How Caffeine Affects Your Brain?

Summary

This video explores caffeine's impact on the human body, explaining its role as a central nervous system stimulant. It delves into the cellular level, describing how caffeine blocks adenosine receptors, countering the tiredness signal and promoting alertness. The video also discusses caffeine's potential benefits, such as improved cognitive function and mood, alongside drawbacks like increased heart rate and diuretic effects. It touches on the concept of tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, and the potential therapeutic uses of caffeine, offering viewers a comprehensive look at the pros and cons of this widely consumed substance.

Takeaways

• 🌟 Caffeine is a widely consumed psychoactive substance with approximately 90% of adults consuming it regularly, primarily through coffee and tea.
• 🌿 Caffeine is a naturally occurring stimulant found in many plants and is part of a group of compounds known as methylxanthines.
• 🧠 As a stimulant, caffeine affects the central nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord, by making individuals feel more alert and energetic.
• 🔬 Caffeine works at the cellular level by blocking adenosine receptors, preventing the suppressive effects of adenosine and thus promoting alertness.
• 🔒 Caffeine acts as an antagonist to adenosine receptors, fitting into the receptor like a key but without activating it, thereby preventing adenosine from binding and causing feelings of tiredness.
• ⚡ Caffeine's effects on alertness and energy are more pronounced in individuals who are fatigued, sleep-deprived, or jet-lagged.
• 💡 Caffeine does not produce energy like ATP but gives a perception of increased energy, and its stimulating effects can range from 30 to 300 mg per day, with 400 mg considered safe for most adults.
• 🔄 Regular caffeine consumption can lead to tolerance, where the body upregulates adenosine receptors, necessitating higher amounts of caffeine to achieve the same effects.
• 🚫 Potential drawbacks of caffeine include increased heart rate, blood pressure, and urine output, as well as possible agitation or anxiety in some individuals.
• 🔄 Caffeine withdrawal symptoms can occur in regular users who stop or reduce intake, including grouchiness, tiredness, and reduced focus.
• 🏃‍♂️ Caffeine has potential therapeutic uses, such as reducing headache pain and possibly lowering the risk of neurological disorders like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

Q & A

What percentage of adults regularly consume caffeine?

About 90% of adults consistently consume caffeine.

What is caffeine classified as in terms of its effect on the body?

Caffeine is classified as a stimulant of the central nervous system (CNS).

What is the role of dendrites in neurons?

Dendrites are shorter projections from the cell body of a neuron that receive signals from other neurons, allowing for thousands of connections.

How does caffeine affect the adenosine receptors in the brain?

Caffeine acts as a potent antagonist of adenosine receptors, blocking the suppressive effects of adenosine and leading to increased alertness and energy.

What is the relationship between ATP and adenosine?

Adenosine is a component of ATP (adenosine triphosphate), which is the energy currency of cells. As ATP is broken down during the day, adenosine builds up, contributing to feelings of tiredness.

What is the effect of caffeine on the cardiovascular system?

Caffeine can increase systolic blood pressure and heart rate, and it can also cause the cardiac muscle tissue to contract more forcefully.

Is caffeine considered addictive in a clinical setting?

While caffeine can cause withdrawal symptoms, it is not as strongly addictive as substances like nicotine or amphetamines, and people can generally taper off caffeine use without severe issues.

What is the range of caffeine intake considered safe for most adults?

The safe range of caffeine intake for most adults is from 30 milligrams up to 300 milligrams per day, with 400 milligrams being the upper limit of what is generally considered safe.

What is the process called when the body adapts to a consistent caffeine intake by increasing the number of adenosine receptors?

The process is called upregulation, where the body increases the number of adenosine receptors in response to consistent caffeine consumption.

How can the effects of caffeine be minimized or avoided if someone wants to stop using it?

By tapering off caffeine use slowly, an individual can minimize caffeine withdrawal symptoms and avoid the negative effects of stopping caffeine abruptly.

