![]() The pituitary gland thinks that means danger, so it tells the adrenal glands to release even more adrenaline – and the adenosine receptors are powerless to slow the flow.īottom line: to an extent, caffeine helps to stimulate and energize us. ![]() Second, since caffeine is a stimulant it causes the nerves in the brain to get excited. Adrenaline and the other hormones are given free rein to course throughout the brain and body, and neurons fire unimpeded. So when caffeine blocks adenosine receptors, it’s having an effect there too. They are also responsible for controlling surges of “feel good” and “fight-or-flight” hormones and neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine and adrenaline. There are two reasons why that effect can be so powerful.įirst, adenosine receptors do more than just receive messages from adenosine molecules. But what about the energizing effect that a cup of coffee (or two) can deliver? You can thank caffeine for that, too. That explains one element of coffee’s ability to jolt us awake and keep us going. As a result, it feels like caffeine wakes us up – even though what it’s really doing is preventing us from getting tired. When it interacts with adenosine receptors, it blocks adenosine from reaching them to deliver their “you are getting very sleepy” messages. More and more adenosine is produced during the day, which is why we get more and tired as the day wears on. The biochemical messenger adenosine normally binds with those receptors, carrying messages that tell the body to become tired. More specifically, it’s a powerful central nervous system stimulant.Ĭaffeine keeps you awake because it’s able to interact with the brain’s adenosine receptors. Needless to say, that’s because of the caffeine in coffee.Ĭaffeine occurs naturally in a number of plants, but don’t let that fool you. ![]() If someone asked you about coffee’s #1 benefit, health and wellness wouldn’t even come to mind. The type of coffee you drink may somewhat affect the benefits – but as long as you’re not drinking decaffeinated coffee, you’ll be benefiting greatly from that delicious cup of joe. (Diluting black coffee with milk or cream will obviously affect the amount of caffeine you consume in each cup.) And there’s really no difference between light, medium and dark roasts. There’s more caffeine in cold brew than in regular coffee, but there’s slightly less in instant coffee. Espresso contains much more caffeine, per ounce, than brewed coffee. There’s twice as much caffeine in coffee made from robusta beans as there is in brews made from Arabica coffee beans. Many, but not all, of coffee’s benefits can be attributed to its high caffeine content. Not many of us drink coffee specifically because of its many health benefits. We drink it to sober up after a long night – or to help get over the hangover the next morning.Īnd, needless to say, we drink it because it’s the ultimate “social beverage.” We drink it as the perfect way to finish a terrific meal. For that matter, America loved coffee long before the first Dunkin’ Donuts opened in 1950. And Dunkin’ sells even more coffee than that.īut we were all drinking coffee long before three guys went into the coffee business in Seattle back in 1971. Worldwide, Starbucks sells four million coffee drinks each day, and the United States is – by far – their biggest market. The integration of Starbucks deeply into our everyday lives certainly has something to do with that. The average American, in fact, drinks more than three cups of coffee per day. About 3.5 billion pounds each year.Ħ2% of us drink coffee every day.
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