Coffee isn’t necessarily bad for everyone, but if you need coffee to function, then there is definitely a health issue you should be addressing. A need for caffeine whether it be in coffee, tea, soda, or a pill form, means that energy isn’t happening naturally the way it should be. Low energy in the morning is most commonly an adrenal gland or thyroid gland dysfunction. The adrenal glands secrete a hormone called cortisol that is normally higher in the morning and lower at night, promoting sleep. Many people have low cortisol levels throughout the entire day leading to lackluster energy and performance. Some people have backwards cortisol circadian rhythms where their cortisol levels are low in the morning and high at night. We call these people, “tired and wired.” They tend to need coffee in the morning to get going and alcohol at night to get to sleep. Tests today, such as an Adrenal Stress Index, can measure your cortisol output throughout the day with four simple non-invasive saliva samples. Prolonged caffeine intake can and will lead to fatigue issues, joint problems, digestive troubles, and hormone issues, just to name a few symptoms.
If you need coffee to function properly and give you energy, that’s not healthy, even if it has butter in it!
I work a night job and usually have two cups of coffee from a out 9 till 1 am and then rest (yes, nap on The job) from 3 to 6:30 am. I then have one or two more in the morning. Trying to tone it down now after 3 years at this job but it is difficult. Combined with my crazy sleep patterns through the week, I am Basically tired all the time. I DO try to drink two bottles of water to every one cup of coffee which has worked for me in the past,. It I feel this habit is catching up to me, even at a young age.
Could all this coffee be a actually keeping me tired? I often get eye pressure and a feeling of a weight on my head if I have coffee in the daytime, anywhere from 11am onward. Could it be messing with my body causing it to malfunction?
It’s tough when you work those hours – it’s not a humans natural circadian rhythm. The coffee isn’t going to give you real energy, and in the long run it can definitely make things worse.