What are some potential therapeutic benefits of caffeine mentioned in the script?

Caffeine may reduce the risk of neurological disorders such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, and it can be used therapeutically to treat headaches and improve athletic performance.

Outlines

00:00

🚀 Introduction to Caffeine's Effects and Mechanism

The video script introduces caffeine as a widely consumed psychoactive substance and sets the stage for a discussion on its effects on the human body. It delves into caffeine's classification as a stimulant of the central nervous system (CNS) and provides an anatomical overview of the brain and spinal cord. The script then transitions to a cellular level, introducing the concept of neurons, their structure, and function. The role of adenosine as a CNS depressant is highlighted, and the video promises to explore how caffeine, as an antagonist of adenosine receptors, leads to increased alertness and energy.

05:03

🔑 Caffeine's Interaction with Adenosine Receptors

This paragraph explains the biochemical interaction between caffeine and adenosine receptors in the brain. It uses the analogy of a lock and key to describe how adenosine binding to its receptors can cause feelings of tiredness and fatigue by suppressing neuronal activity. Caffeine is portrayed as a molecule that can fit into the adenosine receptor but does not activate it, thereby blocking adenosine's suppressive effects. The script also introduces AG1 by Athletic Greens, a supplement that may be used alongside or as an alternative to caffeine, and discusses its benefits for performance, recovery, and overall health.

10:07

⚠️ Caffeine Tolerance and Potential Side Effects

The script addresses the development of caffeine tolerance, explaining the physiological process of upregulation where the body increases the number of adenosine receptors in response to consistent caffeine consumption. This leads to a requirement for higher caffeine intake to achieve the same stimulatory effects. It also outlines potential side effects of caffeine, such as increased systolic blood pressure, heart rate, and cardiac muscle contraction, as well as its diuretic properties. The paragraph notes that these side effects may be less pronounced in individuals with a high caffeine tolerance but become more severe during withdrawal periods.

15:11

🏁 Weighing the Pros and Cons of Caffeine Use

In the final paragraph, the script encourages a balanced view of caffeine consumption, suggesting that it should be approached like any other substance with a consideration of its pros and cons. It mentions that caffeine has potential therapeutic uses in clinical settings and may reduce the risk of certain neurological disorders. The script also touches on caffeine's use in treating headaches and enhancing athletic performance. It concludes by emphasizing the importance of informed decision-making regarding caffeine use based on individual needs and circumstances.

Keywords

💡Caffeine

Caffeine is a naturally occurring stimulant substance found in many plants and is widely consumed for its effects on alertness and energy levels. In the video, it is discussed as a psychoactive substance that affects the central nervous system by blocking adenosine receptors, leading to increased alertness and energy. The video explores caffeine's mechanism of action, its benefits, and potential drawbacks, such as tolerance and withdrawal symptoms.

💡Psychoactive Substance

A psychoactive substance is any chemical that alters brain functions and results in changes in mood, consciousness, or behavior. Caffeine is classified as such due to its impact on the central nervous system. The video mentions that about 90% of adults consume caffeine, highlighting its widespread use as a psychoactive substance.

💡Central Nervous System (CNS)

The central nervous system comprises the brain and spinal cord and is responsible for controlling and coordinating all the functions of the body. In the context of the video, caffeine acts as a stimulant to the CNS by affecting the adenosine receptors on neurons, which is crucial for understanding how caffeine influences alertness and energy.

💡Stimulant

A stimulant is a substance that increases the activity of the central nervous system, leading to increased alertness, energy, and reduced fatigue. The video describes caffeine as a stimulant that works by antagonizing adenosine receptors, thereby preventing the suppressive effects of adenosine and promoting a feeling of stimulation.

💡Adenosine

Adenosine is a chemical compound that acts as a neuromodulator in the brain and is associated with promoting sleep and suppressing arousal. The video explains that caffeine blocks adenosine receptors, preventing adenosine from binding and thus reducing feelings of tiredness and increasing alertness.

