5 symptoms of a caffeine addiction!

Caffeine is a very accepted way to keep yourself awake in the Netherlands. Had a bad night? Long day at work? Pour in a cup of coffee and you can get back to it. What is sometimes forgotten is that coffee can also simply be addictive. And you really don't have to drink ten cups a day for that!

If you are sensitive to it, a few headlines can already lead to considerable dependence. How much caffeine per day can still be called responsible? And how much caffeine is actually in coffee, tea and energy drinks? And how do you know if you have a caffeine addiction? It's all covered in this blog post!

How Much Caffeine in Coffee?

Let's first take a look at where such a caffeine addiction can come from. For many people, of course, coffee is the culprit - the main source of caffeine. And indeed it can add up considerably.
Let's first look at where such a caffeine addiction can come from. For many people, of course, coffee is the culprit - the main source of caffeine. And indeed it can add up considerably.

One cup can contain up to 100-120 mg of caffeine, depending on its strength. Weaker coffees contain a little less, but 80 mg is really the minimum. A good dose, so.

That doesn't mean that coffee is the only culprit. A source of caffeine that is often overlooked is tea. Nevertheless, it is good to take this into account! A mug of green or black tea contains less caffeine than coffee, but still about half.
However, that's not to say that coffee is the only culprit. A source of caffeine that is often overlooked is tea. Nevertheless, it is good to take this into account! A mug of green or black tea contains less caffeine than coffee, but still about half.

You can keep about 30 to 40 mg, depending on how strong you brew the tea. This does not apply to herbal teas and similar blends. They are simply free from caffeine.

Finally, a source of caffeine that is especially popular among young people: energy drinks. Cans with Red Bull and similar products give an even bigger kick than coffee. Not only do they contain as much caffeine as coffee, but also a huge dose of sugar.

For that reason, energy drink is by far the unhealthiest source of caffeine. Coffee and tea are a lot healthier, as long as you don't consume an excessive amount of them; they have some additional advantages.

If you drink a few cups of tea and coffee a day, it quickly adds up to hundreds of milligrams of caffeine. But is that always a problem? Fortunately, you don't have to. The Nutrition Center recommends drinking a maximum of 400 mg of caffeine per day. That's like three cups of coffee and four cups of tea, or four cups of coffee. So the limit is not very low!

Moreover, there are also people who can handle a little more. What is important to realize is that there are also people who should drink less. A caffeine addiction can also occur with less, if you are dependent on it. But how do you know if you have an addiction? The following five symptoms are clear signs:

Do you usually wake up in the morning with a pounding, heavy head? And does that feeling only disappear after a cup of coffee - or two? Then that is a clear sign of dependence on that coffee.

Such a headache in the morning is actually a kind of miniature drug withdrawal. Your supply of caffeine has not been replenished all night. So your body is yearning for another â € ˜shotâ € ™ by the time you actually open your eyes again!
Such a headache in the morning is actually a kind of mini drug withdrawal. Your supply of caffeine has not been replenished all night. So your body is yearning for another â € ˜shotâ € ™ by the time you actually open your eyes again!

Caffeine has a stimulating effect, which is exactly why it is so popular. And in the morning that is - provided you don't need it too much - of course fine. But do you want to have a cappuccino after dinner to finish your work? Bad idea! In fact, your coffee already affects the quality of your sleep six hours before bedtime.
Caffeine has a stimulating effect, which is exactly why it is so popular. And in the morning that is - provided you don't need it too much - of course fine. But do you want to have a cappuccino after dinner to finish your work? Bad idea! In fact, six hours before bedtime, your coffee already affects the quality of your sleep.

Caffeine blocks the neurotransmitters that your sleep hormones have to make. People with a caffeine addiction often have a very disturbed sleep rhythm. They lie awake every night for a long time, and once they sleep they still barely rest.

And even outside your bed too much energy can cause problems. When you take in too much caffeine by default, it can make you feel nervous. You constantly have the feeling that there is still a lot to be done and you can never completely relax. An accelerated heart rate is also a clear physical sign of this problem.

Excess caffeine can also lead to massive bouts of irritation. You constantly feel so worked up that even the smallest setbacks can seem like a big problem!

A clear sign of a caffeine addiction is that your tolerance for caffeine is increasing. In other words, your body is doing less and less with it, so you need more and more for it.

Did a cup of coffee make your head clear in the past? Nowadays two are hardly enough. For most people this development will stop at some point, but that does not mean that you are no longer addicted.

And the last signal of course is that you will have problems if you stop taking caffeine! Many fanatic coffee drinkers will have serious problems with this within a day.

Headache, tremendous irritability, trembling hands, drowsiness… In other words, you've clearly become dependent on caffeine. How severe these consequences are, of course, depends on how much coffee or tea you were used to drinking.

Do you notice that you tick off these points very precisely? Caffeine isn't necessarily unhealthy, but that dependence isn't a good thing. You will often find that you will feel clearer and more relaxed once you have gone through that withdrawal period! And after that, a cup of coffee from time to time can no longer hurt. So we would definitely recommend avoiding caffeine for a while.

And luckily we have good news in that regard. Caffeine addiction is relatively easy to overcome. It will take about a week for the symptoms to largely disappear, with two weeks to get all the last bits out of your body. So just bite through the sour apple. It doesn't take long and the result is worth it!