pot of it or more, every morning. I admit dependency on the stuff, and I also admit it would be...prudent...to decrease my intake, if not stop it altogether.

However, I think I behave like a normal human being after half a pot of coffee, whereas if I were to smoke meth just once (Meth: Not even once. Remember those commercials?) I assume I'd be behaving like...a person on meth...

I just don't see how caffeine can be, scientifically or logically, put in the same category as alcohol, meth, or weed. Sugar and nicotine, sure...but...meth? Really?

 

[lil_christian]

It's definitely not fair to categorize marijuana and caffeine under the same category, too. Marijuana is a mild hallucinogen and it plays with your emotions and destroys your short-term memory and even your reflexes.

I'll add a little bit of scientific perspective to this discussion:

Caffeine is a stimulant. It's mostly found in coffee, tea, and chocolate. Caffeine is not has been used with different drugs, one of them being the over the counter pill, Excedrin. And caffeine typically stimulates the central nervous system and can higher blood pressure and heart rate (so caffeine consumption is not recommended for those who have severe anxiety issues, high blood pressure, and/or fast heart rate).

Now for some people, caffeine does absolutely NOTHING to them. And for some people, it can make them practically bounce off the walls with energy.

Caffeine has even been known to help with ADD.


Caffeine in low doses (300mg or less is what I've read is safe, but I'd say 200mg or less) is perfectly fine. You function like a normal human being and usually does not alter your mood (though I've seen articles before on how caffeine has helped with depression). If you're not careful you can have some issues (like if you skip out on your cup of coffee you're tired or have a migraine), but that's only if you allow yourself to be dependent upon it and consume it in higher doses.

^With that being said, PLEASE stay away from sodas and most energy drinks (some aren't bad, and don't contain all those nasty chemicals, but they're few and far between, so 98% of the energy drinks sold in stores you really shouldn't consume). It's not the caffeine that's in them, it's also the carbonation and the sugars and the other energy boosters it puts in it.

Plus, most energy drinks ARE addictive. Once again, not simply the caffeine, but the sugars (sugar is VERY addictive too. In one test as addictive as cocaine. Scary, right??) and other artificial and modified energy boosters.

Sorry, editing time ran out! And I wanted to make sure I didn't support the use of energy drinks since I didn't really specify my stance on them.

 

[SweetShelly35]

I have had high anxiety lately and have had to take caffeine completely out of my diet. While I do agree that Caffeine is a very different drug than Marijuana, I think that the less drugs in our lives the better.

 

[lil_christian]

Alcohol is a drug. Caffeine is a drug. Meth is a drug. Marijuana is a drug.

Just to set things straight...

Alcohol is a depressant. Caffeine is a fairly mild stimulant. Meth is an Amphetamine. Marijuana is a mild hallucinogen.

Alcohol in very low doses is not bad. But don't drink it if you have a bad liver or bad kidneys.


Meth and Marijuana...well...just stay away. Those ARE dangerous. And they WILL destroy your life, whether you OD or lose everything you have to the drugs.

But if anyone wants more info on these sorts of things, ask me. I can tell you about different drugs and what they do and how they do it. (I'm taking a forensic science class this year. I just recently learned about all categories of drugs, who uses them, how some are made, where they come from, and what they do to you.)

(Sorry if I come across as rude at all in this post. I know that this post may seem like I'm acting like a know-it-all. Not my intentions.)

 

[jimmydiggs]

I'll drink caffeine if it comes with tea, or something else.

 

[wwjd_kilden]

"There is a difference between shaving and cutting your head off"

as for energy drinks?EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEwwwwwww.

PS: Tea consists either some sort of caffeine or something that is similar to it, I don't remember details of it.

 

[xAlphaOmega]

The only thing that Meth and caffeine really have in common is that they are labeled as a drug, but then again anything that changes your everyday state of mind is a drug. 5-HTP is considered a drug but it is also a natural occuring amino acid produced in your body.

I think a simple answer to whether caffeine is ok to consume is WWJD? Would Jesus down 4 red bulls one after another? Probably not. Would he drink a cup of tea or coffee? Sure, as long as it didnt affect him negetively in soul, body and mind. I also agree that everyone reacts different so there is no fine line when it comes to consumption.

 

[NodMyHeadLikeYeah]

Drinking coke gives me anxiety attacks.

It's totally worth it.

and i'm totally serious

 

[zaoman32]

However, I think I behave like a normal human being after half a pot of coffee,

Are you sure? (sorry I couldn't resist )

I try to consume at least two monster energy drinks per day, and if that doesn't get me going I'll throw in an Amp!

It might help to add that I'm lazy and have absolutely no ambition to get out of my bed and go to work...or get dressed...or get out of my pj's...or shower.....Good grief what is that smell?!

 

[lydever91]

I'm going to do my best to eliminate all forms of caffeine. Aside from being a nursing mother, I have three other children and a husband who need me to think positively so they stay in a positive mood.

Pro 31:28 Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.