💡Neuron

Neurons are the fundamental units of the nervous system, responsible for transmitting information through electrical and chemical signals. The video delves into the structural features of neurons, such as dendrites and axons, to explain how caffeine impacts the communication between neurons by interfering with adenosine receptors.

💡Tolerance

Tolerance refers to the reduced response to a drug after repeated exposure, necessitating higher doses to achieve the same effect. The video discusses how regular caffeine consumption can lead to tolerance, as the body upregulates adenosine receptors, requiring more caffeine to achieve the desired stimulation.

💡Withdrawal Symptoms

Withdrawal symptoms occur when the body has become dependent on a substance and then experiences negative effects upon its absence. The video mentions that caffeine can lead to withdrawal symptoms such as grouchiness, tiredness, and lack of focus if consumption is stopped suddenly, indicating a level of dependence.

💡AG1

AG1 is a dietary supplement mentioned in the video that contains a blend of vitamins, minerals, probiotics, and adaptogens. It is highlighted as an alternative or complement to caffeine for boosting energy and mental clarity. The video suggests that some individuals may use AG1 to reduce their reliance on caffeine.

💡Diuretic

A diuretic is a substance that increases the production and excretion of urine. The video explains that caffeine has mild diuretic properties, which can lead to increased urine output. This is an important consideration for individuals who are sensitive to the effects of diuretics on their hydration levels.

💡Therapeutic Use

Therapeutic use refers to the application of a substance, such as caffeine, to treat or manage a medical condition. The video touches on caffeine's potential therapeutic benefits, including its use in reducing pain associated with headaches and its possible protective effects against certain neurological disorders like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

Highlights

Caffeine is one of the world's most commonly used psychoactive substances, with about 90% of adults consuming it regularly.

Caffeine is a stimulant of the central nervous system, affecting the brain and spinal cord.

Caffeine works by blocking adenosine receptors, which would otherwise suppress neuronal activity and promote feelings of tiredness.

Adenosine is a chemical mediator of sleep, building up throughout the day as a byproduct of ATP usage in neurons.

Sleep helps to reduce adenosine buildup and replenish ATP stores in the body.

AG1 by Athletic Greens is a supplement that can potentially replace or complement caffeine for energy and mental clarity.

Caffeine's stimulatory effects are more pronounced in individuals who are fatigued, sleep-deprived, or jet-lagged.

Caffeine does not produce energy like ATP but gives a perception of increased energy.

Safe caffeine consumption ranges from 30 mg to 300 mg per day, with 400 mg being generally safe for most adults.

Frequent caffeine use can lead to tolerance, requiring higher amounts for the same stimulatory effects.

Tolerance to caffeine is associated with upregulation, an increase in the number of adenosine receptors.

Caffeine can affect the cardiovascular system, increasing blood pressure and heart rate.

Caffeine acts as a mild diuretic, increasing urine output and the flow of blood through the kidneys.

High caffeine intake can cause agitation, jitteriness, and anxiety, especially in caffeine-naive individuals.

Caffeine withdrawal symptoms include grouchiness, fatigue, and a lack of focus, which can be mitigated by continued use.

Caffeine is not considered highly addictive, and withdrawal symptoms can be minimized by tapering off use.

Caffeine may have potential therapeutic benefits, including reducing the risk of neurological disorders like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

Caffeine can be used therapeutically to reduce pain, particularly in treating headaches.

Intermittent caffeine use may prevent tolerance buildup while still providing stimulatory benefits when needed.

Caffeine's influence on athletic performance is a topic of ongoing research, with potential benefits for enhancing physical activity.

