6 ms·

I am surprised no one has mentioned chronic caffeine consumption and its role in promoting anxiety and stress.

digitalsushi 4y ago
I'm reading this book, "Why We Sleep" by Matthew Walker, and it says the half-life of caffeine is like up to 8 hours ... so having a 3pm coffee means going to bed at midnight with half of it still active. I've cut coffee out of my diet after noon lunchtime, and I think it's helping ... tough to be sure but as long as I believe it, it's pretty good
- watwut 4y ago
  I don't think that book is generally considered scientific. It contains a bunch of opinions, but it is not peer reviewed article and not everything in it is backed by good studies.
  - baal80spam 4y ago
    Correct, it's been blasted several times in the past even here on HN. I'm sure you can find the threads if it interests you.
- mgolawala 4y ago
  I have noticed the same effect as well. There is a noticeable difference to the quality of my sleep on the days I have consumed caffeine and the days that I have skipped it. The quality of your sleep likely has effects on your mood, energy levels and over all stress levels. However, I was referring to the direct effects of caffeine on your stress and anxiety levels. I would go so far as to say that if you are taking steps to reduce your stress and anxiety levels, quitting caffiene should be on the list of some of the first things you try. (Alongside the usual advice of good sleep, exercise, meditation and diet) Some reading for those who are interested: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4668773/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4668773/ "After adjusting for additional dietary, demographic, and lifestyle covariates, positive associations between total weekly caffeine intake and anxiety and depression remained significant" https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34871964/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34871964/ "Caffeine also increases anxiety in PD patients as well as among healthy adults at these doses although the exact relationship between caffeine-induced anxiety and panic attacks remains uncertain. The results suggest that caffeine targets important mechanisms related to the pathophysiology of PD." https://web.archive.org/web/20200130090750/https://www.psychology.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/NZJP-Vol251-1996-7-Hughes.pdf https://web.archive.org/web/20200130090750/https://www.psych... "Regular consumption of high levels of caffeine can lead to a condition known as 'caffeinitis'" which is characterized by chronic subjective anxiety" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffeine-induced_anxiety_disorder https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffeine-induced_anxiety_disor... https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/anxiety-and-caffeine https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/anxiety-and-caffei...
stbenjam 4y ago
Quitting caffeine was the second best thing I did for treating my anxiety (and taking San Pedro/mescaline was the first best).

I'm reading this book, "Why We Sleep" by Matthew Walker, and it says the half-life of caffeine is like up to 8 hours ... so having a 3pm coffee means going to bed at midnight with half of it still active. I've cut coffee out of my diet after noon lunchtime, and I think it's helping ... tough to be sure but as long as I believe it, it's pretty good

watwut 4y ago
I don't think that book is generally considered scientific. It contains a bunch of opinions, but it is not peer reviewed article and not everything in it is backed by good studies.
- baal80spam 4y ago
  Correct, it's been blasted several times in the past even here on HN. I'm sure you can find the threads if it interests you.
mgolawala 4y ago
I have noticed the same effect as well. There is a noticeable difference to the quality of my sleep on the days I have consumed caffeine and the days that I have skipped it. The quality of your sleep likely has effects on your mood, energy levels and over all stress levels. However, I was referring to the direct effects of caffeine on your stress and anxiety levels. I would go so far as to say that if you are taking steps to reduce your stress and anxiety levels, quitting caffiene should be on the list of some of the first things you try. (Alongside the usual advice of good sleep, exercise, meditation and diet) Some reading for those who are interested: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4668773/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4668773/ "After adjusting for additional dietary, demographic, and lifestyle covariates, positive associations between total weekly caffeine intake and anxiety and depression remained significant" https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34871964/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34871964/ "Caffeine also increases anxiety in PD patients as well as among healthy adults at these doses although the exact relationship between caffeine-induced anxiety and panic attacks remains uncertain. The results suggest that caffeine targets important mechanisms related to the pathophysiology of PD." https://web.archive.org/web/20200130090750/https://www.psychology.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/NZJP-Vol251-1996-7-Hughes.pdf https://web.archive.org/web/20200130090750/https://www.psych... "Regular consumption of high levels of caffeine can lead to a condition known as 'caffeinitis'" which is characterized by chronic subjective anxiety" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffeine-induced_anxiety_disorder https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffeine-induced_anxiety_disor... https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/anxiety-and-caffeine https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/anxiety-and-caffei...

stbenjam 4y ago

Quitting caffeine was the second best thing I did for treating my anxiety (and taking San Pedro/mescaline was the first best).