Why Does Coffee Make Me Sleepy? - Know the Reasons
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Last Updated on Jan 30, 2023
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So, you wake up every day and drink at least 2 cups of coffee. You feel energized like ‘Hulk’ and rush to finish your job. But you soon feel drained and feel like crashing, then you think to yourself - ‘why does coffee make me sleepy?’. Well, it is the caffeine that receives the maximum spotlight. Coffee indeed keeps you up, but there are times when you feel sleepy.
If you are thinking - ‘why does caffeine make me tired?’ It is because of various reasons like blockage of the effects of adenosine, it is diuretic, maybe it is the sweetener that is causing the fatigue and not the coffee. If you are a coffee addict like most of us and fall sleepy sometimes, you will be glued to all the information stating what coffee does to you.
Reasons Why Coffee Makes You Sleepy
After spending endless hours finding ‘why does coffee make me sleepy instead of waking me up?’ you found our page. Here, we have covered all possible reasons for the question - ‘can coffee make you tired?’. Remember, the effects of caffeine can be quite distinct for each person; while some may feel wholly energized with just one cup, others may simply crash after consuming the same.
1. Coffee Blocks the Effects of Adenosine
‘Caffeine makes me sleepy’, you googled and came across results talking about how coffee blocks the effects of adenosine. Now, adenosine is a chemical alive in the central nervous system responsible for controlling the sleep cycle. An increase in adenosine makes us feel fresh and awake during the day and tired during the night as the adenosine levels drop.
Consuming caffeine averts the brain receptors from receiving adenosine. Though the function completely doesn't stop working but comes to a halt. When the caffeine slowly starts wearing off, adenosine accumulates, waiting to bind to its receptors. This answers the question of what coffee does to you.
2. Coffee is Diuretic
Why does coffee make me sleepy? - This is because coffee is a diuretic. Drinking around 4 to 5 cups of coffee will make you use the restroom more often, thus resulting in dehydration, dizziness, dry mouth, and lack of sweat. And all these factors will lead you to feel fatigued and sleepy throughout the day. Though consuming 2 to 3 cups or in limitation will not make you feel this way.
3. It Might be the Sugar/Sweetener
It feels awesome to have a cup of coffee with honey syrup, sweetener, or a cookie. But this leads to sugar crashes, answering your question of why coffee makes me sleepy? When you consume quite a bit of sugar, your body's glucose level drops, which is the primary source of energy for your body. People with high blood sugar levels feel very fatigued, this is why you wonder if caffeine makes me anxious and irritable, sweaty, dizzy, and also sleepy!
4. It Might Be the Mold, and Not your Coffee (Gross, I Know)
No matter how gross it sounds, it is the truth. ‘Why does coffee make me sleepy?’ - this might be because of the mold found in the coffee beans and not the caffeine. A 2003 study stated that 60 samples of green coffee were collected from Brazil, and 91.7%, or the maximum of it, was contaminated with molds.
Another NIH research stated how they examined coffee samples for mycotoxin, a microfungus. Furthermore, the mycotoxins found in the study contained aflatoxin B1 and ochratoxin A. However, the degree of mycotoxin found was under the acceptable limit.
It is a 2013 study that has stated how mycotoxins are reasons for chronic fatigue, and therefore, this might be the reason you are feeling sleepy even after sleeping properly.
5. Caffeine Makes Way for Stress
From a 2017 study, it has been found that post ingesting caffeine, the body has doubled the flow of epinephrine and cortisol - even if the person doesn’t consume coffee regularly. This narrows down to the fact that even if you drink a specific amount of coffee regularly, your body might still feel stressed. And, the body might change this stress into sleepiness.
Other Side-effects of Coffee On Your Body
Hold on, there are more factors causing negative impacts on your body apart from the aforementioned ones. Apart from caffeine crash, there are more than coffee does. Keep reading.
1. Insomnia
Almost every day, we hear our parents screaming at us for having coffee before bed. We give reasons that we will study or work. But a 2013 study has shown how it is important to stop consuming caffeine at least 6 hours before our sleep. Another study conducted in 2016 stated an interrelation between higher caffeine intake and higher insomnia. Therefore, caffeine and insomnia have a love-hate relationship. Banana can be a beneficial food to consume before sleep.
2. Anxiety
‘Coffee makes me anxious’ has been said by many because coffee instigates anxiety and affects people’s mental health. Consumption of more than 400g of caffeine has resulted in jitteriness and nervousness. People suffering from panic attacks and depression shouldn’t consume much caffeine as it results in increased anxiety.
3. Cardiovascular Effects
Consumption of caffeine results in increased heart rate and blood pressure. Though, a 2017 study has shown that consumption of 3 cups of coffee per day may result in control of cardiovascular diseases. On the other hand, a 2019 study has shown that consumption of more than 6 cups may cause an increase in cardiovascular risk.
How Can You Minimize Side Effects of Coffee?
After knowing the answer to ‘why does coffee make me sleepy?’, you might also be looking forward to minimizing it, right? These are really simple yet practical tips you can adapt regularly.
- Switch to Decaf Coffee – Uncompromising on the taste, you can choose a decaf coffee with reduced caffeine effects.
- Avoid Sugar – Avoiding excess sugar could help you reduce those sugar crashes you might regularly have.
- Drink Plenty of Water – Coffee is a diuretic that can rapidly decrease the water level in the body. Therefore, keeping yourself hydrated can reduce the effect of coffee.
- Walk it Out – Since you have the energy in the body, you can burn some of it with a walk, and it might lessen the effects of coffee.
Caffeine Limits to Be Considered
Even though coffee might be everyone’s favorite drink in America, you should always know how much coffee is too much and when to limit it.
- For adults: Up to 400 mg/per day can be consumed without causing any harm.
- For pregnant & women who are breastfeeding: Up to 200 mg/ per day can be consumed.
- For children: Up to 100 mg/ per day can be consumed.
We all know that a world without coffee seems impossible to deal with, but you also have to notice the effects of coffee on the body. Depending on how much coffee you drink, the symptoms might change from time to time. Now that you know what to do to minimize the effects of coffee, you can easily enjoy coffee minus the after-effects.
