The safe level of caffeine intake for children and adolescents is currently thought to be 2.5 or 3 mg/kg/day, but these ranges are largely estimated based on studies in adults. In March of 2013, a group of scientists sent a letter to the FDA commissioner stating that “the best available scientific evidence demonstrates a robust correlation between the caffeine levels in energy drinks and adverse health and safety consequences, particularly among children, adolescents, and young adults”. The Health and Medicine Division (formerly known as the Institute of Medicine) has recommended that caffeinated drinks not be sold to children at school. Other groups have called for even more research and caution in this population, particularly in regard to the caffeine content of energy drinks. According to Health Canada, 2.5 mg/kg/day translates to the following approximate limits: Health Canada and non-governmental reviews, however, have called for a lower upper limit: 2.5 mg/kg/day. The EFSA notes that the “information available is insufficient to derive a safe caffeine intake” for children and adolescents, but it recommends using the adult population’s upper limit for single doses (3 milligrams per kilogram of bodyweight) as the younger population’s upper limit for daily intake. The clinical evidence being scarce, it is advisable to keep consumption on the lower side of these recommendations. Scientific reviews differ on what constitutes a safe upper intake for pregnant or breastfeeding women: either 200 or 300 mg of caffeine per day. ![]() In other words, when you are pregnant, your body takes a lot longer to get rid of the caffeine you consume: some of the caffeine you ingest in the morning is added to the caffeine you ingest after lunch, and so you may end up with a much higher dose coursing your body than you ever thought possible. Randomized controlled trials in pregnant or breastfeeding women are scarce, so erring on the side of lower caffeine consumption may be prudent, especially since the half-life of caffeine increases from an average of 3 hours for non-pregnant women to 10.5 hours during the last 4 weeks of pregnancy. ![]() Other reviews have concluded that 300 mg/day is safe, but you may be cutting it close, since taking more increases the risk of nausea and, worse, of miscarriage. Healthy adults can safely consume up to 400 mg/day, but avoid caffeine near bedtime for optimal sleep quality.Ī review by the EFSA recommends that women who are breastfeeding, pregnant, or planning to become pregnant limit their intake to 200 mg of caffeine per day. Keep in mind that the half-life of caffeine is 5 hours (on average it varies greatly between individuals), which means that you probably still have caffeine in your blood if you drank coffee within the last 10 hours. However, they caution that 100 mg of caffeine taken close to bedtime may affect sleep quality. While you can consume more, 400 mg is how much caffeine most healthy people can regularly consume in a day without undue negative side effects.įurther, the EFSA indicates that, for most people, up to 200 mg of caffeine at once doesn’t raise health concerns, even “when consumed less than two hours prior to intense physical exercise”. ![]() The European Food Safety Agency (EFSA), the US National Academies of Science (NAS), and Health Canada have concluded that, for healthy adults, caffeine intakes up to 400 mg/day don’t raise any general health concerns. In this article, we’ve broken down the recommendations on caffeine safety, but remember that these are guidelines - individual mileage may vary. Interestingly, similar symptoms have been reported by people going through caffeine withdrawal, in addition to yawning, sleepiness/drowsiness, fatigue, lower motivation to work, impaired concentration, impaired cognitive performance, flu-like symptoms, and muscle stiffness. Some people display no unwanted symptoms from multiple cups of coffee per day, while others can’t drink one cup without experiencing abnormally high spikes in blood pressure, disrupted sleep, headaches, irritability, or nervousness (although some of the “jittery” effects may be alleviated with the co-ingestion of theanine). Caffeine content of popular drinks How much is too much?Ĭaffeine’s safety is relative - it depends on the dose, of course, but also on your health.
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