Coffee — is it our friend or foe?

November 8, 2016 Food

Why does coffee cause sometimes tiredness?

The universal source of energy for every living being is adenosine triphosphate. It builds new cells and gives up energy. When the adenosine triphosphate then decays, adenosine is produced. Adenosine is a hormone that makes us tired. It helps us to switch off and go to sleep. The concentration of adenosine increases through the day and falls in the night when you are asleep. If too much adenosine is present, it gives the organism the signal that it is tired and needs to rest. People often wonder what it would be like if adenosine could be deactivated. Would we have endless energy? Would we be less tired? It turns out that adenosine is important because a lack of adenosine can cause nerve damage, brain exhaustion and insomnia.

Adenosine

Caffeine is able to block adenosine for some time to hold back tiredness and give you energy. But it is not enough just to block the adenosine. We also need energy. Coffee alone doesn’t give us energy and we also need adenosine triphosphate, which the body uses reluctantly.

For example: you’re tired and you drink coffee. It gives you energy for half an hour. But for this half an hour of energy you need to then rest for a few hours.

So it can be concluded that drinking coffee makes us more tired, because we have to pay later for that quick burst of energy and alertness by having a long rest. So you don’t gain time, but have to spend more time resting.

Habit

Enthusiastic coffee drinkers often say that they can’t wake up without coffee and that a morning without coffee is not a good one.

Many people who have given up coffee say that they feel better since giving up.

Is one cup of coffee a day OK?

The recommended daily dose of caffeine is 100—200 mg. But you should bear in mind that the active ingredients of caffeine are not only in coffee, but also in tea in the form of theine and chocolate.

Amount of caffeine in mg:

One cup of strong coffee: 100 – 150 mg
One cup of strong tea: 30 – 50 mg
Dark chocolate (100g): 50 – 100 mg
Glass of cola: approx. 15 mg