Coffee break

Plenty of people rely on that cup of Java to get themselves going in the morning - but does coffee really get you firing on all cylinders? And how much is too much?

In the past 15 years the UK has seen rapid expansion in the coffee shop sector - you can"t walk down any high street without being bombarded by Costa Coffee, Starbucks, Caffe Nero or a host of smaller chains or independents. And something else is commonplace - people walking into work in the morning with their little cardboard cup full of coffee goodness (unless they opt for the "gut rot" provided in the company kitchen, that is).

Many people can"t start their work day without coffee - they insist it helps them concentrate and keep going. According to a 2014 Pressat survey, 70 per cent said their working ability would be affected without a daily mug of coffee. But is this really the case? While some research suggests that coffee has positive effects on concentration levels - and even on ethics - at what point does it start to have a negative effect?

Louise Dunn, a qualified personal trainer in Guernsey, specialises in helping people combine exercise and healthy eating in a sustainable way. Reliance on caffeine is something she deals with almost every day and she points to the clear physical effects that it can have.

“When someone says "I can"t" it tends to be more in the mind and routine than reality,” she says. “However, coffee - or more accurately caffeine - stimulates
the sympathetic nervous system, which does increase heart rate and adrenaline levels within the body, giving you that get-up-and-go feeling.”

Researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine released a paper in 2010 which found that caffeine helped to improve workers" memory and concentration as well as reducing the number of mistakes they made.

The team, led by Katharine Ker, reviewed the findings of 13 studies from around the world, involving shift workers, mostly in their 20s, in simulated working conditions. In memory, reasoning and concentration tests, those who had been given caffeine all scored moderately higher than those given a placebo. The team concluded that there was no reason for healthy individuals who already used caffeine within recommended limits to stop doing so.

So far so good for coffee advocates. But how and why could caffeine make you more ethical as well?

Research published in the March 2014 issue of the Journal of Applied Psychology, which built on a 2011 study, showed that sleep deprivation contributes to unethical behaviour at work by making you more susceptible to social influences - such as a boss telling you to do something deceptive. By drinking as little as two cups of coffee a day, caffeine might help make the sleep-deprived more honest because they are more awake, the report argues.

Co-author Michael Christian suggests that any employers keen to reduce the likelihood of misbehaviour should make sure people aren"t putting in too many long hours without a break. They should avoid scheduling tasks that require a great deal of self-control when looming deadlines make long hours unavoidable.

He also makes two further suggestions - allocate nap rooms at the office and don"t skimp on the free coffee.

Making it personal

Of course, not everyone reacts to caffeine in the same way. Everyone has a different lifestyle, nutritional habits, stressors, hormone levels and previous experience with caffeine, which means it has the potential to affect some people more than others. While one person might seem to have a laser focus after one strong cup, someone else might be a gibbering mess.

Dunn argues that it"s not only the level of consumption, but where the mind and body are at the time of consumption, that will have a major effect. “If you"re conscious of and open to the potential of caffeine, there"s a chance you are more likely to benefit,” she says.

One thing to consider is that the effect of coffee at work can be short-lived. People often find themselves flagging and heading back to the kitchen or the coffee shop for another "hit". Sound familiar?

Chantelle Spriggs, a nutritional adviser in Jersey, says there is an ebb-and-flow effect with caffeine as it blocks receptors in the brain by binding with the chemical adenosine, which promotes sleep and suppresses physiological arousal.

“You get an energy burst, which gives you a buzz, but this is short-lived, so you come crashing back down until you get the next fix of caffeine,” she says. “If that next fix doesn't come, you may experience headaches, drowsiness and irritability.”

On the other hand, caffeine intoxication isn"t uncommon. “Caffeine intoxication can lead to a sensation of jitteriness and nervousness, an inability to sit still and focus,” says Spriggs. 

Because caffeine raises adrenaline levels in the body, it can be addictive. “Your body can also become reliant on that stimulus mentally and physically, whether it be from you getting a break, the social interaction associated with coffee, part of your routine or the effects on the body,” says Dunn.

Katie Bellingham, Director of Focus Group, which provides human resources consultancy services, says she has clients who have introduced hot water taps or vending machines into the office to cut back on the time it takes to boil a kettle.

“I think it"s as much about the social experience as it is about the intake of caffeine,” she says. “For somebody who is sat at their desk most of the day, [it means they get] to go for a short walk, have a change of scenery, away from screen - it"s a break from the mundane.”

Bean counting

All of this bring us back to one question, however - how much is too much? The latest advice from the EU"s food safety watchdog is a daily limit of 400mg of caffeine, which equates to four cups of instant coffee. Seeing as your Starbucks double espresso weighs in at roughly 160mg, three would take you over your limit. It"s also recommended that pregnant women limit their intake to 200mg a day. And don"t forget that energy drinks such as Red Bull, fizzy cola drinks and even chocolate contain caffeine and contribute to your daily total.

The European Food Safety Agency warns that those who break the limits run the risk of a host of health problems, from anxiety and sleeplessness to heart rhythm disturbances and heart failure. Its comprehensive review of literature on the subject also shows links between high caffeine intake in pregnancy and having a baby that is underweight. The NHS warns that too much caffeine can cause a miscarriage.

But just as one survey makes one claim, another survey claims the contrary. A team of scientists from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, whose research was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology this year, claims that drinking four or more cups of coffee per day has been linked with increased survival rates among colon cancer sufferers. Regular consumption has resulted in a 42 per cent reduction in the disease returning.

Perhaps all this just sends out a confusing message. As long as you"re enjoying your coffee then why not screw the consequences? But if you"re worried, a first step could be to keep a diary of exactly how much coffee you"re drinking on a daily basis, and if it seems like too much or that the side effects are becoming unpleasant, then consider reducing your caffeine intake or even cutting it out altogether.

We"re not likely to turn into a water-only workforce any time soon, says Dunn, despite the evidence to suggest that drinking water is far better than anything else to hydrate your body. “Reaching for a coffee is much "easier" and if we can function on the easy option, we will,” she says. And besides, coffee sure tastes better.