Does Caffeine have an Effect on Memory?

In today’s world, there are a number of different chemical elements, supplements, drugs, stimulants and energetic substances that can make a powerful impact on human organism, daily functioning, activity level, memory and everyday interactions. Caffeine is one of the most popular stimulant drugs that make a direct impact on human brain; it is a source of energy for most of people in modern world. Millions of people consume caffeine regularly to improve their energy level and stamina, increase their level of activity, and enhance strengths and memory abilities. The topic about caffeine consumption and its effect on human memory has become a hot issue of debate among researchers, physicians, and psychological experts who continuously strive to provide evidence about caffeine benefits and risks to human body and processes in organism. Some researchers insist on caffeine’s positive influence on human organism, including memory abilities; a lot of evidence indicates that caffeine can improve the individual’s learning and thinking abilities and boost long-lasting memory. Others argue that despite caffeine’s positive effects on brain and physical performance, the impact of this stimulant drug on memory can become a controversial topic. Many physicians and psychologists explain that despite caffeine’s short-term benefits, this powerful stimulant can lead to a number of health complications, make negative impact on the individual’s cardiovascular system, emotional health, increase anxiety, promote dehydration, and encourage dependency. Despite, in modern world, it is impossible to avoid caffeine consumption but it is possible to regulate the amount of caffeine people consume daily; under moderate use, caffeine can bring multiple benefits to human organism, make protective effects from cognitive decline, improve long-lasting memory abilities, and even eliminate the risks of Alzheimer’s disease later in life.

Caffeine, memory, caffeine-containing products, reasons of caffeine consumption

Caffeine is a most widely-used dietary ingredient, a powerful stimulant known for its positive and negative effects on human body. Caffeine can be “naturally found in coffee beans, cacao beans, kola nuts, guarana berries, and tea leaves including yerba mate” (Heckman et al., 2010, p. 77). Coffee, tea, soft drinks, energy drinks are considered common sources of caffeine. Statistics shows that nearly 90 per cent of the world’s population (mainly young people, especially college students, and adults) consume caffeine daily in order to enhance mental alertness, increase the level of physical activity, lose weight, strengthen concentration and focus on concrete activities, learning, and memory performance. Evidence indicates that “ninety-nine percent of ingested caffeine is absorbed and distributed to all tissues and organs” (Leonard, et al. 1987, p.1048). Being a powerful stimulant, caffeine does not produce “true” energy but only stimulates the individual’s functioning in general, including memory and cognitive abilities, performance, and the level of physical activity. Memory means a unique process of maintaining information over time. Numerous studies and data indicate that a person’s memory significantly depends on the amount of caffeine he or she consumes daily. This powerful stimulant influences people’s ability to take information around (scenes, pictures, and images, interactions, communication, specific places, time, words, names, etc.), process it, store it and recall it later.

Positive and negative effects of caffeine on human health

Study after study indicates that “caffeine is an efficient drug, crossing the blood-brain barrier quickly to block adenosine receptors that are distributed widely throughout cortical regions” (Sherman et al., 2016) In other words, caffeine plays a role of powerful stimulant that quickly reaches the brain and affects memory, the individual’s performance “quality”, and cognitive abilities. Through the last decades many scholars have explored caffeine’s positive and negative impact on human body. This popular stimulant is known with its cognitive-enhancing effects and long-lasting memory improvements. Caffeine strengthens memory, increases people’s physical activity, concentration, and learning abilities. According to Heckman et al. (2010), “performance benefits attributed to caffeine include physical endurance, reduction of fatigue, and enhancing mental alertness and concentration.” (77) Additionally, a number of studies indicate caffeine’s positive impact on weight loss and “reduction of the overall risks for developing the metabolic syndrome” (Heckman et al. 2010, p. 77). Different studies conducted over the years found multiple health benefits of caffeine consumption starting from immune system improvements, elimination of muscle pain, enhancement of stamina and strengths during the day, or protection against spasms, and ending with elimination the risks of kidney stone, liver fibrosis, Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, and dementia later in life. Study after study shows that “coffee drinking of 3-5 cups per day at midlife was associated with a decreased risk of dementia/AD by about 65% at late-life” (Eskelinen, & Kivipelto, 2010, p. 167). Some research studies have found positive impact of caffeine on cardiovascular system, immune system, central nervous system, and gastrointestinal system within human organism. According to Cappelletti et al. (2015), coffee plays a role of powerful stimulant and all caffeine-containing products and beverages can make an impact on the cardiovascular system, “with their positive inotropic and chronotropic effects” (71), as well as the central nervous system, “with their locomotor activity stimulation and anxiogenic-like effects” (71). In general, many young people and adults consume caffeine-containing products to regulate weight, improve hair growth, cognitive abilities, and enhance physical performance during the day. Caffeine is also known for its powerful addictive effect, which often leads to a number of health risks, both physical and emotional, within human body. Under moderate consumption, caffeine provides many benefits to human organism and daily but people, especially young adults, often develop physiological dependency and abuse that occurs inside the brain, which requires them to increase the frequency and amount of caffeine they consume daily. Dehydration is another serious issue which can lead to exhaustion and make a negative impact on all systems’ functioning and processes inside human body, the individual’s mental health, performance, and well-being. Cappelletti et al. (2015) explained that “caffeine abuse and dependence are becoming more and more common and can lead to caffeine intoxication, which puts individuals at risk for premature and unnatural death” (71). Physicians explain that if a person takes more than four cups of coffee a day, it can lead to number of side effect such as headache, insomnia, emotional instability, anxiety, muscle tremors, irritation, problems with urinary system, cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal system, central nervous system and other systems within human body. Caffeine overdose can lead to serious health complications, especially in children and pregnant women (Heckman et al. 2010).

