Exploring the Effects of Caffeine Consumption

By Anna Esquibel

As week five of the quarter approaches, you'll find more students occupying the library to study for their midterms and work on their mid-quarter projects — and more students walking to class with a cup of coffee or an energy drink in hand.

Junior Laura Antonelli usually consumes two cups of black coffee per day, an amount that can escalate to four or five cups per day during stressful weeks, such as midterms.

Although she considers herself to be a healthy person who exercises regularly and gets an average amount of sleep, Antonelli admits that she is uncomfortable with the amount of coffee she drinks.

"I have tried to quit drinking it, but the late nights and early mornings that come with my schedule make that difficult," she said.

Constant consumption of caffeine, a stimulant drug naturally found in coffee and used as an additive in energy drinks, has been shown to create symptoms of physical addiction, according to a study conducted by psychology professor Laura Juliano from American University and behavioral psychology professor Roland Griffiths from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Also, overconsumption of caffeine can trigger symptoms of withdrawal, including headaches, muscle pain and stiffness, lethargy, moodiness and irritability.

Sophomore Reid Gaa, who drinks both coffee and energy drinks two to three times a week in order to stay awake for school, acknowledged the negative effects excessive coffee consumption may have.

"I try not to drink coffee when I don't need to because, when I do, I stay up a lot later and feel more consistently tired because of that," said Gaa.

For college students in general, caffeine can become especially precarious when consumed with alcohol.

According to Alison Bateman, health educator at the Wellness Center, one of the biggest risks of energy drinks is the role of caffeine in masking the effects of alcohol and essentially interrupting the mechanisms the body has of reducing the harm that can come with overconsumption of alcohol.

"When high amounts of caffeine, such as what is in energy drinks, are consumed with alcohol, someone may not realize how intoxicated they are, and may consume toxic amounts of alcohol, or drive while intoxicated without realizing how impaired one is," said Bateman.

Furthermore, there is little knowledge surrounding energy drinks' long-term effects.

"Most energy drinks have not been studied by the FDA," said Bateman. "And some of the ingredients added to energy drinks have not been studied thoroughly enough to know what long-term effects they may have."

When asked about students' tendencies to mix alcohol and caffeinated drinks, Gaa said that he believes the mixing stems from a "convenience."

"I wouldn't necessarily choose to chase with Red Bull, but if that's the only thing that's at a party, I'll use it," he said.

Some student entrepreneurs have decided to make a profit from students' high caffeine consumption.

In 2011, junior Jared Bradley and his brother created Courage Juice, an energy drink marketed to help the drinker act less inhibited in social settings.

In order to market the product as a social drink, Bradley plans to sponsor party houses around Santa Clara that embody a social environment that will support the company's branding. In return for putting a sign-up for Courage Juice in their house, the house will receive free packages of the drink.

Although their product could be used with alcohol in these sponsored houses, Bradley did not express any concerns about the potential mixing.

"We don't tell our customers to mix the drink with alcohol nor do we provide the alcohol with our drink," said Bradley. "We just wanted to create a sound product for people to enjoy, once they purchase the product it is up to them how they wish to use it."

Courage Juice has become popular at Santa Clara and is also being sold at Sacramento State University, University of California, Davis and San Jose State University.

However, despite his product and its popularity, Bradely said that he has currently quit drinking all energy drinks, including Cougar Juice, because he felt he was becoming addicted to caffeine.

Antonelli also expressed concern for a possible caffeine addiction.

"I never truly feel awake until I have my first cup of coffee," she said. "It's extremely difficult to focus and if I haven't had one for a whole day, you do not want to mess with me."

Even though she knows the lasting effects of caffeine overconsumption, Antonelli shared that she has begun to develop a reliance on caffeinated drinks.

"I know that caffeine is like a drug so I am essentially addicted to a drug," Antonelli continued. "I've heard the impact it has on my body, but it gets me up and through the day. I call it the ‘juice of life.' "

Contact Anna Esquibel at aesquibel@scu.edu.