What Are the Side Effects of Drinking Too Much Coffee?

Drinking a cup of coffee in the morning has become an American custom. Caffeine has become part of our daily diet, and we can’t seem to get enough of it. Not only does coffee help make us active, but it also has a plethora of health benefits.

However, you should be a little wary if you’re drinking more than 4-5 cups of coffee every day. Did you know that there are reported side effects of drinking too much coffee? Too much caffeine consumption has been linked to numerous health risks. Practicing caution is a sign of self-awareness, so keep on reading. We have compiled a list of the side effects of drinking too much coffee. 

Anxiety

This is one of the most noticeable side effects of drinking too much coffee. Caffeine is a known stimulant of the central nervous system. It blocks the neurotransmitter adenosine, which makes you feel tired, and it also triggers adrenaline production. The release of adrenaline might cause a person to feel increasingly energetic or jittery.

Too much caffeine consumption can heighten the abovementioned effects and cause anxiety. Caffeine-induced anxiety is a documented mental disorder listed in the DSM Journal of the American Psychiatric Association. 

Consequently, drinking too much coffee can cause feelings of nervousness or jitteriness. In extreme cases, or in people with a history of anxiety, there have also been reports of shortness of breath and rapid breathing. If you notice similar feelings while drinking coffee, it might signify that you’re having too much coffee.

Headaches

Since it is a psychostimulant, people can get addicted to coffee.

As a result, it becomes the daily driver for people, helping them function efficiently. This is one of the reasons that caffeine is used as an additive in certain pharmaceutical drugs. Coffee addiction is not a metaphor; you can trigger an effect called “caffeine rebound” if you have below-average caffeine levels in your body.

What happens is that your body gets used to certain levels of caffeine, so drinking coffee helps you be more active. But your body experiences withdrawal-like effects when the caffeine leaves your system. Affected people often complain about experiencing frequent headaches when they go without coffee for too long.

Insomnia

You might be wondering how sleeplessness might be considered a side effect of drinking too much coffee instead of a prized quality. Well, boosted energy levels and insomnia are two different things. While caffeine does help boost productivity and alertness, it is also known to interfere with normal sleep cycles.

Too much caffeine intake can make it difficult to fall asleep. Since the person feels energized, getting restorative sleep becomes a hurdle. Moreover, caffeine also decreases the average sleeping time of a person. In such a case, a cycle of caffeine dependency can gradually turn into troubling insomniac episodes.

Genetics can also play a factor in caffeine metabolism and tolerance, but you might want to cut down on drinking coffee during the night as a cautionary step. It takes caffeine 5 hours, on average, to be removed from the system.

Dehydration and Digestive Issues

If you drink more than two cups of coffee every day, you might have noticed how thirsty it makes you. Caffeine is a natural diuretic, which means that it makes you have to pee more frequently. It increases blood flow to the kidneys and increases urine production.

As a result, people who drink coffee get easily dehydrated. Severe dehydration can cause fatigue, cramps, constipation, and other health conditions. 

Similarly, too much caffeine intake is also linked to the development of different digestive issues. The laxative effects of coffee are well-known. They are associated with releasing the hormone gastrin, which aids in digestion. Caffeine is also known to stimulate the muscles for bowel movements.

Consequently, drinking too much coffee can cause one to have loose stools, bowel irritation, and even watery diarrhea. These symptoms might be more intense in individuals with a past history of digestive disorders, such as patients with GERD (gastroesophageal disease). 

Moreover, chronic constipation and digestive disorders are among the known causes of various benign colorectal diseases, such as hemorrhoids and fissures.

Increased Blood Pressure and Heart Rate

Although caffeine does not contribute to heart disease or strokes, the known side effects of drinking too much coffee include increased blood pressure. It’s a byproduct of caffeine’s stimulatory properties that result in the release of adrenaline. 

Increased blood pressure can be concerning in individuals with cardiac disorders or heart disease history. Similarly, it can also contribute to the risk of developing strokes in the long run. You might want to consider scaling down your coffee intake if you have a natural tendency for high blood pressure.

Similarly, adrenaline also causes the heart to beat faster. Besides anxiety, a rapid heart rate is one of the most noticeable side effects of drinking too much coffee. 

Drinking too much coffee can cause a condition called atrial fibrillation or altered heartbeat rhythm. Reports of the condition in young people mention increased intake of coffee and energy drinks, both of which contain high levels of caffeine. 

It is also important to mention that these effects vary from person to person, and some people might exhibit increased tolerance to the side effects of too much caffeine. But, if you notice similar symptoms, it would be wise to consult your local physician and simultaneously cut down on coffee. 

Recap

To summarize, coffee is a great beverage. It helps us wake up in the morning and pushes us to remain active throughout the day, but too much caffeine can be bad for our health. Side effects of drinking too much coffee include symptoms such as insomnia, addiction, fatigue, anxiety, muscle breakdown, and dehydration. 

We hope you learned from our list of side effects of drinking too much coffee. While this list did not cover each of the side effects, we did mention some of the more important and common ones. Whether it’s coffee or anything else, always remember that an excess of everything is bad!

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