According to legend, a goat herder named Kaldi in Ethiopia 1,000 years ago noticed his flock nibbling berries from a certain bush. They soon started to hop and sprint tirelessly. His curiosity led him to sample some himself, allowing him to catch mankind’s first buzz off the coffee bean.Nothing had ever made him so happy! However, the local religious leader was not inclined to allow Kaldi such euphoria, and so he instructed him to stop. Hence, the beginning of man kinds obsession with caffeine. It is by far the most frequently used psychoactive drug in the world, but it is not regulated in the U.S. Over the years there have been a myriad of reports on the possible side effects of caffeine both positive and negative. Some research touts the benefits of increased mental alertness from three or four cups a day. Another will denounce the former and make us feel that we should remove the need for caffeine in order to not become a slave to its ability to spike our moods and our energy. Unfortunately, our culture has a need to take most things to extreme. Coffee in it’s original form has become mundane. If you decide to buy a cup of coffee now you are faced with a blackboard that has more combinations then most safes. Lattes, Cappocinnos, Frappocinnos, expresso shots, and swirls of cream, caramel or chocolate as toppings are just the tip of the iceberg. When I finally choose a drink, I’m often left wondering if I’ve missed out. Maybe I should have gotten the Belgian Brûlée double Mocha with salted marshmallows that the woman in front of me ordered. If that’s not enough, you can buy energy drinks loaded with caffeine that could turn you into a whirling dervish.Red Bull,Monster, and 5-hour Energy have up to 200 milligrams of caffeine per serving. The FDA is investigating five deaths possibly related to energy drinks. Could someone die from too much caffeine? The answer is yes. Especially if they have medical problems. Even if you’re a relatively healthy person you may want to consider the old adage “that less is more” But that means that common sense would have to be utilized and it along with a lot of other values are becoming less a part of our lives. The fact of the matter is that most of our energy comes from a balanced lifestyle. I don’t think too may people are “buying” the concept!
Life is Not A Stress Rehearsal