Transcripts

Did you know that caffeine is one of the world's  most commonly used psychoactive substances? About  

90% of adults consistently consume caffeine,  usually in the forms of things like coffee  

and tea. So if this is so widely used and  is considered a psychoactive substance,  

we should probably know a little  bit about how caffeine works. So,  

in today's video, we're going to talk  about what caffeine does to the body,  

some of its pros and cons, are there safe and  unsafe amounts and can it be addictive. So if  

you're one of those that loves your beverages,  take a sip, and we'll jump right into this.

[Intro]

Caffeine is a bitter tasting, naturally occurring  substance found in many plants. It's part of  

a group of compounds called methylxanthines and  many of these methylxanthines, caffeine included,  

are considered stimulants of the central  nervous system or the CNS. Now, keep in mind,  

the central nervous system in anatomy refers  to what you can see here, the brain as well  

as the spinal cord. Now, the majority of  the spinal cords been removed that you  

can see right here but it would continue  down the vertebral or the spinal column.

We'll definitely be taking a look at the brain  tissue in more detail in regards to how caffeine  

works. But let's talk about caffeine being a  stimulant. What does that actually mean to us?  

Well, when we partake of a stimulant such as  caffeine, it might make us feel a little bit more  

alert, energetic, able to get stuff done but  how does caffeine really elicit these effects?  

To answer that, we need to go  down to the cellular level.

So, let's actually zoom in and zoom in to this  brain tissue and take a look at some brain cells.  

Welcome to the inter workings of your brain on a  whiteboard with a wondrous drawing of a cell that  

makes up your nervous system called a neuron. Now,  let me point out some of the structural features  

of this neuron. The central portion with the blue  nucleus here is referred to as the cell body and  

the shorter projections coming off the cell body  are known as dendrites and mine has 1,2,3,4 and 5.

Now, why am I counting these out for you?  Well, this is a bit of a simplified drawing  

because the neurons in your brain can actually  have thousands of dendrites branching off  

of the cell body there and why is that so  cool? Well, that's because these dendrites  

are bringing in from the connections  they're making with other neurons.

So, if I have thousands of dendrites, I  potentially can make thousands of connections  

with other neurons and when you start thinking  about all those numbers, the connections in your  

brain become quite remarkable and we need to  move on to this other projection here and this  

is called the axon, the longer projection here  and this takes signals away from the cell body.

And this is where we're really going to focus  our attention with our discussion on caffeine  

especially where the axon starts to branch in  these things called Axon Terminals. So let's zoom  

in to this axon terminal and that's what we're  seeing at this upper portion of the whiteboard  

drawing and the end of the axon terminal has  this little bulge called the synaptic end bulb  

for all you anatomy geeks who can't get enough  of the names we throw at you but with caffeine,  

at least starting this discussion of how caffeine  works... Caffeine is known as a potent antagonist  

of adenosine receptors. Or in other words,  it's going to block the effects of adenosine.

Now, as we talk about adenosine, you keep in mind  it can be found throughout the body as well as its  

receptors and other body tissues and so therefore  can have multiple responses throughout the body  

but we're going to focus on how it affects the  brain tissue. So, in blue are those blue diamonds,  

these are representing adenosine and the  adenosine receptor is represented in this green  

Y shape structure that's embedded  into the cell membrane of the neuron.

Now, when adenosine binds to the neuron, I want  you to kind of think of a lock and key analogy  

here with receptor physiology. Think of adenosine  as the key and the adenosine receptor in green  

as the locker, the deadbolt that the key  fits into. And so, we all know that the key  

has to have a specific shape to fit into a  specific shape deadbolt in order for it to work  

and that's the same kind of idea in receptor  physiology in the human body or at least the  

key has to be close to the same shape and we'll  talk about that a little bit more with caffeine's  

relationship to adenosine but adenosine binding  to that receptor causes an effect on the neuron  

and specifically, it suppresses the  neuron or is known as a CNS depressant.

