Jan
22
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Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on June 4, 2010
A small research study suggests that the perceived ‘pick-up’ felt after drinking a cup of coffee may in fact be simply an illusion.
Researchers tested 379 individuals who abstained from caffeine for 16 hours before being given either caffeine or a placebo. Subjects were then tested for a range of responses that showed little variance in levels of alertness.
The study, published online in the journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, reports that frequent coffee drinkers develop a tolerance to both the anxiety-producing effects and the stimulatory effects of caffeine.
While frequent consumers may feel alert after drinking coffee, evidence suggests that this is actually merely the reversal of the fatiguing effects of acute caffeine withdrawal.
And given the increased propensity to anxiety and raised blood pressure induced by caffeine consumption, there is no net benefit to be gained.
Read in Full:Â http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/06/04/controversy-over-caffeine/14302.html