explain to me the logical basis behind deterring coffee consumption...

I advise all of my clients to kick the coffee habit, or at least go straight black so they don't drink as much.

The cummulative effects of coffee drinking (3-4 cups a day for life... like most coffee drinkers do) can add up pretty quickly. Blood pressure elevation and stress hormones being the two obvious ones.

Some not so obvious ones would be dehydration/bloating (coffee is a diuretic, after all), short term memory function (caffeine alters the way the brain can recall in the short term, vs. w/o caffeine), liver metabolism (your liver has to clean out that junk and it takes days.... preventing fat burn for one thing), and lastly... cosmetic changes (obvious staining of teeth, premature aging)

I lived in a place with a free instant-coffee bar and I started drinking it habitually, didn't even notice I had gotten hooked. I kicked the habit by replacing it with white or green tea in the mid morning. And also drinking lemon water and cranberry juice when I wake up to flush my kidneys and liver.

Being dependent on something SUCKS any way you slice it.

 

less people hogging the office toilet.

 

Given the number of "studies" about various health matters these days. The only rule that applies to virtually anything that doesn't contain mercury or rat poison is....
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
MODERATION.

I just ignore everything health officials say and use common sense. Personally, I don't generally have more than 2 cups a day and almost never drink coffee after lunchtime.

 

A few years ago my uncle got really really sick on a Monday morning. He couldn't go to work and he got worse throughout the day. My aunt started to worry and eventually ended up taking him to the hospital. He was in excruciating pain. Eventually they figured out that he hadn't drank any coffee and it was literally caffeine withdrawal. **** is serious.

 

It is good to drink a cup of coffee daily to boost your metabolism. That's what I read in health magazines.

Thank god, I'm not a coffee addict. I hardly drink coffee. I drink it when I'm soooo tired.

 

Coffee rocks!!!!!!

Coffee Health Risks: For the moderate drinker, coffee is safe says Harvard Women’s Health Watch.

Despite 20 years of reassuring research, many people still avoid caffeinated coffee because they worry about its health effects. However, current research reveals that in moderation—a few cups a day—coffee is a safe beverage that may even offer some health benefits. The September issue of Harvard Women's Health Watch weighs the pros and cons of this popular beverage and eases the concerns of moderate coffee drinkers.

The latest research has not only confirmed that moderate coffee consumption doesn't cause harm, it's also uncovered possible benefits. Coffee may reduce the risk of developing gallstones, discourage the development of colon cancer, improve cognitive function, reduce the risk of liver damage in people at high risk for liver disease, and reduce the risk of Parkinson's disease. Coffee has also been shown to improve endurance performance in long-duration physical activities.

Source: Harvard Health Publications, Harvard Medical School, 2006.

 

Ah ha! You've inadvertently answered your own question?

Why are you a zombie in the mornings? Shouldn't you just feel normal?

You're a zombie because you just went 8 hours (during sleep) without caffeine and now your body is showing withdrawal symptoms. THAT's why you drag ass in the morning if you don't have your coffee - your addicted ass is suffering from withdrawal, and your solution is to just put more of the drug into your system (just like any other addict to any substance).

If you break yourself of the addiction, you wake up in the morning without being a zombie and without feeling the need for coffee.
 

 

Caffeine for the morning drowsiness, penicillin for a cold, morphine for some pain.

How did we become a race of fragile miserable people?

WTB natural selection, rid the weak.

 

I drink three. Take it with Splenda and Soy Milk creamer.

 

Yep, it's about moderation and knowing your own body. Caffeine does help boost brain function such as decision making, but there are obvious tradeoffs.

Some are afraid of getting addicted, plus there's the crankiness factor when the fix isn't satisfied.

As a stimulant, it does increase stress. For people with anxiety or suffer from stress and ulcers, it's just another notch on the root causes.

I recommend cutting the amount you drink in the morning and pacing the remainder throughout the day. It's not as satisfying without that quick adrenaline boost (and the coffee can get cold and stale), but most people began drinking coffee to help them function, and not to be satisfied.

 

I was addicted.

Drank at least 5 or 6 cokes a day.

Eventually, I didn't like the fact that I pee'ed a LOT and couldn't get to sleep at night.

I stopped consuming caffeine entirely.

Had a splitting headache for a week straight. Nonstop. Had it when I went to bed. Had it when I woke up. Had it all day. Really, really painful.

That's when it occurred to me that Coca-cola was punishing me for not consuming their product. They were making me go through physical pain because I was choosing not to purchase or consume their product any more. Starbucks does it, too.

That's bullsh!t.

I'll never go back to being an addict. I won't let them own me that way.
 

 

I enjoy coffee. I've cut back cokes during the day to no more than 2...and usually only one. But coffee is proof of God.

 

I've cycled on and off coffee for awhile now. Most recently I got back to where I was totally addicted to caffeine again and was drinking two cups of coffee in the morning and at least two cokes before I left the office, only to go home and drink cans. Suddenly I realized how much I was drinking and I was sick to my stomach. I'd gained 15 pounds.

I quit drinking caffeine altogether and cut my soda consumption to one sprite a day. The second day was miserable. My head hurt so bad all day long that it made me want to cry just to try to think.

 

I bet that if you weren't addicted, you wouldn't be saying that.
 

 

The only time I drink coffee is when I'm overseas dealing with jet lag. It just isn't for me. The smell is great but the taste disappoints. But until DonnyMost's post above, I didn't think there was any real downside to drinking coffee, even lot's of it.

The notion of needing coffee to function properly is repulsive to me, which is another reason I never drink it. I feel sorry for people who fall into that rut. But that is a personal decision.

 

Have you read Lamb? Jesus invented the latte.

 

I bet I still don't care.

I have kicked the caffeine habit before and come back to it at least twice. I see no reason to not drink coffee if you enjoy it. I drink, at most, 2 cups in a day....and never past about 11 am.....unless I want some with dessert if I'm out for dinner. I don't have any problem with that.

 

Ever tried Metamucil?