There’s nothing like that twelfth cup of coffee in the morning!
Last night I attempted to finish all homework that will be due during this upcoming Rush Week so that I would not be stressing later on. It was around 2:30 a.m. and the majority was done, only a science blog post remained. At this time my eyes were drooping, blood shot, and trying to burst from my skull, but my goal was set; I was to get it done. So I did what any normal college student would do…ran for some more coffee. I think we can all agree that it is life source and needed by the majority of Americans in order to survive an entire day. As I drank, i began to realize that anything that can provide such a simple scape-goat and defy the rules of our own body (such as take your tired butt to sleep), then there has to be some bad effects. I looked them up.
Caffein is a chemical derived from coffee, tee, and is most often used as a central nervous system stimulant. I am aware that we all know caffein is addictive which I a bad thing, so I will not go on about that and waste your time. What I will tell you is this;
- it is one of the major causes of sleep apnea
- it rises blood pressure leads to heart disease and stroke)
- can cause serious pregnancy problems
- contributes to the causes of bipolar disorders and anxiety disorders– I watched a good friend of mine have a nerous break down after having her first cup of coffee because she couldnt handle the “rasing thoguhts” (she had been on some medication for a while)
- major factor contributing to diabetes
- glaucoma– 30 minutes after caffien intake the pressure behind ones eye increases drastically and lasts for up to 90 minutes
- osteoporosis– caffien flushes out major amounts of calcium in the urin which bones need in order to stay strong and healthy
- the list goes on and on and continuously gets more shocking
We all know that there are some harmful effects of caffein; that much is obvious. However, I did not realize the severity of it all. One minor thing can cause major long and short term issues I had not been aware of. The FDA has even issued many warnings about the dangers of caffien. College students all over the world have died due to pure caffein overdoses in order to stay up that extra hour to finish a blog post. From now on, I will stick to my bar of candy and work on a sugar high instead of drinking those eight cups of coffee (that is, until I no longer fit in my jeans).
I had no idea that there was such a long list of negative effects of caffeine and it’s really shocking to see that coffee drinkers aren’t more aware of what they are doing to their body. Before coming to college I rarely set hands on a iced mocha, but after the first week of class I began to need something to stay awake in order to finish all my homework. I think students, including myself, see it hard to find an alternative to having enough energy to complete assignments that isn’t hurting their health. Some easy and natural ways of helping your body refuel itself can simply mean eating the right things and getting more sleep. I am a victim of simply reaching for a cup of coffee at least 5 times a week, but hopefully soon I can train my body to naturally get the energy it needs.