Caffeine pills?

I used to drink 4-5 cans of Mtn. Dew a day. I'm trying to lose some weight and have cut back to 0-1 cans a day. I really miss the caffeine. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon23.gif I don't drink coffee. I'm thinking about trying some caffeine pills...as far as I know, they have about 200mg of caffeine, where Mtn Dew has about 55mg/can. Would taking a caffeine pill be any different or more dangerous than drinking 4 cans of dew? Caffeine pills just seem like a bad idea to me, but I can't think of any reason why it would be different than drinking pop or coffee...

Caffeine is not your friend. As long as your weaning yourself off of the sugar and calories, I'd try to give up the caffeine as well. A gradual decrease in consumption will probably be easier that going "cold turkey".

Peter

Do what I did and give up something beside Dew (or Pepsi) /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Actually caffeine isn't the best thing for you anyway. I am down to about 4-5 cans myself from a lot more. I think the best way to do it (no pun intended) is to drink one less can a day each week. So go to say 4 cans a day this week and then 3 cans a day next week. I would think the problem with the pills is you get it all at once instead of over the day and not dilute with a bunch of liquid. What about diet Dew, not that I ever touch diet.

I know caffeine isn't the best thing for me...but hey, it's better than crack, right? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif I cannot give up caffeine completely because I get migraines frequently, and I have to take heavily caffeinated headache pills. I tried diet mountain dew...they shouldn't be allowed to use the D, because it's just ew. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I don't drink caffeinated pop (soda), but I do drink coffee. I've found that half-caff is a good way to wean down a little bit, and an added bonus is that it's not nearly as bitter that way. Too bad they don't make lightly caffeinated versions of the soft drinks mentioned here.

Caffeine can actually help you lose weight because it can increase the duration of the thermogenic properties of ephedrine/pseudoephedrine.

Caffine in pill form isn't any worse, it's a very safe and effective drug.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECA_stack

If you want to quit it though, gradually reduce your dosage, if you quit cold-turkey you become oversensitive to adenosine and get headaches.

I used to take caffeine pills like No-Doz or Vivarin.
In my opinion, there was no significant difference between the pills and the soda, as far as stimulant effect was concerned.

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BatteryCharger said:
I know caffeine isn't the best thing for me...but hey, it's better than crack, right? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif I cannot give up caffeine completely because I get migraines frequently, and I have to take heavily caffeinated headache pills. I tried diet mountain dew...they shouldn't be allowed to use the D, because it's just ew. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

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I have a family history of migraines and take 'Cafergot' [ergotamine plus mostly caffeine] during pain attacks. It MUST be taken earliest, at the onset of symptoms, to minimize use and provide maximum effectiveness. Usually I just ride out the visuals, since actual headache generally comes days later. There are far better drugs available, but expensive. A neurologist can help, providing free samples, too...

Along with those I always take 'Propranol' daily as a preventative. It's a mild and quite safe blood pressure lowering drug [beta blocker], decreasing anxiety slightly as well. Anyone using regular over-the-counter 'Tylenol' or 'Aspirin' type meds too often [several times weekly] should know they can have a rebound affect and are NOT advisable in the case of migraines. Hope this proves helpful to someone...

Oooo...maybe I can just snort a hand full of this stuff:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=19261&item=5568301604
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

Stuff like that should be illegal. I could see some crack head kids finding that pure caffeine powder, mistakenly think it was coke, and then huff it and kill themselves. I don't know what you should do to solve your caffeine problem, but if I were you I wouldn't wan't to be found with that stuff. Good luck with whatever method/s you try.

[Clinton] I..Feel..Your..Pain..[/Clinton]

A few years ago I found myself slowly gaining weight, half due to the fact that my exercise had dropped to walking from the car to work and half due to the fact that I ate junk constantly. I would drink at least 12 cans of straight Pepsi/Coke/etc a day. The caloric intake from that alone was probably pretty close to my daily limit, plus all of the food I was eating and it was pretty clear to me why I was gaining weight.

I cut out ALL junk food. No more Dr. Pepper, no more chips, no more candy, no more sugar unless it occurs naturally in fruits or something. I dropped 20 lbs in no time at all. Once I got my weight where I wanted it, I slowly reintroduced things back into my diet, although I still don't eat junk very often.

The hardest part was coming off of the sugars and caffine. The first couple of days, I had horrible headaches, couldn't function too well, and was generally miserable. As my body started functioning without these critters, though, it adjusted, and I found myself more generally alert and energetic, as I wasn't going through the highs and lows of sugar in my system. Everything smoothed out, and my doctor says that while I was miserable it didn't hurt me any.

As always, though, it's best to talk with your doctor before doing anything like this. .

