Caffeine And Decaffeination

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Term Paper Title	Caffeine And Decaffeination
# of Words	733
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	2.93

Caffeine and Decaffeination

Caffeine (C8H10O2N4) is a mild stimulant extracted from the leaves of many plants.  It was first discovered in coffee in 1820.  It falls into the category of alkaloids which are organic compounds that always contain at least one nitrogen atom.  Caffeine is present in coffee, tea, cacao, and kola plants.  Many alkaloids are widely used in medicine for example, morphine.
Caffeine is a drug and like all other drugs, after repeated use it can become addicting. Caffeine taken in liquid form begins to reach all tissues of the body within five minutes.  Ingestion of the amount of caffeine in one or two cups of coffee causes mild psychological effects. The rate of breathing increases and so do urination and the levels of fatty acids in the blood and gastric acids in the stomach.  Caffeine increases blood pressure and stimulates the brain.  It postpones fatigue and enhances performance at physical work.  Caffeine also effects sleep.  It delays sleep, shortens the overall sleep time, and reduces the depth of sleep.  People who drink coffee before bed move more during sleep and do not dream as much.
The long term effects of caffeine are not as clear cut.  Long term coffee drinkers may suffer from chronic insomnia, persistent anxiety and depression, and stomach ulcers, it causes irregular heartbeat and may raise cholesterol level.
Recent studies have shown the relationships of caffeine and cancer.  There was an experiment where a large dose of caffeine was given to a cancer cell. Then the cell was subjected to heat shock, a procedure which kills normal cells.  The cell did not die.  Caffeine apparently enhances strength and endurance in cancer cells also.
Caffeine is also used for medicinal purposes.  It is used for treating migraines because it makes blood vessels constrict and therefore reduces pain.  It is also used for treating asthma attacks because it expands the bronchial airways.  Caffeine is obtained mostly from the process of decaffeination of coffee.
In the mid 1980’s decaffeinated coffees and colas were available so that people can control their caffeine and still enjoy those drinks.
Coffee contains the most caffeine out of tea, cola, and chocolate.  An average 8 oz cup of tea contains about 30 mg of caffeine.  A 12 oz can of cola contains 46 mg of caffeine, and an average 8 oz cup of instant coffee contains 120 mg of caffeine.  It may not seem like that much, but for the average 2-3 cup a day coffee drinker, that is a lot o...

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