To most of us, our daily coffee, tea or Diet Coke routine is as automatic as breathing. Sure, we know that the stimulating effect of caffeine is part of the equation, but most of us have no idea of the side effects of caffeine are nor how profoundly our buzz of choice has affected our brains. In its purest form, caffeine would be indistinguishable from cocaine and would only take a teaspoon of it to kill you. Now for most of us, our mild addictions won’t put our lives at risk, but this leads to some worries as to how our simple morning coffee affects the chemical make-up of our brain and, subsequently, the future generations.
How can caffeine affect me if I take too much? Caffeine consumption is a daily occurrence for many people around …show more content…
Caffeine is readily available in products, everything from gum to energy drinks, marketed to children and young adults. We know caffeine can aid a person’s alertness, but when it affects children’s sleep, it could be detrimental to their brain development. This could really hold them back from reaching their full potential.
The National Sleep Foundation recommends that school-aged children get at least ten hours of sleep each night. A study from Nutrition Research shows that every 10 milligrams of caffeine a thirteen year old boy consumes each day increases his chances of getting less than 8.5 hours of sleep by 12 percent (Krans).
A new study in the PLOS ONE journal concerns caffeine consumption in pubescent lab rats. Researchers found that young rats who consumed the rat-sized equivalent of the caffeine in three or four cups of coffee daily experienced reduced sleep and delayed brain development. “Caffeine impacts development by disrupting the formation of key connection in the brain,” said study author Dr. Reto Huber. During adolescence, your brain has the most neural connections it will ever have during your lifetime. “This optimization presumably occurs during deep sleep. Any disruption of this sleep pattern can harm a child’s brain development”
How can caffeine affect me if I take too much? Caffeine consumption is a daily occurrence for many people around …show more content…
Caffeine is readily available in products, everything from gum to energy drinks, marketed to children and young adults. We know caffeine can aid a person’s alertness, but when it affects children’s sleep, it could be detrimental to their brain development. This could really hold them back from reaching their full potential.
The National Sleep Foundation recommends that school-aged children get at least ten hours of sleep each night. A study from Nutrition Research shows that every 10 milligrams of caffeine a thirteen year old boy consumes each day increases his chances of getting less than 8.5 hours of sleep by 12 percent (Krans).
A new study in the PLOS ONE journal concerns caffeine consumption in pubescent lab rats. Researchers found that young rats who consumed the rat-sized equivalent of the caffeine in three or four cups of coffee daily experienced reduced sleep and delayed brain development. “Caffeine impacts development by disrupting the formation of key connection in the brain,” said study author Dr. Reto Huber. During adolescence, your brain has the most neural connections it will ever have during your lifetime. “This optimization presumably occurs during deep sleep. Any disruption of this sleep pattern can harm a child’s brain development”