BC the reason that not drinking caffiene gives you headaches, is the same reason (IMO) that caffiene GIVES people migraines.

caffiene is a diruetic (water remover), and it reduces the size of capilaries, a combination that makes it as addictive as heroine.

you see putting caffiene in your system is toxic, and like all other toxic drugs, your body needs to dispose of it rapidly.
so that means your normal fluids LEAVE your body, and your brain
there is this SAC of liquids around your brain, that keeps it from smashing up against your thick skull.
when the diruetics (of the many out there) leech water out of your body , the brain sac is depleated, and your brain gets beaten to death.
Thanks to the caffiene though you dont feel as much, so you dont know its happening.

then it contracts your blood vessels, like the capilaries, so your brain shrinks, and of course because your brain is 99% water it suffers

so when you quit sucking down your favorite PP Juice, and rushing off to the poty, you must replace the liquids you were formerly drinking with water , or other non caffinated, non alcoholic drinks (alcohol is also a brain depleating diuretic).

then you have to give it TIME for the body thermostatic protections to re-balance to the alterations you made, your brain will expand when your not on caffiene.

eventually the brains protection sac will refill, and the brain expansion will reduce, also the cranium containment system is capable of expanding slightly. so you can look like them aliens

its my opinion, some or all of these combinations are what causes the Worst of the migrains. and migrain sufferers often do the worst things to "fix" them they take an asperin, which thins the blood, and stops the brain from knowing it is being damaged.

so generally a migraine sufferer cause it all to themselves, and only takes cheap quick fixes that only make it worse.

so
drink lotsa water, eat bannanas (increase the potassium to reduce higher blood pressure) and stay away from them drugs

what did caffiene ever do for anybody anyways, other than make them believe they were awake for 20 minutes, so they could get to work and pass out. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

This message brought to you by the Daisy pharmacudical company, offering special prices on drugs that undo the side effects on the drugs we sold you last week

Back in college I didn't drink coffee, and used caffeine pills often. They work fine. However, 200mg of caffeine all at once used to make me very jittery, and if Mt Dew only has 50 mg of caffeine, then the pill will probably make you jittery too, at least until you build up a tolerance. My main caution would be that if you're not careful, due to the high levels of caffeine in them, they could make your already-bad caffeine addiction worse.

I think it's a good idea to slowly start weaning yourself off this, slowly or else your migraines will get worse I bet. If you're going to use pills, perhaps you should be splitting them so you don't get such a big jolt, then shave down the size and number of pills gradually? Definitely worth talking to your doctor about.

Another alternative: get your caffeine from a drink that's actually healthy for you, like tea (don't add sugar or cream!). If you can learn to like green tea, you get extra credit /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

BTW, congrats on cutting out all that sugar, probably best thing you can do for yourself.

What about iced tea? Some lemon and maybe lime in it. You could control the sugar and ease it back in steps. Maybe make your own simple syrup (warm water and sugar), put it in a water bottle with the squirt nozzle and sweeten your beverage in squirts.

At one point I was taking nitroglycerine for blocked heart arteries [vascodilator] simultaneously with Cafergot for migraines [vascoconstrictor]. Inevitably conflicts arose as the nitro patch brought on more headaches. Oddly enough, when I chose to stop using it [against medical advice], both the angina and migraines markedly decreased!

When taking Cafergot, drastically reducing other caffeine intake is highly recommended, if better results are desired. It's not a drug I enjoy, since nausea is a common 'side-effect', so minimizing it's use seems best. What we are looking for in health is the achievement of BALANCE through the simplist most basic ways, rather than continually piling ingredients on all sides, thereby complicating the equation and making system instabilities more likely. Steady as she goes is the ideal course...particularly as our bodies start to show their age.

Detoxification of one kind or another remains a constant requirement in what is essentially a toxic environment -- spiritual beings living in the material world. I've learned "travel light" is the best overall advice...

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Icebreak said:
What about iced tea? Some lemon and maybe lime in it. You could control the sugar and ease it back in steps. Maybe make your own simple syrup (warm water and sugar), put it in a water bottle with the squirt nozzle and sweeten your beverage in squirts.

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I used to keep cold green/black tea, with lemon, in my fridge all the time...

Only sweetener I know that apparently has no negative effects, in fact balancing blood sugar some say, is natural stevia powder [common shrub]. Unfortunately, although much stronger than sugar, it can have a slightly bitter aftertaste and doesn't react the same in baking. Concentrated liquid is available in small bottles for adding a few drops to drinks...

I agree with just about everything said here.

