tassiejd Posted August 17, 2009 Caffeine the Australian 'drug of choice' http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25936850-421,00.html By Brenden Hills, The Sunday Telegraph August 16, 2009 * Coffee the nation's "top addiction" * 63 per cent are sleep deprived AUSTRALIANS are more addicted to caffeine than to any other substance, with research showing many people enjoy the equivalent of four cups of coffee a day. Experts say the ritual morning coffee is the nation's top addiction, beating vices like problem gambling, alcohol and illicit drugs - "ice'', cannabis, ecstasy, cocaine and heroin. A University of NSW National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) spokesman said the average daily caffeine intake was 240mg - equal to four cups of coffee a day. Research by Hudsons Coffee showed three in five NSW residents consumed two-to-four cups of coffee daily. Sleep deprived Performance coach and nutritional researcher Andrew May said caffeine consumption was fuelled by people using coffee as a social lubricant and a short-term cure for the symptoms of sleep deprivation. Around 63 per cent of Australians are sleep-deprived and, because we're so busy, the first thing we cut out is sleep,'' he said. "But when we wake up tired, the first thing we do is buy a coffee on the way to work. "But it is an addictive substance and the more we have it the more we crave that hit, so we have it more.'' Gambling less NDARC research showed 19 per cent of Australians smoked tobacco or cigarettes on a daily basis, while the 2004 National Drug Strategy found up to 20 per cent of people over 30 smoked cannabis daily and up to 25 per cent smoking it weekly. More than 8 per cent of Australians, or 1.3 million, consumed alcohol each day, while heroin (1 per cent), ecstasy (3 per cent) and cocaine (1 per cent) had smaller numbers of frequent users. A spokesman for Clubs NSW said its research showed that just over 1 per cent of the population had a gambling addiction - a substantial fall from the 1999 level of 2 per cent. "It's a surprising figure because you hear about problem gambling so much people think it's at really bad levels, but it's actually better than it's ever been,'' the spokesman said. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mu! Posted August 17, 2009 FUCK YEAH to coffee! best.drug.ever you can abuse it and abuse it and the ramifications are next to nil... YMMV. my mileage on the other hand, has been very good lol i like a good rich coffee, black with a few sugars. none of this fake nescafe bullshit. the only thing i could drink more than coffee during the day is a good cuppa. ie, mothers milk. funny how tea wasnt mentioned in the study, makes you wonder how many old grannies are 'hooked' on the stuff. they love the stuff, with a couple of biscuits on the side. hmmm, i eat round 'biscuits' too nan.. bit suspect if you ask me, tea and biscuits all day long, not a care in the world... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FancyPants Posted August 17, 2009 I had caffeine withdrawals when I was 9 or 10, not pleasant. Damn tasty though. Think I'mma have me a cuppa joe right now. FUCK YEAH to coffee! best.drug.ever you can abuse it and abuse it and the ramifications are next to nil... YMMV. my mileage on the other hand, has been very good lol i like a good rich coffee, black with a few sugars. none of this fake nescafe bullshit. the only thing i could drink more than coffee during the day is a good cuppa. ie, mothers milk. funny how tea wasnt mentioned in the study, makes you wonder how many old grannies are 'hooked' on the stuff. they love the stuff, with a couple of biscuits on the side. hmmm, i eat round 'biscuits' too nan.. bit suspect if you ask me, tea and biscuits all day long, not a care in the world... ROFL. Biscuits, bikkies, tea... it's alllll good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
faustus Posted August 17, 2009 yep. best addiction ever. a drug that offers so much yet asks for so little in return. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
botanika Posted August 17, 2009 funny how tea wasnt mentioned in the study, makes you wonder how many old grannies are 'hooked' on the stuff. they love the stuff, with a couple of biscuits on the side. hmmm, i eat round 'biscuits' too nan.. bit suspect if you ask me, tea and biscuits all day long, not a care in the world... hahaha! Gold Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
~shameless~ Posted August 17, 2009 And it tastes lovely, compared to other brews that can be made from beans and leaves and stufff Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zen Peddler Posted August 18, 2009 why is caffeine culturally and legally acceptable when other stimulants arent? because it keeps people producing for our new god the economy? worth = economic worth? Sorry just ranting because my area is full of latte sipping four-wheel-drive driving wankers. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
