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A microscopic view of caffeine crystals and why the world’s favorite stimulant is anything but harmless to the physiology of those who consume it.
Take a close look at the picture above.
Does this look friendly to you? Think with your gut – literally.
Is this something that you think your body would welcome if you consumed it frequently and in large quantities?
Do you think this would be health-promoting in any way?
Caffeine is a Plant Pesticide
Even without knowing a single thing about caffeine, it is abundantly clear by simply looking at this astonishing electron micrograph of caffeine crystals that this substance is very likely a toxin to the body. These insidious crystals are found in varying quantities in the leaves, seeds, and even the fruit of some plants and guess for what purpose?
To stun, paralyze, and even kill insects that feed on the plant for food.
In short, caffeine is a natural pesticide. It is certainly not on the toxic magnitude, of say, Monsanto’s Roundup, but it is a pesticide just the same.
If insects are instinctively smart enough to avoid plants containing caffeine to ensure their own survival, don’t you think you probably should avoid it too?
Caffeine Increases Stomach Acid Levels
Let’s think about what happens when you consume caffeine.
Caffeine increases stomach acid production. While this is not necessarily a bad thing if you just ate, it can cause problems over time if excessive stomach acid becomes a constant feature of your personal biochemistry.
Acid reflux (GERD) is one symptom of imbalanced stomach acid levels and Prilosec, the over the counter medication for this condition is one of the most popular drugs stolen by organized retail crime (ORC) rings – indirect but telling evidence of the widespread nature of reflux problems today.
Could the reflux epidemic be associated with all those Starbucks and Red Bulls folks are consuming? Remember the gal who recently put herself in the ER by drinking too many 5 Hour Energy Shots?
The high demand and dependence on PPI drugs (proton pump inhibitors) like Prilosec or a 24-hour drug like Nexium do not come without a heavy price!
Undesired weight gain is one of the associative side effects of long term treatment with PPI drugs as reported and published in the peer-reviewed World Journal of Gastroenterology.
Once on the purple pill for reflux, always on the purple pill. The outlook is bleak and a ballooning backside is on the horizon unless you take charge and make some changes – losing the caffeine being Job #1.
Caffeine Whacks the Adrenals
Even folks who are seriously health-conscious seem to have trouble shaking the caffeine habit which never ceases to surprise me.
Those who eat low carb, keto or paleo seem to have a particularly difficult time managing caffeine intake perhaps because caffeine stimulates the liver to release sugar into the bloodstream, in essence, a way to get carbs without actually eating them!
Don’t forget about the 5 Hour Energy Shot junkie who ended up in the ER. Let the lesson ring clear. Her liver started to shut down from all that caffeine because she was drinking about 10 of those suckers per day for 2 weeks straight!
I know several people on a first name basis who are not far behind that insane level of caffeine consumption and I’m sure you do too. Just because it doesn’t put you in the ER doesn’t mean it’s not hurting you badly.
One thing’s for sure. If your diet is making you so tired that you need caffeine to indirectly boost your blood sugar and artificially stimulate your adrenals, you’ve got a problem and the diet you’re following is clearly not optimal for you. Time to do some tweaking my health-conscious friends!
C’mon. You know a big plate of sprouted waffles would be totally, rockin’ AWESOME.
There’s no doubt a plate of sprouted waffles – YES – even every single morning would be a more healthful habit than that coffee addiction. Don’t fool yourself and rob Peter to pay Paul.
Frequent stimulation of the adrenal glands from caffeine eventually leads to adrenal exhaustion whether this be at age 20 or age 60. If you’ve been drinking coffee for years and think you are “just fine thank you”, think again. Feeling bone tired and not being able to get off the couch to do much of anything could be just around the corner as hormonal problems can strike suddenly and seemingly out of the blue (just ask any menopausal woman). It is the sleeping giant you best not ignore.
Other symptoms of adrenal exhaustion include lack of physical endurance and stamina, weight gain, reduced ability to handle stress, impairment of calcium absorption, and depression of immunity.
Probably most worrisome is the blood sugar issues caffeine exacerbates as mentioned earlier. Caffeine stimulates the liver to release stored sugars into the bloodstream which then has an effect on the body’s overall ability to regulate blood sugar levels.
The hormonal system requires such a delicate balance that caffeine’s negative effect on the adrenals can’t help but create hormonal challenges in the body over time. Dr. Bruce Rind MD, a holistic endocrinologist notes that the health of the thyroid gland and the adrenal glands are inextricably linked. If one goes south, the other one probably will too.