Evaluation and diagnosis

According to Leonard et al. (1987) “the effects of caffeine intake differ greatly according to acute or chronic intake, level of intake, and the development of tolerance” (1048). Under moderate use, caffeine can be beneficial to human physical and mental health. This powerful stimulant affects cognitive abilities and physical performance (Cappelletti, et al. 2015), increases the individual’s concentration, prevents or restores memory losses (Cappelletti, et al. 2015), enhances memory performance, attention, mood, alertness and wakefulness (Sherman et al. 2016). High doses of caffeine can make a slow devastating effect on human physical health, daily functioning, interactions, behaviors, and emotional well-being. High amount of caffeine induce anxiety, emotional instability, irritation, problems with sleeping, and heart disease. Evidence indicates that chronic caffeine intake can cause dependence and addiction, which in its turn may lead to serious health complications, insomnia, irritation, emotional instability, problems with different systems within human body (central nervous system, cardiovascular system, urinary system, digestive system). Leonard et al. (1987) study found that caffeine can lead to “induce hypertension, arrhythmias, altered myocardial function, increased plasma catecholamine levels, plasma renin activity, serum cholesterol levels, increased production of urine, gastric acid secretion, and alterations in mood and sleep patterns” (1048).Caffeine dependence also causes emotional disturbances, mood swings, blood sugar swings, chronic migraines and other vascular headaches, nervosas, high blood pressure, high cholesterol level, and osteoporosis. In some cases, caffeine overdoses lead to intoxication, heart failure, and lethal effects.

Treatments and prognosis

Caffeine is a powerful stimulant and its overdose can lead to a number of health complications, chronic diseases, cardiovascular illnesses, insomnia, nervosas, emotional instability, irritation, and other mental health issues. In order to reduce/manage the symptoms of caffeine overdose, it is essential to completely eliminate the caffeine from a person’s body. Physicians control the patient’s breathing rate, blood pressure, and heartbeat, regularly take temperature, blood, and urine tests to determine the amount of caffeine in human body. Activated charcoal helps to prevent caffeine from entering the gastrointestinal tract. In order to avoid caffeine intoxication and overdose, it is crucially important to control the amount of caffeine-containing products and beverages people consume daily, drink lots of water, exercise regularly, and support a health lifestyle. Only under moderate use and healthy dieting, caffeine can bring multiple benefits to human physical and emotional health, and strengthen memory.

Summary

Caffeine is a popular psychoactive substance that can make a powerful impact on memory, cognitive abilities, and physical performance but it can also induce abuse and dependence. In modern world, it is almost impossible to avoid caffeine consumption but it is possible to regulate the amount of caffeine people consume daily. A number of studies indicate that under moderate use, caffeine does not cause negative effects on human organism and daily functioning; instead, this powerful stimulant can bring multiple benefits, make protective effects from cognitive decline, improve long-lasting memory abilities, immune system, nervous system, mental health, and metabolism processes, and even eliminate the risks of Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, and dementia later in life.

References:

Cappelletti, S., Daria, P., Sani, G., & Aromatario, M. (2015). Caffeine: Cognitive and  Physical Performance Enhancer or Psychoactive Drug? Current  Neuropharmacology13(1), 71–88.

Eskelinen, M.H., & Kivipelto, M. (2010). Caffeine as a protective factor in dementia and  Alzheimer’s disease. Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease: JAD, 20(1): 167-74.

Heckman, M.A., Weil, J., Gonzalez de Mejia, E. (2010). Caffeine (1, 3, 7-trimethylxanthine)  in foods: a comprehensive review on consumption, functionality, safety, and regulatory matters. Journal of Food Science, 75(3): 77-87.

Leonard, T.K., Watson, R.R., & Mohs M.E. (1987). The Effects of caffeine on various body  systems: a review. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 87(8): 1048-53.

Sherman, S.M., Buckley, T.P., Baena, E., & Ryan, L. (2016). Caffeine Enhances Memory Performance in Young Adults during Their Non-optimal Time of Day. Frontiers in Psychology7, 1764.

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

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freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
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[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 29, 2024]
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