Generally, people would go for that cup of coffee because of its great taste. But when drinking coffee becomes a habit, your system would crave for another even when your brain does not ask for it. As the impulse grows stronger while the intake frequency increases, you will notice that you can no longer go on a day without sipping a cup or two (or more).
For some reason, we drink coffee because it makes us feel more alive and energetic. College students who pull an all-nighter would always have a cup of smoldering coffee from time to time to fight off drowsiness. Office employees who stay late for work would make sure they have a mugful of coffee by their side for the same concern.
Indeed, coffee has been a neighborly drug in keeping us awake. All thanks to the one who makes this possible–caffeine.
What is Caffeine?
Caffeine is a psychoactive drug that stimulates the central nervous system and the brain. Consumption of caffeine will make you stay awake, alert, active, and sometimes, perky. It is the world’s most consumed legal mind drug.
Coffee is a popular source of caffeine. Cherries, after harvest, undergo a series of preparations like drying, fermentation, roasting, mixing, grinding, etc. Ginhong mixers are one of the most consistent and reliable industrial mixers in China that are used for coffee making operations.
Typically, an 8-ounce coffee cup contains caffeine that’s approximately 80mg to 100mg. However, the caffeine content differs according to the brand, type, origin, brewing, and processing of the coffee.
Interim Before Caffeine
When we consume or use food and products, we’d have to wait for some time before witnessing or feeling the effect come into reality. As for the caffeine in coffee, it won’t take that long before you feel the jolt in your body.
As stated in Mental Health Daily, it takes around 10-20 minutes after the first sip of coffee for the caffeine to work. Would you believe that even the decaffeinated coffee still has 2 to 3 percent of a regular coffee’s caffeine content? Yes, one study had found that.
Within 45 minutes of ingestion, 99% of the consumed caffeine through beverages like coffee gets absorbed by means of the GI tract, then distributed throughout the body. The U.S. Institute of Medicine (2001) says that caffeine passes the blood-brain-barrier (BBB) and the neurotransmission becomes altered. This happens through the active hostility of the adenosine receptors. They upregulate excitement throughout the brain and body; thus, the onset of rapid energy and action flow.
The Caffeine Placebo Effect
Have you experienced anticipating something so much that you thought it happened before it actually occurred? That’s the placebo effect. Sometimes, we become so inclined to think way too much about getting a certain feeling or experiencing a particular upshot, that we begin to believe it really does happen.
Caffeine induces the same thing to us. When we drink coffee, due to prior knowledge of the caffeine effect, we believe that we become active, energized, enthusiastic, all awake–even before the magic kicks in. In a miraculous way, this makes the effect more potent and stronger.
The caffeine placebo effect is defined as an advantageous effect and a notable change in the neurophysiology, ensuing from the preexisting belief. Once you firmly believe that you will receive the effect caffeine instigates, your neurophysiology will be modified, in favor of your expectation. Therefore, your focus becomes enhanced. Your energy becomes intensified. All just seconds or 1-2 minutes after your coffee intake.
Factors That Affect The Celerity of Caffeine Kick
The following are some variables that determine or affect how quickly the caffeine in coffee takes effect on an individual.
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1. Administration
What is the mode of intake? Of course, we frequently drink coffee than consume other products with coffee and caffeine content. But you should know, the intravenous way of administering caffeine is known to take effect faster.
At what time of the day do you consume your coffee? Studies show that coffee in the morning boosts the onset of caffeine outturn. Moreover, caffeine is said to kick in quicker on an empty stomach. Full one slows its immersion or absorption.
2. Caffeine User Genetics
Specific genes of one coffee drinker affect the length of time it takes to become operative. People with the A/A genotype achieves faster caffeine metabolism than those with an A/C or C/C variant.
3. Dosage
Caffeine content differs by coffee type as well. There are various types found in coffee shops, convenient stores, warehouses, etc. They come in distinct forms as well; there are whole beans, coarse grind, and even pods and capsules packaged by AFPAK.
Brewed coffee in an 8-oz coffee cup normally carries 95mg of caffeine. Decaffeinated coffee contains 2mg. A 12-oz coffee brew coffee has caffeine ranging from 153mg to 238mg. An 8-oz instant coffee holds 62mg. Espresso, on the other hand, has 63mg of caffeine in a 1-oz shot.
4. Caffeine Tolerance
People with high caffeine tolerance definitely find it hard to absorb caffeine all throughout their bodies. In contrast, people who have low or zero tolerance are most likely to get hit more strongly and fastly by caffeine.
5. Duration of Caffeine Use
For how long do you consume caffeine through a cup or cups of coffee every day? It matters. The duration of caffeine use also marks significance in the quickness of caffeine kick.
Conclusion
Although we all love coffee, we should always drink moderately. Too much coffee means too much caffeine as well. This also inflicts some negative effects on the human body. Yes, caffeine helps us in so many ways including study and work. But, always remember that everything must be consumed in moderation.