So the next time you reach for that cup of joe, chocolate bar, espresso, or energy drink, think about the picture above with all the spikes and points and imagine what this plant pesticide is really doing to your insides.
Ouch!
Generally speaking every plant has some sort of a defense against pests. Some great points in this article but I definitely think that it’s a bit over thought. If you were to analyze every plant like this, we would have nothing to eat.
Electron microscope pictures of crystals tell us almost nothing about how the compound behaves in solution, with other compounds, or in our bodies. If it did we could look at electron microscope pictures of all compounds and foods and determine how bad, good, or indifferent for us.
My feeling is that starting an argument from an inaccurate emotional position only taints the rest of your argument with the brush of “I am going to reject this ugly thing with more insults and closed minded statements because it’s ugly and has no beauty.”
Please give your readers more credit.
Did I claim that the picture was the end all and be all of the argument? No. I just said take a look and make the call just on the picture alone. When you combine the unsettling nature of the picture with all the known health negatives of caffeine .. the disruptive nature of it to the body’s blood sugar being a big one, then it is an easy call to get off this plant pesticide.
A few antioxidants in coffee or chocolate in no way overcome the huge downside to consuming caffeine on a regular basis.
Sarah, quinoa has a very potent natural pesticide coating also, yet it’s a very healthy seed/grain. They tried to alter quinoa crops to reduce or eliminate the saponin (the natural pesticide) and the crops ended up being decimated by birds!
Your logic is flawed. I agree with the others. In moderation, coffee is NOT harmful. I have 1-2 cups daily and have NEVER had one bout of acid reflux/heartburn. When I went on a 21 day juice fast, I stopped drinking coffee and had no problems. I had a mild heachache for about an hour on day 2 and that was it. I drink coffee (black) because I love the taste of a rich Italian or French roast. I only drink it in the morning and then consume no other caffeine loaded food or drink for the rest of the day.
The photo?…..just a silly attention getter!
1-2 cups of coffee a day is NOT MODERATION. This is an addiction and if you doubt that it is, go cold turkey and watch your withdrawal symptoms.
1-2 cups per week might be moderation .. if you need it every day, it’s not moderation folks.
Quinoa must be carefully prepared before it is safe to eat too. Soaking and/or sprouted plus a thorough cooking which would deactivate antinutrients.
You didn’t claim the picture was the “end all and be all” of the argument, but you did, as Jason says, start the argument from “an inaccurate emotional position”. You then continued with reasonable justifications for avoiding caffeine, but the point is that no one can accurately do as you suggest in your comment, namely “make the call just on the picture alone,” nor can the picture even factor into a reasonable argument for or against caffeine. “Combin[ing] the unsettling nature of the picture” with anything is silly.
> No. I just said take a look and make the call just on the picture alone.
Why? What possible good can come of a knee-jerk reaction like this? Hope you don’t judge people and events the way you judge molecules. 🙁
Of all of the things I gave up for my health, coffee is the one I miss the most. I needed the high I got from the combo of sugar and caffeine. Thankfully, I don’t need that anymore!
I miss boxed breakfast cereal the most. I just love that toxic stuff but I won’t eat it and haven’t for many years.
Hi Sarah,
Are coffee enemas still good to do?
Coffee enemas can be very helpful for detoxification especially for cancer patients. Dr. Gonzalez in NYC uses them in his holistic cancer treatment protocol from what I learned at the 2010 Wise Traditions Conference. If you want to use them at home, you may wish to consult with a holistic practicioner about it first.
I am surprised you did not choose to be alarmed over the lavendar leaf also ~
This is the key, problem I have with people like Sarah, it’s an electron micrograph that is falsed colored. Of course it looks strange all things when looked that close look strange, even less importantly it is a caffeine crystal which is in the solid state. That being said, there is no reason that what ever the caffiene crystal structure looks like that can tell you if it is bad for you or good for you.
Just more scaremongering.
Get a MSc in electron micrography then show me pictures and tell me what they mean.
Otherwise back off, stick to facts and stop trying to play on my emotions.
