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1993-04-08
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THE WEEK, Page 26HEALTH & SCIENCEGo Slow Off the Joe
Moderate coffee drinkers can suffer if they give up caffeine
too quickly
People who down more than three cups of coffee a day know how
awful they can feel when they can't get their caffeine fix. Now
a study reveals that even those who sip just two or three cups
a day can become anxious, drowsy, sluggish, headachy and
depressed if they go cold turkey on Java. The symptoms can be so
severe that people stay home from work or visit their doctor,
who may fail to tie the patient's problems to sudden cessation
of coffee consumption. In the experiment, people deprived of
caffeine complained that they felt worse than when they had the
flu, and one woman noted the sickness was as bad as what she
experienced while undergoing radiation and chemotherapy for
cancer. Caffeine withdrawal may explain the puzzling distress
some people suffer following surgery (pre-op procedure often
prohibits food or liquids), or on weekends (no office
coffeepot), or during visits with people who prefer
decaffeinated beverages. The findings, reported in the New
England Journal of Medicine by a Johns Hopkins University team,
may apply equally to moderate drinkers of tea or caffeinated
sodas. Those wanting to give up caffeine are advised to reduce
their consumption gradually over a few days.