It suppresses the firing and  the activity of this neuron  

and so, what does that feel like to you? Well, it  suppresses things like arousal and so therefore,  

might make you feel tired or more  fatigued. Adenosine could be considered  

one of the many chemical mediators of sleep  and you've probably heard of adenosine before  

but in a little bit of a different form  called adenosine triphosphate or ATP.

Now, we could do a whole video just on ATP  but when it comes to ATP for this video,  

we're going to essentially say it is  the energy currency of your cells,  

and as your cells are active throughout the day,  they are burning through this energy currency  

called ATP. And so, the idea is that as the  neuron, because neurons are greedy little  

hogs for ATP, they burn through it like crazy.  If you're breaking it down and the adenosine  

component of the ATP is thought to have start to  build up on the outside of the neuron and as more  

and more builds up on the outside more of more -  more and more of it combined to more receptors and  

again, increase that effect of feeling  tired and fatigued throughout the day.

And so, how would you maybe get rid  of this buildup of adenosine? Well,  

it tends to help when you go to sleep and sleep  will also help replenish your ATP stores. So,  

what does all this adenosine talk actually have  to do with caffeine? Well, if you've got that  

caffeinated beverage close by, go ahead and  a sip, help calm the anticipation anxiety for  

the answer to this question because I first  need to talk about another substance that  

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AG1 can also help boost energy in mental clarity  

and what's interesting is we are talking about  caffeine in this video which will get into  

energy and mental clarity and  some people will actually use AG1  

as a potential replacement for caffeine and  others will use AG1 in conjunction with caffeine.

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So now on to that answer of how caffeine  interacts with the adenosine and its receptors  

and causes you to experience those stimulatory  effects when you partake of caffeine.  

Now, remember that lock and key  analogy we talked about earlier.  

Think of caffeine as a key that can fit into  a lock but won't turn it or activate the lock,  

and that's essentially what happens  with caffeine and adenosine receptors.

It's a close enough shape that it can fit or wedge  itself into the adenosine receptor and block it  

without activating it. And so if you have all this  excess caffeine surrounding the neuron, it'll take  

up those adenosine receptors so adenosine can't  bind and cause its suppressive actions that we  

mentioned kind of suppresses stimulation,  makes you feel more tired and fatigued.

And so, imagine you are partaking of that  wonderful caffeinated beverage but I'm sure you're  

not addicted to it all. We'll talk about that  later. The caffeine will eventually make it into  

your bloodstream and circulate into the blood of  the brain. Here's a little tiny blood vessel that  

I'm representing here, not perfectly to scale but  this capillary will be close by and the caffeine  

would diffuse out, bind to those receptors, again,  blocking the action of adenosine, therefore,  

making you feel more stimulated, energetic,  motivated and determined to conquer your daily  

to-do list which I'm sure includes watching  videos from the Institute of Human Anatomy.

So, now that we know how caffeine works, how  effective is it? What are considered safe amounts  

and are there any potential cons or drawbacks  when it comes to partaking of caffeine? Well,  

there are multiple studies that show caffeine has  the ability to improve concept formation, memory,  

reasoning, orientation, attention, and yes, even  improve the mood of you grouchy morning people.  

It's even been shown to be at improving  reaction time and visual spatial reasoning.

Now, keep in mind that these  effects or qualities of caffeine  

tend to be greater when used or  tested in individuals that are  

already fatigue or sleep deprived or maybe even  jet lagged. So, someone who is well rested,  

had a lot of sleep, you're not going to see  the same level or boost in these qualities.

One of the thing we have to be clear about is  caffeine is actually not producing a usable  

form of energy like the energy currency  we talked about earlier called ATP.  

It's more of giving you the stimulus or  this perception of feeling more energized.

Now, the amount of caffeine needed to achieve  some of those previously mentioned results  

has quite the range and that range can be  from 30 milligrams up to 300 milligrams  

per day with 400 milligrams being  considered generally safe for most adults.