I’m not sure why you read the blog if you don’t like it/her. You can disagree, but what is the point of following the blog – only to scrutinize her? If you generally agree with Sarah, or “people like her”; but disagree with something here or there, it makes sense to voice that and have an interactive conversation. However, to follow her in order to scrutinize her, I personally find disrespectful. It seems more productive and positive to join in a conversation that you prefer to be a part of ~ to be a part of something you’re for instead of against.
love most of what sarah has to say, but i have to agree with steve on the one point that introducing the story with a false-colored micrograph of caffeine is a bit odd — under the electron microscope things tend to look totally weird and creepy and am not sure how it helps sarah make her case. the crystals would be dissolved in water anyway, so they’re not going to look like that when consumed.
in any case, personally caffeine makes me feel crazy – profuse sweating, diarrhea, the inability to focus, etc etc. needless to say i have never been a habitual coffee drinker. it doesn’t work for me but i know people, like my 97 and 94 year old grandpa and grandma, who have been drinking coffee for probably 70+ years. they have no cognitive issues, mentally sharp at such old ages, and have outlived all of their friends and family. anecdotal evidence, though, not enough to say it’s good or bad in general… i applaud those who have the tenacity to give up caffeine! it’s so difficult, like any addictive substance!
I love Sarah’s blog- one of my favorite places on the web- but I’m with Steve on this one. Good grief! There are many beneficial, healthy substances that would look worse under a microscope. Have you ever checked out beneficial bacteria?
I’m not saying her view on coffee drinking is wrong, but basing it on an electron microscope image seems really strange. I can hear my husband reasoning me away on that one! :)…
Caffeine only negatively affects blood sugar if you have a large amount of free fatty acids, from consuming unsaturated oils and PUFA. PUFA block glycolysis, my blocking glucose from entering the cell.
My Point: Say you add coconut oil to your coffee, glycogen is released from the liver, glycolysis occurs in the mitochondria creating energy and increasing metabolic rate. BOOM! Caffeine good in that sense.
But, yes the fact is people are drinking coffee with soybean and canola oils, gluten/wheat products and the like making caffeine “bad”.
Add coconut oil, raw milk, a pinch of sugar, and you have the perfect cup of coffee!
Sounds like using science to rationalize a bad habit to me.
Love your blog, but disagree with you on this one. Newer studies have shown that coffee may have benefits, such as protecting against Parkinson’s disease, type 2 diabetes and liver cancer. And it has a high content of antioxidants. Also, people who drink coffee appear to have less strokes than people who don’t.
I believe coffee has many benefits as long as it’s not overdone. Once again, like many things in life, moderation is the key.
I’m with you on that! And just listening to your body and how you react to caffine you will know when to stop. I personally react during the 2nd cup, my tongue starts to feel coated and it no longer has the flavor and appeal.
I’m with you and everybody else who says, listen to your body. That’s key for everything one eats.
Exactly!
Tina, don’t forget that this blog’s advice is not based on actual scientific theory, but on her opinion. She thinks she is correctly analyzing scientific studies, but she’s so far off it’s very comical for people who actually know a bit about biology/anatomy/nutrition. Did you read the “How I fixed my son’s cavity” blog? Much of the advice she gives is dangerous, as it seems there are actually people that believe what she says.
What about green tea which also has caffeine? Supposed to be very heart healthy, great for the skin, and helps combat alzheimers.
So, maybe a dumb question but does this apply to the caffeine in green tea or all tea for that matter? Thanks
Tea is much lower in caffeine so is a good way to step down from coffee as going cold turkey off caffeine can be very disruptive with bad headaches a common problem.
An occasional cup of tea or coffee is not a big deal … the point of the article is not to do it as a daily HABIT.
How does one reconcile the numerous things about coffee, both good and bad? It might cause adrenal fatigue, but it also may help against alzheimers and depression.
Coffee does have some antioxidants but so do a lot of other foods that don’t have caffeine in them. My recommendation if you desire optimal health is to lose the coffee. The few benefits of the antioxidants in coffee are not worth the risk to your overall hormonal and digestive health.
There have been very specific studies showing that moderate coffee intake (3-4 cups per day) that have protective mechanisms against Alzheimer’s, depression, diabetes, stroke, and heart disease. Antioxidants themselves do not have any effect, or not one as large as this. While short term studies on coffee and caffeine may show a negative effect on one system or another, the long term studies show mostly positive effects.
I drink about 2-3 cups per day, and drink virtually all of my hot coffee with coconut oil, which is also mentally protective. I Also have a history of mental “interestingness,” so my health goal is focused on good mental health.
I think coffee, especially used as a pick me up, can be detrimental to some people, but also believe that it is an individual’s own health and health goals that determine their intake. There are many people that have to cut gluten or milk from their diet, and others (like yourself) that thrive on those substances. To each their own best health.
Well said.
Very well said. Especially the part about gluten and milk. Some people have a very difficult time with those, but that doesn’t mean EVERYONE does.
looks pretty to me;)