Is it possible to die from a coffee overdose? What to do and what are the symptoms?

What happens if you drink very strong coffee?

If you drink an excessively strong drink, the central nervous system will be negatively affected. The following changes appear:

  • insomnia;
  • cardiopalmus;
  • depression;
  • irritability.

This is due to the excess amount of caffeine that enters the body. An acceptable dose is considered to be a teaspoon of crushed grains per hundred milliliters of water. If the coffee is instant - a maximum of one dessert.

In a strong drink, the bitterness is more noticeable. You will not be able to get pleasure from using it.

Benefit

Instant coffee can hardly be called a completely natural product. During the production process, coffee beans lose essential oils, which impart a lasting aroma to the finished drink. Therefore, various synthetic additives, flavorings, etc. are added to the instant drink. And as you know, synthetic additives are not considered healthy.

Still, an instant drink can also be beneficial for the body. For example, drinking small amounts of instant coffee helps activate the brain and increase body tone, speeds up the heart.

Overdose

It is impossible to unequivocally answer how much of an invigorating drink you can drink without fear for your health. This indicator is individual for all people. In this case, one gram is considered a toxic dose of caffeine. The concentration of the alkaloid in coffee largely depends on the type of bean, degree of roasting and method of preparation. As a rule, its amount per 170 milliliter cup does not exceed 200 milligrams.

Drinking one hundred servings of the drink can lead to death. A dose of 10 grams of a natural stimulant is considered lethal.

When asked whether it is possible to be poisoned by coffee, doctors answer in the affirmative. An overdose of caffeine leads to the appearance of similar symptoms. This is due to the fact that the alkaloid quickly penetrates the tissues, is processed in the liver and is then excreted from the body by the kidneys. As the permissible dose increases, there is a negative effect on the heart, blood vessels, and nervous system. In addition, many other organs are affected.

Symptoms

The fact that an overdose has occurred can be determined by the characteristic signs. Often they are expressed weakly, implicitly. At an early stage, after just a quarter of an hour, the following changes indicate an excess of caffeine in the body:

  • the face takes on a red tint;
  • strong shine in the eyes;
  • feeling of heat;
  • trembling in the arms, legs or whole body;
  • rapid heartbeat;
  • dizziness.

Late symptoms of coffee poisoning and body intoxication are as follows:

  • nausea;
  • intense sweating;
  • frequent urination;
  • disruption of the gastrointestinal tract (intestinal colic, spasms).

In case of severe overdose, the following symptoms appear:

  • blue tint of the skin;
  • hallucinations;
  • sleep disturbance;
  • nervous tension, irritability.

What to do

If a person has had too much coffee and caffeine poisoning occurs, the following steps must be taken:

  1. Drink more fluids. Coffee drinks lead to dehydration. Therefore, doctors recommend drinking at least a glass of plain water after each cup of espresso.
  2. Eat a banana . It is noted that this fruit helps eliminate internal tension and tremors. This is due to the presence of potassium in the composition, which has a beneficial effect on the condition of the heart and blood vessels.
  3. Provide fresh air flow. Thanks to the influx of oxygen, the redness of the skin decreases, dizziness decreases, and nausea disappears.

If first aid for poisoning does not help normalize the condition, you should consult a doctor. The medical facility will administer an antidote that will neutralize the effects of coffee.

How to raise the temperature with coffee

It’s worth starting with why they resort to this method. In addition to student and sometimes work pranks involving getting time off, there are more unusual situations. For example, if the room is not heated or when you have to stand at a bus stop for a long time, but there is still no transport. To avoid freezing, you can buy a couple of bags of instant coffee and force your body to warm up.

Of course, it is strictly forbidden to use this method often, but in an extreme situation it can save. When the crisis has passed, it is advisable to drink water and abstain from coffee that day. It also wouldn't hurt to supplement with vitamin C.

The process of “coffee manipulation” itself is simple.