Now, you might be thinking "Why is there such  a range? Why would one person maybe only need  

30 milligrams in another all the way up to 300  plus milligrams per day." And we can have that  

conversation of individual genetics, physiology,  etcetera but one of the most important factors  

in that range is how much caffeine the person  partakes of on a consistent or day-to-day basis.

For example, someone like me who doesn't partake  of a lot of caffeine and might be considered  

caffeine naive would notice these  effects probably around that 30 milligram  

range and I can attest that I do feel some of  those effects if I take 30 milligrams of caffeine.  

If I were to take that 300 milligrams per day,  I'd likely be bouncing off the wall like a child.

Now, if we compare that to someone who is taking  caffeine on a consistent day-to-day basis,  

maybe they're a moderate to heavy coffee drinker,  they might need that 200 to 300 milligrams a day  

to get the same level of effect as someone  who's more caffeine naive and that helps  

us with a nice little segway for one of our  first potential cons or drawbacks of caffeine  

and that is, as we partake of caffeine  more frequently or more consistently,  

our bodies will eventually build up a tolerance  to the caffeine and we would therefore need  

higher amounts to get the same level of  effects. But what's actually happening  

at the physiological or cellular level  when we build up a tolerance to caffeine?

Well, there's this process that occurs  called upregulation and for us to understand  

upregulation, we need to remind ourselves about  those adenosine receptors that the caffeine was  

blocking. Now, upregulation causes the adenosine  receptors to increase in number. So, we literally  

make more of them and if I have a higher amount  or a greater number of adenosine receptors,  

I'm going to more caffeine to block that  greater number of receptors to get the  

same level of effects that I had previously  before the process of upregulation occurred.

Now when we're talking about other  potential drawbacks or side effects,  

we often remind ourselves that caffeine  doesn't just circulate to the brain tissue,  

it circulates throughout the body and can  therefore affect other tissues and other systems  

and one of those systems would  be the cardiovascular system.

Saffeine can increase systolic blood pressure by  as much as 10 points. So if you need a reminder  

blood pressure remember the two numbers like 120  over 80, the top number is systolic. So if you are  

at 120, caffeine could potentially increase it  to 130. Caffeine can also affect the conduction  

system of the heart and if the conduction  system of the heart is fired off - firing  

off more frequently which is in the case of  caffeine, it can cause this cardiac muscle  

tissue to contract more frequently and therefore  increase the heart rate. It can also cause the  

cardiac muscle tissue to contract more forcefully  and have a little bit more of a four heartbeat.

Caffeine can also increase the  flow of blood through the kidneys  

and if you take a look at this cool  kidney dissection that we have here,  

we can look at the internal anatomy of the kidney  and the blood is going to come in through this  

renal artery and branch and get distributed to the  outer portion of the kidney here to be filtered.

Now, this outer portion of the kidney  is referred to as the renal cortex. Now,  

caffeine can increase the amount of fluid  and sodium that's filtered in this area  

and therefore, increasing the amount of urine  produced which will eventually make it out a  

different tube here called the urether down  to the bladder and hopefully into the toilet.

Now, that was a really overly long or drawn  

out way of just saying caffeine can  increase the amount of urine output  

and therefore, caffeine is often labeled as a  mild diuretic, diuretic just making you pee.

Now, caffeine can also cause things like  agitation. It can make people feel jittery  

and even anxious. Now, granted, that tends to  be a higher risk in people who are caffeine  

naive or in people who are taking high amounts of  caffeine but it a potential drawback nonetheless.  

But with all these drawbacks we're discussing,  one thing that's interesting to note is that as a  

person builds up the tolerance to caffeine, these  side effects or drawbacks become more minimal.

So somebody who's taking caffeine  consistently wouldn't notice a full 10  

point increase in systolic blood pressure, again,  

more minimal of an increase also not as a  great of an increase in their heart rate  

or a less diuretic effect that caffeine can  have upon them with that buildup of tolerance.

