By Megan McKeever
It’s hard to believe that only 77 students at the University admit to their caffeine addiction via the Facebook group “I’m addicted to caffeine, energy drinks, and Red Bull.” Each morning there are well over 77 students who line up and wait at Burlaps, Café on the Quad, and Kobrick’s Coffee to get their jolt. Of course the closer it gets to class time, the more the lines resemble that of a ticket master’s, and the stragglers have to decide how long they are willing to wait.
“The line is always out the door, but I would rather be five minutes late to my 9:35 am class than fall asleep during it and learn nothing,” said junior Sarah Lackner. “If it allows me to be more productive during the day, then it’s fine by me.”
Like Sarah, many students associate the idea of alertness with caffeine, which is partially correct. Caffeine is considered to be both a mental and physical stimulant, with mood-altering effects.
“It increases alertness, cognition, and reaction speed; because it combats fatigue, it improves performance on vigilance tasks,” according to a 2005 National Geographic magazine. While this “alertness” is a part of caffeine’s perks; there are down sides too. Just think of how great you felt during class, ready to take on the day with that coffee in your hand. Fast forward several hours and that caffeine high is not only over, it has completely reversed.
“I get a coffee, I’m awake, and my attention is better,” said sophomore Meaghan Davidson. “And then in about three or four hours I get really tired again, and I have a headache, my eyes are heavy. I just get really fidgety, and I need another.”
Maureen Houck, M.S., director of the Health and Wellness Center believes that the problem with caffeine extends much further than just coffee.
“I think everybody is used to getting their cup of coffee in the morning,” Houck said. “My concern is that amount of caffeine used in these energy drinks. Caffeine is a drug.”
This continuous cycle is what keeps students dependant on their daily caffeine fixes. While it is quite hard to fully abuse caffeine, it is easy to go a little over your limit. Just as there are side effects for caffeine withdrawal, there are equally as many for reaching this limit. Jitteriness, increased tension and a rapid heart rate are all clear signs that whatever caffeinated drink you have at the moment, needs to be put down. Just like how your body gets used to having caffeine at certain times each day, it also gets used to having certain amounts, so when you push the limit, your limit changes.
Aside from the withdrawal effects, caffeine really does not have any big dangers to it, as long as you have it in mild amounts and you do sleep at night. Dr. Barbara Shorter, director of the Didactic Program in Dietetics at Long Island University summed it up.
“Moderation is the safest bet,” Shorter said. “While too much caffeine can cause your heart to race, moderate amounts, like at most two to three cups of coffee a day, or a few cans of soda, are just fine.”
Houck stated that over-using caffeine can become a destructive part of an individual’s lifestyle.
“It [caffeine usage] becomes a vicious cycle,” Houck said. “Certainly if you have a Red Bull at 10 p.m. and 12 a.m., and then you try to go to sleep at 2 a.m., it is not happening. I believe the American population relies on too little sleep, and this runs especially true for college students.”
If having two to three cups a day of coffee isn’t enough for you, then maybe it’s time for you to join that Facebook group.