It's Monday morning, and despite the rainy day that would normally have you cursing the AM and wishing you could stay in bed forever, you're actually wide-eyed and bushy-tailed and ready to get to work. Think it's because you've had the first infusion of coffee for the day? Think again!Findings from a recent study published online in the journal of Neuropsychopharmacology (a combination of neuroscience and the study of how drugs affect the mind) show that caffeine might not actually give you the added jolt of stimulation we've all come to rely on it for, according to this article on PsyOrg.com.
The study tested the alertness levels of 379 subjects, half of whom were given coffee and the other half given a placebo after abstaining from caffeine for 16 hours. The results showed little variation in how alert these people were, suggesting that coffee may not be the upper we think it is.
But, you might say, this can't be true because even though you're a regular coffee drinker, you do feel more alert when you get that morning cup of caffeinated goodness. Well, you'd be wrong. What you're getting when you have your daily latte is relief from the fatigue caused by acute caffeine withdrawal—basically, coffee bringing your body back to the state it would have been in if you didn't love that dark drink as much as you do.
Remember when we shared the news that weight loss could just be a question of mind over matter? Well, it seems that the same is true of caffeine highs. So if you really need to wake up (or stay awake) for work, you might want to try some of the alternatives we've listed below.
(Photo source: sxc.hu)
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