Should You Cut Back on Caffeine? How to Track and Reduce Your Intake
People who regularly enjoy coffee, tea, or energy drinks may have some questions about the ways caffeine affects your health. Thankfully, it isn’t all bad news. Here’s what to know about current caffeine research, as well as resources for reducing your consumption if necessary. With help from a few apps and websites, it’s incredibly easy to keep an eye on your caffeine intake each day.
Is Caffeine Bad for You?
For the vast majority of people, a cup of coffee or tea each day isn’t doing you any harm. In fact, there are some potential health benefits to consuming moderate amounts of caffeine, including greater alertness, faster reaction times, and even a decreased risk for depression, according toJAMA. So, go ahead and drink up.
On the other hand, there can definitely be too much of a good thing when it comes to the stimulant. Consuming more than 300 milligrams of caffeine at once can lead to caffeine intoxication, which can cause nervousness, insomnia, arrhythmia, and irritability, according toNutrients.
If you’ve ever felt jittery and weird after too many energy drinks or espresso shots, then you know that feeling well. Caffeine isn’t the most dangerous substance in the world, but overdoing it can be unpleasant. Although there are some instances of serious health issues associated with caffeine, these tend to be relatively rare. If you feel concerned about the way caffeine may affect your health, then speak with your healthcare provider.
How Much Caffeine Is OK to Consume?
Consuming less than about 400 milligrams of caffeine per day is generally considered safe for most individuals. This is the amount of caffeine found in about four to five cups of coffee.
For tea drinkers, green, white, and black teas contain between 14 to 61 milligrams of caffeine per serving, according toJournal of Analytical Toxicology. In general, you can drink several cups of tea a day without worrying about overdoing the caffeine content.
Energy drinks are another story. The caffeine content varies a lot between brands, but at the high end, some can contain 300 milligrams of caffeine per serving. These might call for closer attention, especially if you consume more than one can a day.
How to Monitor or Decrease Your Caffeine Intake
Try usingapps to help limit your caffeineintake throughout the day; they can make it easier to stay within healthy parameters. Similar tohydration apps that remind you to drink more water, they simply require you to log your drinks throughout the day.
These are especially helpful if you’re in a situation that calls for plenty of coffee or energy drinks, such as a long study session, a lengthy drive, or general late nights. These apps help you caffeinate responsibly.
1. HiCoffee
Log your daily caffeine intake with the HiCoffee app, which offers a detailed list of popular beverages to choose from. It also includes common drinks from brands like Starbucks, Dunkin', and McDonald’s.
TheTodayscreen offers a helpful visual depiction of your caffeine consumption for the day. It also lists how much caffeine you can safely consume for the rest of the day at a glance. In addition, that screen includes a timer for the duration of your next caffeine buzz. Simply start the coffee boost timer when you fuel up to see how long it will last.
For instance, drinking a cold brew at 10:30 am will last until about 6:30 pm, depending on how much caffeine is already in your system. This is a fantastic feature for anyone who deals with insomnia from drinking coffee too late in the day.
TheChartsscreen tracks your caffeine patterns over time. Optional reminders provide a daily report of your caffeine for the day, as well as a look at the amount of the stimulant in your system at bedtime.
Access to the branded beverage caffeine data does require a subscription, but the basic version of the app offers a lot of functionality on its own. For the most part, the HiCoffee app provides a simple and comprehensive way to track your coffee intake over time.
Download:HiCoffee foriOS(Free, subscription available)
2. Caffeine Tracker
Note your drinks each day to stay within your limits on the Caffeine Tracker app. Tap thePlusbutton to record a drink, including its size and your ramp-up period, or the general amount of time it takes the caffeine to hit your bloodstream.
TheHomescreen displays your intake for the day, while the level history screen displays the estimated amount of time the caffeine will remain in your system. A simple, straightforward app, Caffeine Tracker makes monitoring your daily coffee and energy drink intake incredibly easy.
Download:Caffeine Tracker forAndroid($1.49)
3. Caffiend–Caffeine Tracker
Save information about your caffeine intake to Apple Health, and review charts about your caffeine consumption over time with the Caffiend app. To log a drink, tap theplusbutton on theHomescreen.
Choose from the list of drink options, including coffee, energy drinks, and soda. Many other energy-boosting items, including caffeinated gums, mints, and chews, are available, as well.
Once you have the drinks or other items logged, theHomescreen displays your total caffeine intake for the day, as well as your goal amount. The set limit is 400 milligrams, but you can change this goal in theSettingsscreen.
Whether you’re a dedicated coffee person or someone who also enjoys energy drinks, gums, and similar boosters, the Caffiend app offers a handy way to log everything.
Download:Caffiend–Caffeine Tracker foriOS($2)
Websites for Caffeine Tracking
In addition to the apps, some websites help give you an accurate look at the amount of caffeine in common drinks. For instance, there’s a comprehensive list of caffeine in common coffee drinks, soda, and energy drinks at theCenter for Science in the Public Interest.
Plus, a searchable database of over 1,000 beverages atCaffeine Informergives you instant access to information on just about every caffeinated drink on the market.
Monitor Your Caffeine Consumption With Apps and Websites
Whether you want to decrease your caffeine intake or simply keep an eye on it, there are plenty of apps and websites that make it easier to monitor the amount of caffeine consumed each day. With a few clicks, you’re able to keep your coffee or energy drink habit at a healthy level.
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