Over 2 billion people in the world start their day with a cup of coffee. Coffee is the second most popular drink in the world, and caffeine is by far the world’s most popular medicine. Caffeine has multiple benefits. It makes you sharper, quicker, and it makes you stronger, both mentally as physically.

How does caffeine influence your brain? 

When the caffeine reaches your brain, it battles with a neurotransmitter (brain fluid) that is called adenosine. Adenosine is an essential part of your sleeping-cycle. It builds itself up within the brain when you are awake, this is why your brain activity reduces during the day. At the end of the day, your brain has collected enough adenosine for your brain to not function properly anymore and for you to feel sleepy. While you are sleeping your brain will start breaking down the adenosine. If the adenosine is eliminated enough, you will wake up and start your day and this cycle will repeat itself. This also explains why it is better to avoid caffeine at the end of the day. After 16:00, caffeine can have a negative influence on your sleeping-cycle. An important note though is that caffeine doesn’t stop the production of adenosine. Which is why it is unharmful to your sleeping-cycle to take a cup of coffee in the morning. You will keep producing a normal amount of adenosine; you will feel less of its consequences because the caffeine masks the symptoms.

Why caffeine makes you happier 

Have you ever wondered why you always feel better after drinking a cup of coffee or taking a First Energy Gum? The answer may surprise you. Caffeine emphasizes the production of the so-called “feel-good” neurotransmitter in your brain, otherwise known as dopamine. Making you feel happy and jolly is not the only thing that dopamine does.

Dopamine also plays a crucial part in the emotional and mental health. It is also linked with motivation, desire, and fine motor skills.

Why is the impact of caffeine so different for everybody 

Why is your buddy always able to take on endless amounts of caffeine, while you almost fly through the roof after drinking one cup of coffee? This has to do with your weight. The heavier you are, the better you can take on caffeine. It can also be influenced by your genetics. Genes have a crucial part in the uptake of caffeine. Everybody takes up and breaks down a cup of coffee differently, this explains the differences amongst people in their reactions to caffeine. It is hard to give you one solid answer to this question. Caffeine-sensitivity can also vary under different age-groups. Caffeine-metabolisms slow down when you get older, although there are a couple of studies that say that people do not necessarily notice this change.

The cons of caffeine 

If you are taking too much caffeine, you will notice that a lot of the benefits will get lost. A happy mind can turn into irritableness, the focus will transform into severe shaking or shivering, and efficacy will turn into stress and anxiety. Another con is the laxative effect coffee can have when you get too much. To enjoy the benefits to the fullest and to reduce the negative symptoms to their bare minimum, it is important that you take no more than 2 to 5mg of caffeine per kilogram of bodyweight.