About the Edge of Excessive Caffeine?
My inspiration for writing this article is within reply to the various incidents within my clinical practice treating those with anxiety attacks and under-diagnosed caffeine intoxication. Every time a new client reports high anxiety it will go exactly the same: The customer enters session complaining of anxiety and panic symptoms with numerous reports of panic attacks and follow-up visits together with the psychiatrist, pleading for anti-anxiolytic medications. Many individuals haven’t heard of the physiological consequences of consuming excessive caffeine, and just how they’re commonly confused with panic and anxiety symptoms. Restlessness, nervousness, excitement, insomnia, flushed face, muscle twitching, rambling flow of speech, increased heart rate and psychomotor agitation for example. These are generally comparable to panic-like symptoms (Association, 2013).
Caffeine can help you awaken because it stimulates various areas of the body. When consumed, zinc heightens the neurotransmitters norepinephrine in the brain, resulting in increased levels so that it is be alert and awake. Caffeine creates the same physiological response just like you were stressed. This results in increased quantities of activity within the sympathetic nervous system and releases adrenaline. Exactly the same response you have access to on the stressful commute to work, or seeing a snake slither over the path with a hiking trip. Caffeine consumption also minimizes the quantity of Thiamine (Vitamin B1) in your body. Thiamine can be a known anti-stress vitamin (Bourne, 2000).
While penning this article one morning I observed the queue inside my local coffee shop. The long line wrapped round the store jammed with others attempting to wake up, in need of their daily caffeine fix. Many ordered large-sized coffee cups, some of which included caffeine turbo shots to help them survive their mornings. So how do we know when we’ve had an excessive amount of caffeine? Most assume their daily level of caffeine has little if nothing to apply their daily emotional health.
Let’s talk about how many milligrams have been in a day-to-day average sized 8 oz walk:
Instant coffee = 66 mg
Percolated coffee = 110 mg
Coffee, drip = 146 mg
Decaffeinated coffee = about 4 mg
Caffeine come in a variety of sources apart from coffee. The common cup of joe depending on the color along with the amount of time steeped contains roughly under 40 mg of caffeine per serving (Bourne, 2000).
Many popular soda drinks also contain caffeine:
Cola = 65 mg
Dr. Pepper = 61 mg
Mountain Dew = 55 mg
Diet Dr. Pepper = 54 mg
Diet Cola = 49 mg
Pepsi-Cola = 43 mg
Even cocoa has about 13 mg of caffeine per serving (Bourne, 2000). Energy drinks have high caffeine levels and really should be monitored also. To learn your overall caffeine intake multiple the quantity of consumed caffeinated beverages by the indicated average caffeine levels as listed above. Understand that one cup equals 8 oz. Even though you’re consuming one large cup does not imply it just counts together serving!
According the new Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) Caffeine Intoxication is a diagnosable mental health problem. Many of the clients I treat for a number of anxiety-related disorders concurrently get into the caffeine intoxication category. They eagerly seek psychiatric medication to scale back anxiety symptoms without first being assessed for lifestyle and daily stimulant consumption. The DSM-V’s criteria for caffeine intoxication is described as anybody who consumes over 250 mg of caffeine per day (compare your average caffeine level to 250 mg to gauge the quantity of caffeine consume daily) (Association, 2013). After just two servings of drip coffee you already meet the requirements for caffeine intoxication! It’s recommended that folks without anxiety problems consume less than 100 mg of caffeine every day. For people who have anxiety troubles it’s best to have 0 mg of caffeine a day so that the anxiety arousal system isn’t triggered by anxiety-induced substances.
The majority of the clients who report being affected by panic disorder recall on the day that they had a panic attack that they can usually consumed a supplementary caffeinated beverage, in comparison to the days without panic and anxiety attacks. Each client is assessed for caffeine intoxication one of the first steps I take is always to produce a behavioral want to conserve the client reduce their daily caffeine. The majority of my clients let me know anytime having reduce their caffeine they almost immediately feel good and much less anxious. Once the client is right down to 0 mg occurs when I can finally ascertain if the anxiety symptoms are connected with anxiety, caffeine intoxication, or both.
Should you qualify for caffeine intoxication there are many techniques to reduce your caffeine levels. High doses (specially those from the caffeine intoxication zone over 250 mg) are greatly prone to caffeine withdrawal symptoms such as headache, fatigue, depressed or irritable mood, difficulty concentrating and muscle stiffness (Association, 2013). It’s recommended to slowly lessen your caffeine intake to reduce withdrawal symptoms. For best results try lowering by one caffeinated beverage per month (Bourne, 2000). For example should you consume five servings of coffee a day try reducing to four cups every single day for any month, then into three cups every day for one more month and continue before you are at least under 100 mg if not 0 mg.
More information about How To Overcome Caffeiene Addiction check the best resource.