Craving caffeine but worried it will disrupt your sleep? Scientists uncover new trick

Decaf coffee might be the last thing on your mind when you’re dying after an afternoon caffeine hit.

But experts now say you should reconsider.

Researchers have found that drinking a cup of decaffeinated coffee is enough to satisfy your caffeine cravings.

Australian academics said that while decaffeinated coffee contains almost none of the stimulants, it “has the power” to banish caffeine withdrawal symptoms.

It might also prove the magic formula to keep you awake and energized.

Scientists from the University of Sydney assessed the caffeine withdrawal symptoms of 61 study participants and divided them into three groups. While one group was truthfully told the drink was decaffeinated, another group received decaffeinated coffee but said it was caffeinated. A final control group was given water

Scientists from the University of Sydney tested the simple decaf trick on 61 coffee lovers who drank at least three cups a day.

All are made without any caffeine for 24 hours.

They then rated the participants’ caffeine withdrawal symptoms — such as headaches, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating — before dividing them into three groups.

Two cohorts received a cup of decaffeinated coffee.

One group was truthfully told the drink was decaffeinated, while the other was lied to saying it was a regular cup.

Everyone else got water.

After 45 minutes, the volunteers were asked to re-rate their caffeine withdrawal symptoms.

Before starting the experiment, participants said they expected caffeinated coffee to reduce their withdrawal symptoms the most, followed by water and decaffeinated coffee.

But researchers whose work has been published found in the Journal of Psychopharmacology that the group that was lied to “reported a large decrease in caffeine withdrawal, although there was no pharmacological reason for it.”

Those who knew they drank decaffeinated coffee reported a 9.5-point reduction in caffeine withdrawal, while the group who believed they drank caffeinated coffee saw an 18.1-point decrease.

The control group reported a reduction in caffeine withdrawal of just 0.6 points.

Known as the placebo effect, the volunteers’ caffeine withdrawal symptoms significantly reduced without them realizing they had actually consumed decaffeinated coffee.

However, the researchers acknowledged that the reduction in withdrawal symptoms is likely to be short-lived and decaffeinated coffee would not reduce withdrawal indefinitely.

Further research would be required.

dr Llewellyn Mills, who led the study, said: “What was interesting about this new study was that withdrawal symptoms also decreased even when people knew they were being decaffeinated.

“Not as much as the group we lied to, but a significant amount.”

He added: “Decaf could help someone trying to cut back on their caffeine intake to temporarily overcome their worst cravings and help them stay decaf.

“This study shows that cognitive factors, such as what you expect and how much of a drug you think you have in your body, have a major impact on how you experience withdrawal symptoms.

“We conducted this study to model some of the processes associated with addiction to any drug, including more serious or harmful drugs.

“What we found shows promise for the development of new addiction treatments that integrate placebo effects.”

The research is the latest in a huge series of studies on coffee evaluating the health effects of the hot beverage.

Scientists have already linked coffee to numerous benefits, including supporting liver health and reducing the risk of depression or type 2 diabetes.

However, medical experts remain divided, warning that excessive amounts of coffee — packed with caffeine — can actually damage the heart.

Too much caffeine can increase a person’s blood pressure and heart rate for a temporary period.

Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk