How Does Caffeine Keep You Awake? And More Things

Caffeine is consumed worldwide, and it is most consumed in form of coffee.

This also is found naturally in certain types of tea and cacao beans and is also used in soda, chocolate, energy drinks, to boost performance.

The primary goal of caffeine consumption is to combat fatigue and drowsiness (1).

However, excessive caffeine intake may affect your sleep, also has some other side effects, like anxiety, increased urination, restlessness, etc.

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How Does Caffeine Keep You Awake?

First Understand – What Process Behind the Sleep, which you will understand how caffeine work on this – easily?

Caffeine actually doesn’t give you energy, it just triggers your brain in thinking, that you are not tired.

It simply triggers in your brain a compound called adenosine (which is built up in the brain along you are awake).

During the day our muscles and brain are normal workings, also when your awake the levels of adenosine in the brain rise each hour.

Once adenosine is released it binds to receptors in our brain, which promotes muscle relaxation and sleepiness.

As the day progress, adenosine is released more each hour, which causes sleepiness and fatigue by triggering those receptors.

Second, understand – Now, here we will know how caffeine triggers adenosine to help you stay awake?

Caffeine and adenosine are almost similar in structure, which makes caffeine a perfect match for adenosine.

When you drink a cup of coffee, where it goes through your bloodstream to your brain receptors.

As we know, caffeine and adenosine look so similar, and this is where the caffeine is bound to the receptor, where adenosine should have been.

Now the brain stops receiving adenosine signals, which leads to an increase in blood pressure and heart rate, which keeps you alert and awake.

NOTE: Basically, caffeine takes the place of adenosine, by binding to itself in receptors, which stop the sleeping process.

Third Understand – Caffeine is metabolized as time goes on, which takes at least 4 to 10 hours.

Now the receptors are opened again and adenosine goes straight to attached to them, this results in the feeling of falling asleep again.

But consuming frequent coffee to stay person awake, can have negative effects on sleep, as well as on both health also.

How much is considered To be Awake?

It depends on the situation, person’s weight, and health condition, some people are sensitive to caffeine, but some are completely opposite.

For example – If you want to stay awake a full night, then a cup of coffee or 100 grams is enough to stay awake for 8 to 10 hours.

Caffeine in coffee, content depends on many factors including:

• Which types of the bean are used
• How the coffee is prepared
• If the coffee or tea is in a teabag, brewing time can also affect caffeine.

How Much Caffeine Is Disturb Sleep

Caffeine intake time can also disturb sleep and the time of taking it should also be according to the condition, such as:

Before sleep: It suggests that consuming 400 mg caffeine in form of coffee, before 3 or 6 hours may disturb sleep (3), Which also reduced the sleeping time by 1 to 2 hours.

Caffeine can also impact your circadian rhythm, which can confuse our internal clock, Dr. Mike says.

It’s recommended that appropriate sleep hygiene practices are to avoid caffeine close to bedtime (4)

So make sure, to sleep at the same time, and wake up at also the same time, this will save you from becoming dependent on coffee.

However, before a workout is considered good, it suggests that consuming coffee before 30-45 minutes of a workout, allows a person to reach a peak during exercises.

Food and Drinks That Contain Caffeine

There are many caffeine-related food and drinks which we consumed in our daily life. such as:

• Coffee is the most caffeine-consumed beverage, drink such as brewed, espresso, instant, decaf, and brewed.
• Tea, black tea contains more caffeine than white, and green tea
• Energy drinks, use caffeine to boost performance.
• Soft drinks
• Sodas, like commercial Pepsi, coco-cola, mountain dew, etc

Foods that caffeine include:

• Chocolate, whether it is chocolate ice cream, hot cocoa, chips, milk, cookies, and especially dark chocolates.
• Some protein and energy bar
• Workout protein powder, supplements
• Guarana
• Some medications also contain caffeine, to provide extra strength, boost performance, etc.
• Chewing gums

Caffeine During Any Medical Condition

The FDA has approved caffeine for the treatment of apnea or the prevention and treatment of bronchopulmonary of premature infants (5) (6) (7).

Researchers show that caffeine has been associated with decreased all-cause mortality (8) (9).

During pregnancy, an American college of obstetricians and Gynecologists have considered 200 mg is safe for pregnant women (10)

A result of one study found that a pregnant women’s consumption of 100 mg of caffeine per/day was allied with a 3.0% increase in the odds of low birth weight.

Caffeine may also interact with breastfeeding women and their babies.

Research has shown that a large amount of caffeine can make the babies irritable, and fussy, which may cause trouble in sleeping (12)

Caffeine Benefits

Caffeine does a lot of things in our body, which will we define its pros and cons form, which include:

Some people tells that coffee can promote sudden poop, but the truth is that caffeine affects the GI system in people in different ways people.

Research showed that caffeine really released the secretion of the hormone called gastrin, which promotes digestion (13).

Help in weight loss: Research has shown that having a black cup of coffee does not break your intermittent fast, which means, can help in weight loss.

Check Out – Unspecific 10 Reasons Why You Losing Weight

Promote heart health: Caffeine lower blood pressure, by secretion of epinephrine, and adrenaline, which decreases the chance of heart attack.

May treat Alzheimer’s disease: Research on caffeine has been shown to be effective in preventing β-amyloid production and memory deficits in Alzheimer’s (14) (15).

Increase focus, endurance, strength, speed which all has been tested and found that boost workout before 60 to 90 minutes.

Side Effects

Caffeine can be useful in walking you up and keeping it stimulated, but can also jittery sensation, which causes anxiety or sweat.

This is because it activates the flight and flight response.

Research has shown that overdoing or consuming caffeine by a small amount can increase anxiety, headache, depression, and panic attack (16).

Excessive consumption of coffee or caffeine may show potential side effects on pregnancy outcomes (17)

Caffeine side effects were seen only when we overdo it.

It some other mild to severe side effects, which report has been made on the basis of research on people. which include:

• Anxiety
• Restlessness
• Insomnia
• Diarrhea
• Increased urination
• Muscle twitches
• Irritability
• Facial flushing
• Irregular heartbeat
• GI upset
• Fidgeting

NOTE: people with kidney issues, avoid caffeine, which can make your condition worse.

Research has shown that more than 400 mg every day, are allied with lower birth weight (LBW), which increases the risk of miscarriage.

Severe side effects

• Discomfort
• Ischemia
• Seizure
• Hallucinations
• Ischemia

Withdrawal Symptoms of Caffeine

If its consuming habits suddenly stop, some withdrawal symptoms may also be seen. These symptoms will appear 12 to 24 hours.

And withdrawal peaks at 20–51 hours, and may last up to two to nine days. its withdrawal symptoms such as:

• Headache
• Difficulty in sleeping
• Fatigue
• Decreased alertness
• sad mood
• difficulty in focus
• Not clear mind, weird thoughts
• Decrease in satisfaction
• Irritability
• Decreased energy
• Decrease in satisfaction (20)

If a person consumed a high amount of caffeine daily, then even more withdrawal symptoms are seen.

These symptoms tend to recur after consuming caffeine, but if a person sticks with hard dedication, then these symptoms often disappear within a few days.

BOTTOM LINE

Avoid consuming caffeine or coffee shortly before going to the bed, about 3 to 5 hours.

But how does caffeine keep you awake? – Basically, caffeine replaces adenosine, by binding to itself in receptors.

Caffeine is excellent for keeping you awake, but overdoing it can disturb your sleeping pattern, which effect will be visible on your overall health.

So make sure not be depend on it, sleep on time and get up on time, because its withdrawal symptoms are worse your condition.