How refreshing really is coffee

[MisterX]

Here I juts read this and fealt my fellow FIRSTers who need that extra coffee to get them going should read this articlae I found:

Scary Warning About Too Much Coffee
Caffeine--even for those hard-core coffee drinkers who consume five or six cups a day--could be a factor in raising blood pressure. It's long been thought that people build up a tolerance to caffeine's blood pressure-raising effects, but new research from the VA Medical Center and the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City shows that may not be true, reports Reuters. Those who are at risk of hypertension may want to reconsider that second cup of morning coffee.

The study: While caffeine does cause a short-term rise in blood pressure, it has never been proven that caffeine is a risk factor for hypertension. So this study tested whether building up caffeine tolerance created smaller blood pressure responses. Ninety-seven adults who regularly drink caffeinated beverages were given what study leader William R. Lavallo calls a "caffeine challenge" of two separate doses of caffeine taken four hours apart. During each of three weeks, they were given pills containing: nothing (a placebo); 300 milligrams of caffeine, the equivalent of three cups of coffee; or 600 milligrams of caffeine, which is about six cups of coffee.

The results: Half of the participants were totally tolerant to caffeine's effects and showed no blood pressure changes; however, the other half did experience small spikes in blood pressure shortly after taking caffeine capsules, even after spending the previous five days downing the equivalent of six cups of coffee per day.


The takeaway: The blood pressure responses in those who were not tolerant to caffeine's effects were small--a few points only. And for most people, this is likely to be harmless. But for those who already have hypertension or have risk factors for it, it may be wise to consume less caffeine. The study findings were reported in the journal Hypertension.