In my inmost being I always knew that my immoderate consumption of caffeine - mostly in form of coffee - cannot
be healthy. When my Christmas holidays started, I really had no reason to consume this black and bitter broth at all - I had no deadlines, no appointments, basically I was not exposed to any form of stress at all and could technically sleep and relax as long as I want during the day.
Going Cold Turkey
Thus, my plan was to simply stop coffee for a while and switch to the healthier alternative: tea. However, this task was much more difficult to achieve than I initially thought. On my first day, I was barely able to withstand this strong craving for coffee for a few hours in the morning, and eventually I gave in and turned on the coffee maker.
The second day, I unplugged my coffee machine and buried it deep in one of my cabinets in order to make it much more of a hassle to give in my craving. I tell you what happened: I didn't brew any coffee that day until early evening, but at the cost of severe headaches and pronounced fatigue. I ended up at the Starbucks Drive-Thru after when I drove home.
At this point I started wondering: Why is it so hard to live just one single day without a cup of coffee? I am perfectly fine if I don't have my daily glass of orange juice, but without getting my cup(s) of coffee, I feel like I am on heavy drug withdrawal.
Curious as I was, I did some initial research on the internet where I stumbled upon a book called "Caffeine Blues - Wake Up to the Hidden Dangers of America's #1 Drug" from Stephen Cherniske ever so often. After some more online search I read that the author is a recognized biochemist and nutritionist, who taught at universities, and has about 35 years of clinical and research experiences.
At this point, I was more than determined to read more about this addictive drug called caffeine. Thus, I got the eBook version of this 451-page long volume and started reading...
Caffeine Blues - Wake Up to the Hidden Dangers of America's #1 Drug
I devoured this book within a few days, because it was written in an incredibly accessible way, and furthermore, it was exceptionally thrilling for a non-fiction book. But more importantly, Steven Cherniske, in best research manner, conducts hundreds to thousands of research papers and studies (all references are listed in the appendix) to back up his points and claims.
I think I understate his case when I say his book is creepy; creepy in a positive way. Stephen's book is just eye-opening, and I am so glad that I rather read it sooner than later. While I was engulfing page by page, I was feeling more and more like a amphetamine-addicted rock star who was living just on the edge. In fact, I was just an innocent coffee drinker, just like everyone else on this planet - at least this is what I thought.
Stephen Cherniske explains why caffeine is so effective, and it's dangers and harmful effects on body and mind - from the increased release of stress hormones to the constriction of arteries, and eventually dangerous risks of heart attacks and strokes. He mentions the hidden dangers of the high caffeine dosages in soft drinks and other food, and outlines nasty political campaigns promoting the caffeine business.
Fortunately, the book just gives you the feel of the gloomy future of being caffeine-free. In the last chapters you get extensive advises and ideas for alternatives. The book ends with his so-called "Off The Bean" program, which will eventually help you to become caffeine-free more smoothly than I did with my "cold turkey" approach, which will hopefully help you to get around the initial torture of headaches.
According to the author, the complete "withdrawal" from caffeine takes about 3 weeks, and another 6 weeks until you will feel the positive effects. I am in week 2 now, but I already lost my craving for caffeine in any form: let it be coffee, soft drinks, etc.
I think I have already beaten this stress-fatique-disease spiral, and I am on my way towards a healthier 2013!
My complete article including pictures can be viewed under [...]
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This book could save your life
Back in 2019 i was consuming about 8 cups of straight black coffee a day, skipping breakfast, sometime eating a salad for lunch a decent dinner and then raiding the snacks and desserts at night. My hair was falling out, my skin was dry, my bones and muscles were weak, my mood was all over the place. I knew caffeine was a problem for me but couldn’t quit it. I ended up in the ICU for 5 days bc I suffered a stroke at the age of 33. To my doctors, i looked fine and they didn’t think the coffee caused it but i knew myself better than them. I quit drinking coffee and switched to black tea. I noticed i was still consuming too much even though i was feeling much better compared to when i was drinking 8 cups of coffee a day. I recently decided to just take the plunge and quit it all together, since i clearly just have an issue with caffeine all together. I bought this book and “Confessions of a Caffeine addict” to help me get through the withdrawals. I was only a few pages into this book and I was already convinced I would never touch the stuff again. I decided to quit cold turkey and haven’t had any caffeine in almost 3 weeks. That’s a miracle. I also placed an order with Teechino, i can’t wait to try allllll the flavors!
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MrD83
More people need to read this book...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 29, 2023