faustus Posted August 18, 2009 well, find another stimulant which is only mildly addictive, isn't neurotoxic, doesn't have a nasty come-down, and aside from aggravating anxiety disorders, has a host of pro-health benefits e.g. reduced incidence of dementia, and perhaps i'll agree with you. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ballzac Posted August 18, 2009 And it tastes lovely, compared to other brews that can be made from beans and leaves and stufff Cactus brew tastes better than 'International Roast' Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mauve Posted August 18, 2009 well, find another stimulant which is only mildly addictive, isn't neurotoxic, doesn't have a nasty come-down, and aside from aggravating anxiety disorders, has a host of pro-health benefits e.g. reduced incidence of dementia, and perhaps i'll agree with you. easy ! Coca leaf. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
compost Posted August 18, 2009 A mate swears by 4-5 green teas straight one after the other, but that ain my cuppa. Percolaters rule.. find your bitterness level without sugar (the real top addiction?) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ballzac Posted August 19, 2009 Percolaters rule.. I gather you're talking about a moka pot (Bialetti style), and not the american type? If so, then yes. A very nice brew can be made with these. Quality of the coffee is important. I also think the way it's ground is important. Most cheap electric 'grinders' actually chop rather than grind, and the results are inconsistent. I couldn't afford a fancy electric grinder, so went with the hand cracked style. Considering that it's hard to find a cafe that makes coffee that doesn't taste like urine...or nothing, I'm quite happy to put in a little bit of effort to get a nice brew at home. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FancyPants Posted August 19, 2009 ^^^ WERD. Hard to find a good cafe that doesn't burn the beans but still gives a strong but not bitter flavour. Actually my favourite one is a chain (funnily enough) called Coffee Emporium. Also they don't give me foamy milk when I ask for a flat white like 99% other places do. I hate capuccino, I want the milk IN my bloody coffee, not sitting on top. well, find another stimulant which is only mildly addictive, isn't neurotoxic, doesn't have a nasty come-down, and aside from aggravating anxiety disorders, has a host of pro-health benefits e.g. reduced incidence of dementia, and perhaps i'll agree with you. Yerba Mate? Even though I love it occassionally, coffee tastes much better. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ballzac Posted August 19, 2009 I personally like a frothy coffee, but I like it when the whole coffee is a little creamy and sort of gets thicker towards the top, rather than watery coffee with marshmellowy milk sitting on top. Another good reason to have it at home, because you can tailor it how you want. One place that makes a great coffee is a little cafe called "Cheeky Monkey", in Richmond. Used to live near it and got addicted to their coffees. Now my girlfriend and I drive there to get a coffee every now and then for old times sake. One of the common problems with cafes is that if you get a big coffee, they still just put one shot of espresso in it and fill it up with milk. Why am I paying 2 dollars extra for a cup of milk? Another problem is asking for a strong one, and getting a sour one. Now I specifically ask for an extra shot if I want a strong one at most places, in case they can't figure it out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mu! Posted August 20, 2009 its funny how there are so many coffee shops/franchies/cafes, and yet its still so hard to get a real decent coffee! not surprising considering most ppl think nescafe is, *ahem*, "coffee" plz, next time dont insult my tastebuds Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zen Peddler Posted August 21, 2009 well, find another stimulant which is only mildly addictive, isn't neurotoxic, doesn't have a nasty come-down, and aside from aggravating anxiety disorders, has a host of pro-health benefits e.g. reduced incidence of dementia, and perhaps i'll agree with you. What pro-health benefits? The finding that coffee is hepo-protective? Where they tested alcoholics and found that some that tended to drink coffee tended to be less likely to develop cirrhosis? Or that coffee had a trend of reducing the likelyhood of a variety of illness that they dont even understand - unknown etiology/pathophysiology. Not really impressive science for mine. There are medical studies that demonstrate all sorts of things. Did you know that caffeine can result in cerebral vasoconstriction and hypoxia? Do you know how the caffeine user's brain becomes reliant on it for release of serotonin? Did you know that caffeine increases blood pressure dramatically when consumed in the morning when people are most likely to experience a stroke? I can think of at least five stimulants that are mildly addictive and with equivocal health consequences - and arent neurotoxic. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
