Nov102009
Caffeine Hiatus
Filed under food by Kim at 2:20 pm on Nov 10 2009
When I got sick a few weeks back, one of the things I was told was to stop with the caffeine. I am not a huge caffeine drinker; one diet coke a day, maybe two. I’ve always been a little sensitive to it, such that more than one cup of coffee sends me & my attention span into a place usually inhabited only by small terriers during a thunderstorm.
I was told in Nutrition class that intake of phosphoric acid in soda has been related to wacky things happening to your mineral levels through the pathways of absorption & elimination. It seems like the research on this is still pretty inconclusive – but it also seems like there are far better things to drink than soda out there.
At any rate, I had a habit, and when I stopped, there were repercussions. A full day of horrible headaches, though I have had worse. Then it was over and for 19 days I was fine. Until today, when I am ready to prop my eyelids open. Is it really worth continuing my caffeine hiatus? If I can make it to 5pm when I can hit the road then I guess the answer is “yes”.
1 Jenon 10 Nov 2009 at 3:32 pm
I’ve realized lately I’ve gotten more and more sloppy about this. I went strictly no-caffeine for a while after I was diagnosed with UC, then started letting it in once in a while. Now I have at least one caffeinated drink a day, and if I skip any I get a headache. Dumb. =/
It’s going to take a lot to pry Caffeine Free Diet Coke from my fingers, though.
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Kim Reply:
November 11th, 2009 at 10:53 am
Caffeine Free Diet Coke not being sold in most fountain drink places makes it so I don’t drink it much. Generally when I’m at the store I think “God, I don’t want to lug this home.”
I’ve started drinking the flavored seltzer waters, sugar free, that they sell in generic format at most grocery stores. No dark acidy stuff, but still with some flavor!
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2 Meganon 10 Nov 2009 at 9:50 pm
I drink tea constantly. Then I chase it with Coke Zero. And more tea. My real addiction is Starbucks Chai. I’ve been battling that one for 10 years now. I get off for a few months and then have just one . . . . AND it’s all over. I’ve been on a run with it lately and it certainly hasn’t helped reduce the waistline at all, so I’m trying to get off it again. But the chai I brew at home has no calories. Tea, tea, tea. I drink too much tea.
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Kim Reply:
November 11th, 2009 at 10:54 am
I guess I’m in luck that I just don’t like Tea that much.
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3 Fredon 10 Nov 2009 at 11:16 pm
I found it a lot easier to wean myself gradually off of caffeine when my sole caffeine source was tea, not sodas or coffee. If I was charting a path for you, I’d say go to black & green tea first, then just green tea, then to decaf green.
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Kim Reply:
November 11th, 2009 at 10:54 am
If only I liked Tea.
But in a way I don’t really need a path – I mean I just haven’t had the stuff in weeks at this point. I just need to get more sleep. 😉
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4 Beckion 11 Nov 2009 at 10:41 am
I stopped caffeine years ago and seem to be able to stay awake. But then I eat really well and exercise, too, which I think keeps me awake. You can do it!
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Kim Reply:
November 11th, 2009 at 10:55 am
God – my sleep would be so much better quality if I were working out every day.
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