Coffee can cause hallucinations
Ever wondered if you really saw or heard something?
UK researchers have found that drinking seven or more cups of instant coffee a day can create hallunications.
People who drink a lot of coffee, such as people with access to coffee constantly being brewed in their work environment who find themselves in a stressful job, are three times as likely as those who have just one cup of instant coffee a day, Durham University researchers found in a study of 219 college students.
This study explored the relationship between high caffeine consumption and an increased release of cortisol, a stress hormone that contributes to delusions. It forms the first step toward examining nutrition as a factor in the occurrence of hallucinations, lead researcher Simon Jones said.
``Given the link between food and mood, and particularly between caffeine and the body's response to stress, it seems sensible to examine what a nutritional perspective might add,'' Jones said in a statement.
Researchers used surveys to assess daily caffeine intake and past experience with hallucinations. Cigarette smokers, known to be more sensitive to caffeine, weren't allowed to participate, and volunteers' stress levels and proneness to hallucinatory experiences were taken into account.
Visit for the original article published January 14, 2009
Adapted for byronbodyandsoul.com by Mark O'Brien
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