To raise the temperature, take a dry instant drink and sugar or honey for taste, since you will have to swallow it without water.

You need to eat 2-3 spoons, depending on your weight and body characteristics:

  • for teenagers and fragile girls, 1-2 may be enough;
  • strong, tall men – 3;
  • Children and elderly people should not use this method.

You cannot drink granules or powder with water, otherwise the effect may weaken. It is advisable to dissolve the portion in your mouth little by little and swallow. Over the next 30-35 minutes, the temperature may rise to 37-37.6 °C.

This happens not only due to a lethal dose of substances that affect the cardiovascular system, but also with the help of immunity. The concentrated substrate is perceived as a toxic substance, as a result of which antibodies begin to be produced. In this process, additional heat is released.

A sensitive body can react in this way even to a cup of strong brewed espresso. It is worth monitoring your usual reactions to predict the result.

What happens if you drink too much coffee at once?

If you drink several cups of regular espresso or just one serving of a strong drink at a time, a person begins to feel unwell. This is due to the accumulation of caffeine in the body. Its effect begins to appear after a quarter of an hour, and reaches its peak after 40-50 minutes. After this, the condition gradually begins to normalize. The completely natural stimulant is eliminated in 4-6 hours.

Coffee drinks should be drunk at least four hours apart. Failure to comply with this rule results in a caffeine overdose.

Lethal dose of coffee for a person at one time

Let’s note right away: you won’t drink that much. Even if you make the drink very concentrated, you physically will not be able to drink much of it, the body will quickly feel the overdose and begin to get rid of intoxication through vomiting and diarrhea. Your heart is pounding, you feel extreme weakness, muscle cramps - it is unlikely that in this state you will take a few more sips, and they will linger in your body.

Sometimes, after drinking 5-7 cups of coffee in a day, people feel as if they are dying. Fear of death, cold sweat, dizziness, racing heart, inability to breathe - all these symptoms of an overdose of your favorite drink are familiar to many coffee lovers. But in fact, everything goes away in 15-20 minutes. If you realize that you have drunk a lot of coffee, try to induce vomiting, drink clean water, calm down and provide access to oxygen.

They are unlikely to kill you by treating you to a cup of coffee, even incredibly strong one. People with cardiovascular diseases usually monitor their condition and drink strong coffee carefully. After a few sips you will already feel that you are not feeling well and stop.

Regular alcohol abuse

If you systematically drink coffee, pouring a new portion almost immediately after drinking the previous one, there is an excessive load on the central nervous system. An overdose of caffeine causes the body to work in a state of stress. The synthesis of adrenaline, serotonin, and dopamine is constantly stimulated. Due to this, the nervous system is depleted.

In addition, if you regularly abuse the invigorating liquid, a coffee addiction develops. A cup of espresso is no longer used to get a boost of energy - it is drunk to normalize well-being.

Cautions

Sometimes coffee is used to artificially raise body temperature. To achieve the effect, it is recommended to use an increased dose of the drink. Naturally, such an unusual method of interfering with one’s own biological rhythms is not entirely safe.

Due to the fact that the drink has a direct effect on the functioning of the cardiovascular, excretory and nervous systems, there are a number of contraindications when you cannot resort to the “coffee trick”:

  • People suffering from coronary artery disease, arrhythmia, tachycardia and hypertension are strictly prohibited from drinking (let alone eating) coffee in large quantities.
  • For patients with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, gastritis, abnormal acidity, as well as liver and kidney failure, this method can seriously harm, exacerbating the health problem.
  • In situations of weakened immunity or severe fatigue, you should also not overload the body. During colds, after nights out, coffee poisoning in any form should be avoided.

Increasing the temperature with dry coffee is an extreme method and should not be abused. On the one hand, there are other ways to change the values ​​on the thermometer without affecting your well-being. On the other hand, keeping warm in this way is ineffective, since it wastes the body’s resources in the longer term.

