Since as early as the 15th century, coffee has been a source of social activity and coffee houses a hub of cultural vibrancy. Coffee trade made its way into Europe by the 17th century, and as the demand for beans grew, so did its production, bringing the phenomenon to Brazil, Indonesia and the rest of the world.
Since then, coffee has shape shifted many times throughout its history, taking on many new forms from its transition from a bean-selling business to a retail-drink industry. With the rise of Starbucks Coffee Company and its shift toward serving various forms of espressos, cappuccinos and the like in the late 1900s, coffee became branded as an everyday necessity. The coffeehouse became a third home to many, and with the advancement of Wi-Fi, they became nomadic offices.
In a study administered in January 2013, 83 percent of American adults claimed they couldn’t imagine life without coffee, and 54 percent drink coffee on a daily basis. Each coffee-drinking American consumes an average of 3.1 cups of coffee every 24 hours — that’s 624 million cups of coffee each day! In 2013, Americans spent a total of $18 billion on coffee alone. The trend has slowly been seeping into the younger generation, as well. Within the International Community School community in Kirkland last spring, many students have reported taking part in this ritualistic coffee habit. Some students at the age of 15, who cannot even legally drive, claimed they relied 100 percent on coffee to get them through the day.
So what really causes this addiction? The caffeine in coffee replicates adenosine, a neurochemical that is often used to produce energy in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Adenosine levels are kept in check with receptors throughout the body, which are activated and thus regulate the body’s ability feeling of tired. The similar structure of caffeine allows it to block these receptors, leading to the stimulus of dopamine and glutamate, the pleasure stimuli of the brain responsible for addiction to hard drugs such as cocaine or methamphetamine. Eventually, a tolerance is built up, leading to an inevitable increase in daily consumption to get the same jolt of energy. This beverage has gone from simply a source of social interaction to a supplement humans rely on for mental alertness, and the spread of this movement into the younger generation is rapid.
As coffee shops begin to crowd and piles of Starbucks cups in high school trashcans grow, this phenomenon’s parallel to that of cigarettes and nicotine multiplies—in both the best and worst ways possible.
Cigarette smoking became particularly widespread in the west during the 20th century. At the beginning of the century, less than 1 percent of the United States population smoked once every three days. However, in 60 years’ time, around 45 percent of all Americans smoked on a regular basis.
A major part of the allure is its cultural value. In reference to the 1942 film, “Casablanca,” Richard Klein, author of “Cigarettes are Sublime,” explains the attractive quality that caught the attention of the American public:
“There’s that remarkable silent moment when two very beautiful people stand in profile against the hazy background of the smoky nightclub and the man lights a match and the woman’s face is suddenly illuminated and they look into each other’s eyes and smoke sort of fills the screen. It’s a gorgeous moment.” He claims there is an “aesthetic pleasure with the experience.” He adds: “It’s bad for you. It’s poison. It’s not good at all…But that doesn’t mean there aren’t satisfactions and pleasures associated with it.” For this reason, cigarettes were universally accepted during the 1900s.
By the time the 21st century hit, the popularity of cigarette smoking had fallen most likely due to the widespread education of its dangerous health effects. In turn, the phenomenon of coffee came into full swing.
But can coffee and cigarettes share the throne?
Due to the parallel in both cultural and physical effects, the comparison between cigarettes and coffee seems to hold legitimacy and suggest a rising problem in society’s growing reliance to the famed beverage.
Coffee is seductive. Much like how cigarettes have an addictive allure, so does the making, drinking and socializing over coffee. Both began as a “foundation for ritualistic workplace bonding,” and both are modern indicators of slight luxury and sophistication (according to Steve Davis). New York Stock Exchange and The Bank of New York, both powerhouses of the United States, began over a couple cups of coffee on Wall Street. Associations to coffee such as these have accumulated, creating slight feelings of success and productivity when taking part in this coffee culture. Coffee is now the second most recognizable scent, second only to burning wood, triggering comfort and a tendency to repeatedly turn to coffee, not only for energy but also familiarity.
Further, both coffee and cigarette withdrawal can lead to symptoms of substance dependence set forth by the American Psychiatric Association.
