What Happens if You Give Up Coffee?
Coffee, like most things, is good in moderation. When it comes to a Cuppa Joe, however, a lot of people find it difficult to moderate their coffee consumption. Excess coffee consumption can lead to such problems as anxiety, insomnia, digestive problems and energy crashes. As a result, some people decide to go cold turkey on coffee. So, what happens when you give up on coffee?
Here are 6 things that happen when you nix the coffee habit
Headaches
People who go cold turkey on coffee often experience headaches. The ironic thing is that drinking too much coffee can also bring on a headache. When you stop drinking coffee suddenly, you will flood your body with the hormone adenosine, which leads to those nasty headaches. If you taper off your coffee intake slowly, you will be less likely to suffer from withdrawal headaches.
Withdrawal Symptoms
Giving up on coffee suddenly can lead to a host of withdrawal symptoms. These may include:
Dizziness
Insomnia
Listlessness
Moodiness
These withdrawal symptoms may last for as long as two weeks.
Constipation
Caffeine has a stimulatory effect on the colonic muscles. When you stop drinking it, you may experience a reversal in colon functioning which prevents you from being regular. You can offset this effect by increasing your fiber intake. A psyllium husk fiber supplement is a good idea. You should also drink more H2O, replacing every former coffee drinking occasion with a glass of water.
Whiter Teeth
By now, you may be thinking that giving up coffee doesn’t seem worth it. Not so. The next few effects of going coffee free are all positive, starting with whiter teeth. The caffeine in your coffee is extremely acidic. It will stain your teeth and eat away at your tooth enamel. Giving up will have an immediate and noticeable effect on your teeth.
Improved Concentration
We all know that caffeine is often taken to improve your concentration. It does this by flooding your system with chemicals that provide you with a buzz. Often this is followed by a post-consumption crash. This unnatural concentration boost has a negative effect on your long term ability to concentrate. When you stop drinking coffee, you will be able to enjoy a more sustained, long term concentration ability.
Stress Reduction
If you’ve been in the habit of drinking three, four or more cups of coffee each day, it’s likely that you've been experiencing the stress related effects of over consumption of caffeine. These include an elevated heart beat, shaking extremities and an unnatural wired feeling. When you drop the coffee, your stress level will be immediately lightened.
The Best Way to Give Up Coffee
Most of the negative effects of giving up on coffee occur because you do so too quickly. To avoid them, you should taper off your consumption. Reduce by a cup per week, replacing with water until you reach your consumption goal. If you decide to stick with a cup each day, it won't harm you - just go easy on the added sugar!
