Caffeine: Addictive or Dependent

In a world where people depend on each other, many of these people depend on coffee as  well. It doesn’t matter where anyone is, but every morning, anyone can and will smell the smell of coffee, see coffee being consumed, or made by someone. Although coffee is not the only caffeinated consument, like coffee there are alternate fluid substances people may prefer. In a generation where people are always trying to succeed and “stay on the ball,” caffeine is something that a large amount of the people in this world depend on for their everyday lives.  Caffeine is not an addictive stimulant, but has the ability to alter and change how a person feels  mindfully.

According to The Drug & Health Blog article of The National Institutes of Health, “The world’s caffeine obsession can be described as a “dependency,” but is not an addiction.” Although caffeine seems like an addictive stimulant in a person’s everyday life, it is actually a dependent for a person to go about their day. Many of these caffeine consumers feel as if they are unable to function or perform their best when they do not get their daily dose. This is starting to sound a lot like a person who is addicted to drugs, but no, it is not the same. Caffeine, it is a widespread obsession that many people use to be more alert, which is also why it is the most consumed mood altering stimulant in the world. Again, the The Drug & Health Blog, from the same Institute previously given, states that “-- like many drugs -- caffeine enhances dopamine signaling in the brain.” Dopamine is a chemical that controls movement, motivation, and emotions. Since the dopamine in caffeine enhances the brain signaling, this makes a person more hyper and awake. No one likes to feel super tired or be sleepy when they have a full day’s worth of plans lined up. The success of one’s life comes in when the fact that people’s attitudes and actions differ by the level of alert and awakeness they feel. Therefore, consuming some sort of caffeine becomes a habit.

Caffeine is an effective way to get that energy that almost no one wakes up with. As stated before, caffeine contains a chemical called dopamine (which controls and changes the movement, motivation, and emotions by signaling the brain of a person). From an article about caffeine addiction by Deane Alban, this person has stated that although there are many upsides to “being addicted” to caffeine, particular things from the downside may not be good for a person. All of this would be a personal matter depending on the person’s body’s conditions. Alban also mentions that one of the main side effects of caffeine (not true energy) makes a person super tired, therefore if a person were to stop consuming caffeine completely, the withdrawal would be a burden. Alban gives a metaphor, “your brain on caffeine is like a car with no brakes and the accelerator pedal jammed to the floor.” Because the caffeine makes a person productive and more awake, during that time while the caffeine is rushing through the person, they are being drained of their true energy. Being so, once the caffeine runs out of the body, the body will remain super tired.

At the same time, studies that have been done on people who consume coffee on a daily basis shows otherwise. “The pre-clinical studies from The Institute of Scientific Information on Coffee shows that when a person drinks approximately two large cups of coffee in a day, it does not activate the brain circuit of dependence in humans, but activated regions involved in attention, vigilance, and anxiety…” This is saying that when a person says they depend on coffee to be “alive” and work efficiently, they actually mean that they enjoy what caffeine gives them which is activation of attention. When a person’s attention is activated, they would feel more productive and actually working their way up to succeed in life. Also this study is based just upon coffee. Throughout the day, people may consume more caffeine through other drinks or foods that they are consuming to trigger the dependency. Based on this study, people do not necessarily depend on caffeine or are  addicted, they just enjoy the certain activations it gives to their body. Being so, an article written by Karen Fernau from USA TODAY states that 83% of the adults in the U.S drinks coffee, meaning that on average they each drink three cups of coffee per day. Over half of the adults in this country drinks coffee daily, consuming at least three cups per day. The sole purpose of this would be what it does for the person. From personal experience, no one is born to like coffee. It is believed that the habitual tradition of waking up to consume coffee is what makes the people desire and depend on coffee.

When asked, people who depend on caffeine might say that they feel like they are addicted to consuming caffeine to better their daily lives. On a closer inspection, however, caffeine is not an addictive stimulant, but it does alternate a person’s mood and way of focus because of the dopamine in the caffeine. Although people of all natures may believe that caffeine is “addictive.” It is actually something that people enjoy and/or depend on to go on about their daily lives without fear of getting hooked.

Works CIted

“Caffeine and dependence.” Coffee and Health, 13 Sept. 2017, www.coffeeandhealth.org/topic-overview/caffeine-and-dependence-2/.

“Is Caffeine Really Addictive?” NIDA for Teens, teens.drugabuse.gov/blog/post/caffeine-really-addictive.

Alban, Deane. “All About Caffeine Addiction and Withdrawal & How to Quit.” Be Brain Fit, 24 Sept. 2017, bebrainfit.com/caffeine-addiction-withdrawal.

Stöppler, MD Melissa Conrad. “Caffeine Addiction: Can You Quit? by MedicineNet.Com.” MedicineNet, www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=43492.

Republic, Karen Fernau The Arizona. “Coffee grinds fuel for the nation.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 9 Apr. 2013, www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/04/09/coffee-mania/2069335/.