CAFFEINE: HOW TO HACK IT AND HOW TO QUIT IT

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Is It Bad To Drink Coffee Late at Night?
Depending on your sensitivity to caffeine a latenight cup may be just fine
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A cup of joe can sound mighty tempting when you hit a wall in the late afternoon and need a pickmeup to get through the rest of the day. Coffee also pairs nicely with desserts when youre out for the evening or after dinner.
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But is it bad to drink coffee late at night?
It depends on how sensitive you are to caffeine says registered dietitian Anthony DiMarino RD LD. Some people can enjoy a latenight brew and sleep soundly a few hours later. People more sensitive to caffeine may toss and turn all night and be unable to sleep.
Heres how that evening coffee may affect you and when it might actually help.
How late is too late for coffee?
To figure out how late you can drink coffee and still get a good nights rest consider how long it takes your body to clear out or eliminate caffeine.
It can take two to 10 hours for just half of caffeines effects to wear off DiMarino explains. This halflife as its known varies from person to person.
Research shows that your genes may affect how quickly you metabolize caffeine. Specifically some people are blessed with two CYP1A2 genes the coffee gene that helps your body break down and eliminate caffeine faster than those who have one copy.
Someone who metabolizes caffeine slowly should probably avoid evening caffeine if they want a good nights rest DiMarino advises.
The lowdown on coffee and caffeine
An 8ounce cup of coffee has close to 100 milligrams of caffeine. But DiMarino cautions that the amount of caffeine per cup can vary depending on the type of coffee grounds and the brew. For example instant coffee typically has about half the caffeine that brewed coffee has. And coffee shop brews often come in larger sizes which means more caffeine.
The U S. Food and Drug Administration FDA recommends that adults limit caffeine to 400 milligrams per day. Thats the equivalent of four to five cups of coffee a day depending on the coffee type and cup size. Of course you also need to consider the caffeine you get from chocolate tea