Caffeine for ADHD?

[Something Funny]

I found that it really helps me to calm down and focus. But it is not very healthy, is it?

[Schizophonia]

It can help.

[Something Funny]

@Schizophonia do you have adhd or do you just know a lot?

[Schizophonia]

23 hours ago, Something Funny said:

@Schizophonia do you have adhd or do you just know a lot?

I don't have ADHD but i know coffee increases dopamine neurotransmition.

Then, maybe coffee is too physically stimulating for some peoples in an adhd context, i suppose products which increase rather dopamine and less norephedrine like adderall, afinil, 3/4FA or something like that would be more adapted.

Or cholinergics. (nicotine, racetams...)

Edited September 12 by Schizophonia

[El Zapato]

Coffee is good for you...I drink at least a pot a day...not sure if it impacts adhd...In retrospect, I think not.

[PenguinPablo]

@El Zapato stimulants are considered by psychiatry as the most effective solution for adhd

Caffeine is a stimulant

But amphetamines are definitely superior

[Michael569]

It's not unhealthy unless you are more sensitive to caffeine 's effects. I assume you mean coffee and not caffeine pills?

In moderate amounts, coffee is mostly beneficial over the long term for men and women both. Helps protect your liver,  cardiovascular system, reduces risk of prostate and breast cancer.

Where it gets tricky is when coffee starts becoming a disgusting 700 calories shake full of sugar, high fat dairy, caramel, chocolate chip cookies and crap like that.

Standard black is totally fine or if milk, better to choose semi skimmed or plant based 

 

Edited September 13 by Michael569

[Something Funny]

1 hour ago, Michael569 said:

In moderate amounts, coffee is mostly beneficial over the long term for men and women both. Helps protect your liver,  cardiovascular system, reduces risk of prostate and breast cancer.

Really? For some reason I always assumed that coffee and caffeine are bad for your heart.

1 hour ago, Michael569 said:

It's not unhealthy unless you are more sensitive to caffeine 's effects. I assume you mean coffee and not caffeine pills?

I made this post after dring an energy drink, but yeah, in the long term I would go for something healthier.

What about different teas and stuff, like matcha, green tea, black tea, etc. How do they compare to coffee?

[Michael569]

55 minutes ago, Something Funny said:

I always assumed that coffee and caffeine are bad for your heart.

I mean too much caffeine can get your heart racing so there is a balance that needs to be struck. If you do experience that, where caffeine gets your heart racing regardless of the dose, then maybe you are unlucky to be poor metaboliser. It often has to do with P450 1A2 mutation. 

In the long term, regular caffeine consumers have lower risk of heart disease, stroke, heart attacks and slower progression of atherosclerosis despite caffeine's tachycardic effect. I'm not really sure what the mechanism is. I would guess it is a combination of its antioxidant effects, fatty acid metabolism, potentially positive effect on HDL and maybe improved mean arterial flow but not sure. 

55 minutes ago, Something Funny said:

What about different teas and stuff, like matcha, green tea, black tea, etc

all good stuff provided you don't drink each cup with sugar. 

55 minutes ago, Something Funny said:

How do they compare to coffee?

Green tea beats black tea and coffee beats both, although green tea seems to have superior effect on neurodegenerative disease risk reduction which is seen nicely in the long term Japanese cohort studies where people have been ritually consuming green team up to 5 times a day for generations.

I don't know enough about matcha but what I researched hasn't impressed me, I mostly consider green tea superior to it although they both come from Camellia sinensis so maybe we just don't have enough data on matcha yet. 

Edited September 13 by Michael569

[Something Funny]

@Michael569 I see, thanks a lot.

[Something Funny]

@Michael569 one more question. Is there anything wrong with just chewing coffee beans instead of making coffee? Or making coffee with ground coffee beans but without filtering them out?

[Michael569]

@Something Funny you can but it would be gross. Filtering removes certain components which are bitter, indigestible and not so tasty and spares you the cholesterol increasing effect of unfiltered coffee (there is something in unfiltered coffee that does that, don't remember what that molecule is called) 

Edited September 14 by Michael569

[Something Funny]

@Michael569 ok, thank you