I too have had migranes, I have not gone to the doctor, but I have cured them myself. I started getting them about 3 years ago. I haven't had any for 1.5 or more years! I would get those Visuals. At first I thought something was going wrong with my eyes/optic nerves or something, because I didnt know the symptoms of a migrane. Then after 20mins the visuals went away, and I had the worst migrane/headache ever!! I basically lied on the floor unable to move/function/think because of the pain!

I have a lot of stress from several sources and my friends don't see how I can not go on a shooting spree with what I put up with but that is antoher story. I found out that stress can depelete Magnesium and that if you are low on that you can get migraines. I have been taking Magnesium suppliments (vitamens) daily in addition to a multi-vitamen. I have not had a migraine since I started that.

You also need another mineral to absorb magnesium too I forget which (calcium, potasium?) but I drink a ton of milk too and I think that helps. Not saying to stop all meds or whatever and try magnesium, but it totally helped me!!! Listen to what your body wants (not junk food though). I was craving raw-spinach and was eating bag after bag. Turns out spinach has a lot of magnesium in it!

OH yeah and if you need energy, excersise! You'd be amazed at just walking on a tread mill for 20mins 2 times a week will do! I lift weights and have recently started to walk on the treadmill again and now I have engergy out the roof!! Sure you get tired while doing it, but then bam! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I love coffee, I love tea
I love the java jive and it loves me
Coffee and tea and the jivin' and me
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup!

I love java, sweet and hot
Whoops! Mr. Moto, I'm a coffee pot
Shoot me the pot and I'll pour me a shot
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup!

Oh, slip me a slug from the wonderful mug
And I cut a rug till I'm snug in a jug
A slice of onion and a raw one, draw one.
Waiter, waiter, percolator!

I love coffee, I love tea
I love the java jive and it loves me
Coffee and tea and the jivin' and me
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup!

Boston bean, soy bean
Lima bean, string bean.
You know that I'm not keen for a bean
Unless it is a cheery coffee bean.

I love coffee, I love tea
I love the java jive and it loves me
Coffee and tea and the jivin' and me
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup!

I love java, sweet and hot
Whoops! Mr. Moto, I'm a coffee pot
Shoot me the pot and I'll pour me a shot
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup!

Oh, slip me a slug from the wonderful mug
And I cut a rug till I'm snug in a jug
Drop me a nickel in my pot, Joe, Takin' it slow.
Waiter, waiter, percolator!

I love coffee, I love tea
I love the java jive and it loves me
Coffee and tea and the jivin' and me
A cup, a cup, a cup, a cup, a cup!

One thing that can make it hard to kick caffeine is being sleep-deprived, which most people are. Getting enough sleep and regulating your sleep habits can help you feel refreshed during the day and less in need of a shot of caffeine (after the initial withdrawl).

Good luck with your efforts to cut out the soda.

I was getting 4 to 6 full blown, lying in the dark for 8 to 14 hours migraines, with the occasional break to throw up, a year for about 2 to 3 years.

My doctor put me on a low dose of Inderol, as mentioned above, and it 1) has virtually eliminated my migraines. I get one maybe every 3 or 4 years now. 2) my blood pressure was slowly creeping up; now it's well within normal limits, and has been since I've been taking Inderol.
3) I had a slight hand tremor, (both hands) which was getting worse with age. It's completely gone, too.

Long before I had migraines, my doctor discovered my cardiac rate was high. Like about 120-130 bpm in the morning, and slowing as I went through the day. They couldn't figure out why, and wasted a ton of money trying to figure out why.

Inderol takes care of that, as well. No side effects that I have ever noticed. It's very, very cheap, under it's generic name propranolol.

Four problems, ESPECIALLY THE MIGRAINES, taken care of with one very inexpensive medication.

Occassionally, my doctor used to try to switch me to a much more expensive drug that some drug rep gives him a kick-back for prescribing. I know the racket; I worked in a hospital for years. I told him I'd report him to the AMA. I've kept the expensive precsriptions he tried to convince me to take, and twisted his arm until he wrote for Inderol.

He know he's basicaly f*cked if he doesn't give me what I want; he's dug himself into a hole, several times, and he'll never get out. I get what I want, and he doesn't get any kick backs. My heart bleeds.

It's the pharmaceutical companies who are to blame; they make billions on new drugs, and they have to convince doctors to take their patients off of drugs which work perfectly well, and convince them to switch to something which may not help them at all, or have serious side effects. But they have vastly higher profits!

All the pharmaceutical companies care about is how many patients they can convince the MD's to switch to the 'new , improved', 6 to 10 times as expensive drug.

Inderol is an old drug; it's been on the market for many decades. It works; it's cheap; it's safe.

The drug companies hate it because they'd rather you GET THE MIGRAINES, and then they sell you expensive drugs to treat them. They can just step off; I know their racket. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif