Caffeine Blues: Wake Up to the Hidden Dangers of America's #1 Drug [Paperback]

Stephen Cherniske (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1998

Pulls together all the latest research & details the full scope of caffeine's detrimental effect on our physical, mental & emotional well being.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Get ready to give up that morning latte and kiss cola goodbye. Here comes Caffeine Blues, by Stephen Cherniske, M.S., the first book to expose the dark side of America's No. 1 drug: caffeine. If you are one of the nearly 80 percent of Americans hooked on caffeine--a natural component of coffee, tea, and chocolate and a common ingredient in drugs, soda, candy, and other products--this book will be a wake-up call.

In Caffeine Blues, Cherniske, a nutritional biochemist with more than 25 years of academic research and clinical experience and author of the bestseller The DHEA Breakthrough, reveals the truth about caffeine and explains how to kick the habit forever. Cherniske discusses how caffeine affects the body and brain and why it can increase your risk of dozens of health disorders ranging from osteoporosis, diabetes, and PMS to hypertension and heartburn. After spending 300 pages documenting all of caffeine's evils, Cherniske finally offers a decaffeinated life line: "Off the Bean and on to Vitality," a step-by-step, clinically proven program to help readers kick the habit and boost energy levels naturally. --Ellen Albertson

From Library Journal

Nutritional biochemist Cherniske claims that people who consume more than 300 milligrams of caffeine per day are victims of caffeinism: a state of chronic toxicity resulting from excess caffeine consumption and a major contributing factor to heart disease, hypertension, stomach ailments, diabetes, and sleep disorders. Cherniske also warns that most coffee beans are contaminated by pesticides, which harm not only drinkers but also exposed agricultural workers. For conservationists, he highlights the effects of the pesticides on the land and water surrounding the plantations as well as the destruction of the rain forest to make room for coffee plantations. The presence of caffeine in over-the-counter medicines, candy, and soft drinks is stressed, especially in the addiction of children. Cherniske also suggests alternatives to caffeine and ways of quitting the habit. While his book is thought-provoking, its rhetoric is somewhat extreme. Not a necessary purchase.?Janet M. Schneider, James A. Haley Veterans Hosp., Tampa, FL
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 451 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books (December 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446673919
• ISBN-13: 978-0446673914
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 1.2 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (77 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #63,251 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Nutrition > Caffeine

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

71 of 74 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars To thine own self be true June 28, 2004

By johnnyqb

Format:Paperback

I have loved coffee for much of my life. I have even been heard to utter, in mock appreciation of Socrates, that "the uncaffeinated life is not worth living." One time I quit coffee, felt really good, but during a flat stage, I got back on, more than ever, with the comment that without caffeine, I had lost the "joy of living." I have read this book by Cherniske. I have read all the reviews here. I have laughed hardest at the ones that recommend "The Caffeine Advantage," which supposedly about how great caffeine can make your life. Perhaps this book is over the top in its indictment of coffee and caffeine. But the fact is, that I will not quit the stuff without a little shouting at me to do it. Those reasonable persons who would suggest to have only a cup a day or so, or who only have coffee in the morning, or who can go weeks without it, with no headaches; well, more power to you. But I am not one of you. I am an ADDICT. I cannot drink coffee in moderation. I can only drink it to excess, and it invariably messes up my life. It messes with my sleep patterns, leading me to get less sleep and to then be tired often during the day. It screws up my diet, causing me to binge on sweets to try to counter the feeling of being too hyped up and hungry from caffeine. It messes with my breathing, as I occasionally experience a shortness of breath sensation that I notice when I am drinking lots of caffeine. And most of all, I know all of this in my heart. I know that caffeine is bad for me, that using it is using a powerful drug, and that the only answer for me is to get of it completely. There is no possibility of moderation. I have tried that most earnestly and failed. This book has provided the only successful incentive I have ever had to make a serious effort to get myself off caffeine. And I have not done it yet. It is a battle. But I know it must be done. As I write this, I am in day 3 of weaning off in accordance with the guidance of the book. To sum up, referring to the title of my review, look at your own heart. You know, many of you, that caffeine is bad for you. So don't kid yourself, get off of it, and be the person you were created to be.

188 of 209 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Caffeine or Snake Oil? February 12, 2003

By C Olson

Format:Paperback

This book will scare the coffee right out of you -- at first. Maybe growing up around Mormons made me always a bit suspicious of coffee, and drinking the strong brew served in Tokyo certainly confirmed that you can overdose on it.
But Caffeine Blues laid more crimes to the body at the door of the Bean than there are Kennedy conspirosy theories. Except for regular strident comments about the medical profession ignoring caffeine (I have certainly seen plenty of warnings), he makes a logical case that caffeine induces stress-like reactions in the body, which long term, are bad for the body. Enough said for me to give it a go.
The disappointment sets in with his Off the Bean program which includes good advice about easing off coffee and adding exercise and sleep, but also suggests taking half a dozen supplements that I would need to read a dozen books to feel safe with. Precious little is said about them.
It turns out he is president of a company that makes stuff to make you better. And the FDA did make him sign a consent agreement to stop over-promising about his fountain of youth consummables and tests. (Search Findlaw under his name). So I worry he has overstated some of the research referred to related to caffeine.
But he has raised enough points about caffeine, and done it in a reasonable enough tone, that I will go without for a while.
Interesting read, but maybe to be taken with a grain of salt.

83 of 90 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Informative December 16, 2001

By Deborah A. Woehr VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

Caffeine Blues has a wealth of information about the side affects, most of which I was experiencing. At the beginning is a checklist to see how addicted you are. In the next chapter, Cherniske explains the origins of caffeine, which was interesting. The majority of the book explains what caffeine does to the major organs of your body, including your brain and your cognitive thinking skills.

It took Cherniske 301 pages to say that caffeine is legalized speed. Yeah, no kidding. I tried to go turkey and fell flat on my face. Caffeine is a highly addictive drug, one which can produce severe withdrawals. He lists several alternatives to wean yourself off, such as weakening your coffee with milk. For the soda addicts, he suggests alternating every other can with caffeine-free soda, herbal drinks, or water. Plus he suggests Ginseng, Vitamin B-6, and St. John's Wort, among others to keep you alert. Exercise was another suggestion. With that, he warns the reader not to get out of breath because that will lower your blood sugar, thus making you more tired.

I have to say that this book was helpful, although I have to agreee with some of the other reviewers in that he seemed overzealous in his campaign against caffeine and its products. One cup of coffee or one can of soda per day isn't going to hurt you. But if you drink eight cups a day for 10+ years, yes, you will feel the effects.

I give this book three stars because it is well written and informative; however, I feel that the author spent way too much time brow-beating us to the point where I wondered if this wasn't some sort of political, Thought Police kind of ploy to incite a mass panic within the general public. While I would recommend this book, I would also read others in order to make an intelligent, educated choice about caffeine and its long-term effects.