tea or coffee addiction

I believe it's after 15 to 20 minutes of steeping that the maximum amount of caffeine is released from tea leaves.

 

Hey I corrected, I was tired and also suffer from problems so give me a break.

 

Steeping some pu right now.

 

Most of the caffeine in tea leaves is released in the first 15 seconds of brewing. A quick way to make "decaf" tea is to make two cups of hot water, brew a teabag in one for 15 seconds and discard, then finish brewing in the other cup. There will still be some caffeine, but that is true of the "decaf" tea you buy from the store too. In fact some processes for removing caffeine can leave as much as 30% behind.

And yes, tea leaves do have more caffeine than coffee beans, but we don't brew them the same way or in the same amounts. The numbers you want to be concerned with is how much is winding up in your cup. Coffee tends to be roughly 100-150mg of caffeine per 8oz cup. This number can vary upon type of coffee, roast (dark roast burns some of the caffeine), brew method (the longer you brew, the more caffeine you extract), when the beans were harvested, where on the plant they were harvested, etc. So unless you're willing to have a professional analysis of each cup of coffee you drink, just know the approximate range and don't sweat the small stuff. Tea is the same way and can vary from roughly 20-50mg per 8oz cup.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-...healthy-eating/in-depth/caffeine/art-20049372

Hot chocolate also has naturally occurring caffeine, but only about 5mg per 8oz cup. Chocolate bars are another story. A 1oz piece of dark chocolate can have over 10mg of caffeine in it. The darker the chocolate, the more caffeine, so milk chocolate typically only has about 5mg per 1oz piece.

Sodas (the ones that have caffeine in them that is) tend to be between tea and coffee in their caffeine content. Most dark sodas are caffeinated, most light sodas are not. Root beer and Mountain Dew being the two exceptions that spring to mind, but I'm sure there are others. An interesting quirk, Barq's Root Beer has caffeine in it, but Diet Barq's Root Beer does not. Energy drinks tend to be on the high end of the coffee range.

Speaking for myself, who is very sensitive to caffeine (and it does vary from person to person), I still enjoy chocolate, though I do limit how much I eat. I've cut out tea and coffee completely, even decaf, because I just don't know how much caffeine they've actually removed. A poorly decaffeinated cup of coffee could still have as much as 50mg of caffeine in it. When I finally realized the negative impact that caffeine was having on my sleep (and even a cup of tea in the morning would still have this effect on me at night), I decided to quit cold turkey. I felt terrible for about 2-weeks (again, I'm on the extreme end, most people would just be a few days) and felt like I had the flu (achy all over, sluggish).

If anybody is concerned about their sleep quality, the first thing I'd suggest is to go a couple of weeks without any caffeine and see just what happens. Maybe you're lucky and can enjoy coffee and tea without any problems. But I think there are a lot of people out there who have to have their caffeine fix, not for the mental boost caffeine provides, but just to stave off their withdrawal symptoms. They feel better, so they think caffeine makes them feel good. But in reality, it's just keeping them from feeling the negative effects caused by their previous caffeine consumption.

Lastly, I think a lot of people assume caffeine is harmless because it is naturally occurring. So is opium. Caffeine is a psychoactive drug. It causes chemical dependency, addiction, tolerance, and withdrawal. Caffeine can cause anxiety (a big problem if you already suffer from some form of anxiety). It can also raise blood pressure and has been linked with many deaths in those with pre-existing heart problems.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...nald-a-latte-energy-drink-south-a7737926.html

Just because everyone is doing something, doesn't mean it is good for you. And this doesn't just apply to caffeine. As I'm sure everyone on this site is well aware, a vast majority of men in the US use pornography. But we know how problematic that can be for some of us. I hope we can all take some time in our lives to think about what we're doing and question if it is really good for us. And to have the strength to do something about stopping if we find it isn't.

Look after yourselves out there. And I encourage everyone to arm themselves with the best information they can find. Most people have an angle, which can make it hard to find information that doesn't have somebody's spin on it. So don't take my word for it. Try it for yourself and see what works for you.

- Ozatm