And a finalize this discussion around caffeine  tolerance in these potential drawbacks or side  

effects of caffeine, from one perspective, you  might think, well, if I'm a little caffeine  

tolerant, those side effects tend to be more  minimal and you might think of that as an  

actual benefit to tolerance, but if you miss that  morning caffeine hit or go on an extended period  

of time without caffeine, your body is likely  to let you know about it and you might even let  

others around you know about it because you might  be feeling grouchy, tired, fatigue, foggy, and  

maybe even having this inability or feeling less  focused and all of these things we are trying to  

mitigate with caffeine use tend to come back even  stronger as these caffeine withdrawal symptoms,  

which brings up an interesting idea or  discussion around is caffeine addictive.

Now, in a clinical setting, people often  will hesitate to be like caffeine is as  

strongly addictive substance and we tend to not  see people participating in harmful behaviors with  

caffeine use and we definitely know that caffeine  does not have that same addictive pattern or that  

same level of potential withdrawal symptoms  as say like other stimulants like nicotine,  

amphetamines, and even cocaine. And luckily,  if someone were to want to get off of caffeine,  

they could taper slowly and generally come  off and minimize these caffeine withdrawal  

symptoms and people tend to do just fine  if that's the choice they want to make.

And bringing this full circle, is caffeine bad?  Should you use it? Should you not use it? Well,  

caffeine is one of those substances  where it's difficult to draw a hard line  

in the sand. There are definitely substances out  there that we could discuss where we would say  

probably shouldn't take that. It's  going to do more harm than good.

Caffeine doesn't fall into that category.  I think caffeine should be approached  

similar to how you might approach any substance  you ingest in your body whether it's like a food  

or supplement or maybe an over-the-counter  drug. You always want to weigh the pros and  

the cons. Could we find situations where people  are maybe using caffeine a little bit too much  

or ineffectively or relying on it too much? Sure,  but we could also find plenty of people who are  

using it responsibly and effectively. As well as  people who don't use it at all and do just fine.

Another thing that I think is important to  mention is caffeine's use as a therapeutic  

agent in a clinical setting as well as its  potential to reduce risk of certain disorders.  

There are studies out there that  imply that caffeine may reduce  

the risk of neurological disorders  such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

Now, keep in mind, more research needs to be done  on this and caffeine would be only one factor for  

these things like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's but  it is interesting nonetheless to think that it  

may have a protective or potential risk-reducing  benefit for some of these neurological disorders.

Now, caffeine can be used to help reduce pain,  

specifically in regards to headaches in  combination with other medications. Now, I forgot  

to mention that one of the actual withdrawal  symptoms of caffeine can also be a headache.

So, headaches can be a little bit of  this double-edged sword with caffeine  

depending on somebody's caffeine status but in  certain situations can be used therapeutically to  

treat headaches. And a final interesting thought  on caffeine use. Some people will use caffeine  

periodically or intermittently.  Maybe one or two times per week  

and what they'll do is they'll time that  caffeine use with maybe a day that they're  

going to need to get more things done or  be more focused maybe at work or school or  

whatever they're participating in and the idea  is that they won't build up that tolerance but  

still be able to get the benefits on that day  that they're targeting to use the caffeine.

Other people will also even target caffeine  use around athletic events as there's been a  

lot of research on caffeine and its influence on  athletic performance which is extremely exciting,  

interesting to me. We're going to be actually  doing a video on caffeine and athletic performance  

here shortly. Bringing us back to  our final thoughts with this video,  

our hope was that we could truly show you  what caffeine is doing inside the human body  

even at the cellular level so you could make  informed decisions about how you want to utilize  

caffeine in your own life and hopefully you  got the information you needed to do that.

So, thank you for watching this video,  be sure to check out that link in the  

description below with Athletic Greens.  Like, comment below. Let us know what you  

think about caffeine and how you utilize it in  your own life and if you're not a subscriber,  

feel free to hit that subscribe button  and we'll see you in the next video.