The energy problem

Other than for coffee lovers who savor the taste and crave their morning coffee for reasons other than waking up and being alert, coffee is used to keep us humming thru the day with not enough sleep the night before.  But coffee’s stimulant activity may not be the best way to gain energy to get thru the day.  A recent survey from the National Coffee Association found Americans are drinking coffee at the highest level in six years [1]. Sixty-four percent of adult Americans say they had a cup of coffee the previous day in 2018, up from 62 percent in 2017.  Sometimes due to our schedules and stresses of life, one or two cups of coffee may not be enough and we crave

Meanwhile, diet soda consumption has been on the decline. A Gallup poll found that 24 percent of Americans drink diet soda and 44 percent drink soda overall. However, a majority of Americans say they try to avoid drinking soda [2].

Although medical experts disagree on whether coffee is beneficial to your health, almost all agree that drinking diet coke and ingesting too much caffeine is detrimental to your well-being [3].

Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine found that people who consume diet soda daily are three times more likely to suffer from a stroke or dementia within the next ten years [4]. Additionally, the artificial sweetener aspartame that is found in most diet sodas has been linked to migraines, irritable moods, anxiety and insomnia [5 , 6].

Healthcare experts also warn against drinking high amounts of caffeine. Research shows that relying on high amounts of coffee creates this toxic cycle: tiredness, which leads to increased coffee consumption, which impairs your sleep, which leads to “daytime fatigue the next day,” which leads to more coffee consumption. One study found that even modest amounts of coffee may “significantly” increase stress levels and anxiety when consumed in a short time period [7 , 8].

Instead of falling into this toxic cycle of tiredness leading to coffee and soda which result in undue stresses to the body, perhaps another approach should be considered.

Acupuncture and herbal formulas can help with the energy we need in clean yet an amazing and complex way.