Caffeine and coffee go hand in hand, with most of the American population getting two thirds of their daily caffeine intake from coffee alone. Naturally, the body becomes accustomed to the process of caffeine blocking the receptors and eventually develops a tolerance to the drug’s effects. Thus, this tolerance then leads to a severe reliance. Emory University’s chief of the neuroscience division, Michael Kuhar, claims that missing even one cup of coffee can cause “headache, fatigue, sleepiness, inability to focus and concentrate…flu-like symptoms, irritability, depression and anxiety.” Researchers from Johns Hopkins University have even classified these effects as a disorder due to the severe physical and psychological symptoms caused by caffeine and coffee withdrawal. Further, America, as a country, funds nearly half the world’s coffee industry, spending upwards from $18 billion in the past year. Sure, coffee preferences and the prices of them varies on a person-to-person basis, but the general American public has displayed clear sacrifice in money and time for their daily coffee routines.
Coffee is being attacked for its excessive caffeine count — and it should. This society’s growing tolerance to caffeine leads to a possible future of health risks and have also been linked to future drug addiction. Caffeine consumption has contributed to high blood pressure, osteoporosis, diabetes and intensifying problems of insomnia, anxiety and heartburn. Though it is possible to keep caffeine levels below the 300 mg mark, the average adult consumes 300.7 mg of caffeine per day — 66 percent of this intake from coffee alone. Caffeine is a drug by definition, and society’s denial toward this fact becomes a growing concern. “A drop of caffeine injected into the skin of an animal will produce death within a few minutes” (according to Katy Chamberlin). Caffeine is a poison, and its enhancing of dopamine can make illegal drug use more dangerous and future drug addiction more likely.
Cigarette smoking and its dangers have become infamous in the 21st century, and avid coffee drinkers are defensive against the comparison between the two, claiming the severity of caffeine does not come close to that of nicotine. A common point of refutation is coffee’s affect on cognitive function. A study done by Johnson-Kozlow, Kritz-Silverstein, Barrett-Connor and Morton claimed that caffeine consumption could make someone “smarter” proven through comparing problem-solving skills, memory and creative capabilities of the coffee drinkers who had a cup of coffee and others who had not. For a long time, this study had coffee consumers fooled — they chose the wrong control. Rather than using a coffee drinker who had not received his/her coffee, the research should have been done with someone who has not become reliant on caffeine in the first place. The study revealed the effects of tolerance, but not necessarily that coffee itself made someone “smarter” than they were before. A later experiment was held, finding that coffee’s positive effect on cognitive function is a misconception only applicable if the person has already become reliant on coffee in which case cannot perform normal cognitive functions without coffee.
Coffee itself is also said to have many benefits. By nature’s laws, coffee’s origin as a seed results in many protective qualities and nutrients, which can bolster the human body’s resistance to Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and dementia, among others of the like. Walter Willett, M.D. of the Harvard School of Public Health, claimed “Coffee is an amazing potent collection of biologically active compounds.” Also, don’t forget how incredibly productive someone feels after having a cup of coffee. There’s no doubt about it: caffeine is pleasurable. As a power-hungry society, energy enhancing supplements appear to be the key to money, prestige and power, and coffee makes the time consuming, money-making tasks more bearable. With the increased use of drugs such as Provigil, another energy supplement, in pair with excessive caffeine intake, human health has ranked lower in the list of priorities in relation to success in a career. The question of whether these positives outweigh the many risks is an ongoing concern.
Unlike cigarettes, coffee is much more easily accessible to all, and determined from the comparison between the two, both pose serious health effects. As the coffee industry continues to grow, the number of those younger than 18 years old have become more and more reliant on coffee and caffeine, beginning this cycle at a much younger age. With education, it’s true that there are families and parents who try to warn their children of the possible negative effect. However, real progression of health in the general population is questionable. Despite all of the negative correlations between cigarettes and coffee, one last parallel might be what rescues the American population from coffee’s potentially harmful effects: need for excessive education. The movement intended to detract the younger generation from relying on nicotine was successful in part due to the extensive lengths taken to educate students of its danger. Likewise, coffee needs to join the movement.
Ashley Yoo is a Redmond resident who will be attending Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, Md.) this fall. She recently graduated from the International Community School in Kirkland.
