Many high schoolers struggle to function without their coffee, caffeinated tea, or energy drinks. We see this as young children, when our parents say in the morning, “I can’t talk yet; I haven’t had my coffee.” Caffeine dependency and its normalcy is embedded in us as children, and it has be come a stepping stone into adulthood.
However, whether caffeinated drinks are harmful rather than helpful is constantly overlooked. Caffeine causes nervousness, an upset stomach, difficulty concentrating, and increased blood pressure. Nevertheless, almost 75% of teens consume caffeine daily. Although caffeine gives us a burst of energy, why should we need to rely on it? Could we be getting that energy in a healthier way?
Caffeine can disrupt your sleep schedule, something many teens already struggle with. It is a constant cycle: you drink a caffeinated beverage to stay awake, then the next morning you drink a caffeinated beverage because you did not sleep well, and then the caffeine interferes with your sleep. However, many stu dents stay up late because they are studying or doing homework, so they need that boost of energy, despite the consequences that negatively affect their attentiveness during the school day. Although caffeine is fine in moderation, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends a 100mg daily caffeine limit for teens, which is equivalent to one cup of coffee or one to two cups of tea. For reference, energy drinks can contain 80 to 500mg (or more) of caffeine.
Many students become dependent on caffeine because of the timing of school and the amount of homework they receive. If students had more time during the day, they could rely less on caffeine and more on proper sleep to keep them awake. The CDC recommends teenagers aged 12 to 18 get eight to ten hours of sleep per night, but our school schedules make this very difficult. Most students do not go to bed until 11-12 p.m. (or later), and even if they were to go to bed then, they would have to wake up early for school, often barely getting five to six hours of sleep. Caffeine thus becomes a trusted and needed companion for many adolescents. Caffeine consumption can lead teens into a vicious cycle of sleep deprivation which greatly impacts their mental well-being, increasing their risk for depression, anxiety, and low-self esteem.
Firstly, in the early morning, students are expected to go to school fully awake and ready to learn, so they rely on caffeine to ensure they are alert. If school were to begin at a later time, 9:30 for example, they would have more time to sleep in and to wake up.
Secondly, due to sports and other extracurricular activities, students often have little time to complete the copious amounts of homework they receive. Many students are trapped in the cycle of doing homework late into the night and then resorting to caffeine to stay awake. If the workload was lighter, students could get to bed at a reasonable time and feel refreshed in the morning.
Caffeine dependency is seen as a normal and harmless part of young adulthood and life in general, but in reality, it is a serious issue that we should devote more energy to solving. Changing the timing of school and the amount of homework assigned would allow students to sleep more and rely less on caffeine to keep them awake.
Submission by Perrin Woods
Photo of an iced coffee