Symptoms of addiction

It's not just caffeine overdose that is dangerous. Often, with regular consumption of coffee, addiction to the drink develops. In this case, the body is simply not able to function properly. The following changes are noted:

  • lack of energy, constant feeling of fatigue;
  • thoughts become confused;
  • insomnia;
  • loss of appetite;
  • constant irritability;
  • exacerbation of chronic pathologies;
  • frequent dizziness;
  • persistent trembling in the limbs.

What are the dangers of constantly drinking large amounts of drink?

It is extremely important to pay attention to the first signs of caffeine overload and take measures to remove it from the body. If this is neglected, the consequences will be quite serious. The following problems occur with excessive consumption of coffee drinks:

  • stable increase in blood pressure. It is not possible to normalize these indicators with the help of medications. The effect of the drug is neutralized by the alkaloid;
  • increased risk of developing pathologies of the heart and blood vessels. With constant stimulation of the body, a heart attack is possible;
  • frequent headaches. There is a severe migraine, which cannot be controlled even by taking strong medications;
  • feeling of anxiety, irritability;
  • development of glaucoma;
  • disturbances in the gastrointestinal tract;
  • yellowing of tooth enamel;
  • deterioration in the condition of hair and nails.

The most dangerous consequence of overusing coffee drinks is death.

Death is possible due to stable heart failure and exhaustion of the body.

How to remove caffeine from the body

Drinking plenty of fluids will help solve the problem. When drinking a liter of water, you should artificially induce vomiting. In addition, it would be useful to take sorbents (Polysorb, Smecta or activated carbon).

There is no antidote that can completely neutralize the effects of caffeine. Medical institutions provide symptomatic therapy aimed at combating the consequences of exposure to the alkaloid. In this case, they resort to prescribing antipsychotics, morphine and the drug Pipolfen.

Coffee has many beneficial properties, but only if it is drunk in moderation. Abuse of aromatic drinks leads to poisoning and the development of addiction. Therefore, the permissible dosage should be strictly observed.

First experience. The most unfortunate

To begin with, I cut off the top of the orange, small enough so that the volume of this improvised “Turk” would not decrease too much. Then she took on the rather tedious task of extracting the pulp. This turned out to be not as simple as it might seem from the outside... For several minutes I had to carefully scrape the inside of the orange and pour the resulting juice into a glass. As a result, I ended up with a finished vessel and almost a whole glass of juice.

In the empty orange I put the usual amount of ground coffee (2 teaspoons), a little cinnamon and honey as a sweetener. And she put it all on the stove. This is where, of course, the fun began. I began to observe the behavior of the orange with great curiosity...

Firstly, it turned out that it... was on fire. The orange probably owes its beautiful flames on its side to its essential oils. They blazed quite brightly, so I had to turn the heat down to low.

Secondly, it turned out that round dishes are not the most stable in the world. A few seconds after being placed on the stove, the orange enchantingly fell on its side, spilling all its contents. I had to start over.

Thirdly, it is virtually impossible to move away from the stove: all the time you need to monitor the stability of the orange and ensure that it does not burn too brightly. Periodically, the fire still had to be increased, otherwise the liquid inside wouldn’t even think about warming up.

Finally my coffee boiled, I took it off the stove and poured it into a cup (oh no, that wasn't easy either - the orange was hot and it didn't have a handle).

This is the moment of truth! All that's left is to try.

I eagerly took the first sip and... immediately realized that something had gone wrong. The coffee that was bubbling so vigorously on the stove turned out to not even be hot! In complete disappointment, I poured it into an ordinary Turk and brought it to the desired condition. Well, in this form it became quite tasty - a noticeable shade of orange was certainly present. But this, of course, could hardly be called a success.

Rating
( 1 rating, average 4 out of 5 )
Did you like the article? Share with friends:
For any suggestions regarding the site: [email protected]
For any suggestions regarding the site: [email protected]
Для любых предложений по сайту: [email protected]