It’s a few minutes before class and you find yourself dozing off. So what do you do? You buy a soda pop that contains caffeine. According to Answers.com, caffeine is defined as a drug that affects the central nervous system. Besides soft drinks, caffeine is also found in energy drinks, coffee, chocolate and over-the-counter pep pills. A cup of instant coffee has 60 milligrams (mg) of caffeine. As far as soft drinks go, Coca Cola Classic has 34 mg., while Diet Coke has 45 and Mountain Dew 55 mg. The energy drink Red Bull has 115.5 and caffeine pills such as Vivarian contain about 200 mg.
I am sure that everyone like myself has used caffeine to help them stay awake for a class or cram for an overnight study session. But the question is, should caffeine be used for these purposes? I believe that it should. I think that caffeine should be used because it is cheap, and it is easier for students to grab a cup of coffee if they don’t have enough time between classes to take a nap.
As for the positive effects of caffeine, it makes you feel less drowsy, and helps you focus and pay attention in the classroom. Once, I almost fell asleep in the news office before class, so I actually had to put down my ginger ale and rush to the cafeteria for a Pepsi. After drinking the Pepsi, I didn’t feel tired anymore and was able to be alert instead of falling asleep at my desk.
I know all too well that the negative side effects of caffeine can be pretty bad. If I don’t have at least one pop a day, I get a good-sized headache. This is not a good state of mind to be in, especially for concentrating on homework or even taking a break and watching TV. Nobody wants to do that with a headache, now do they? I’ve also had the experience that in having caffeine after a certain time of night, I have trouble sleeping. Instead of dozing right off, I toss and turn, stare at the walls all night and am very tired in the morning.
Even though I have experienced some of the negative side effects of caffeine, I still think that it helps students like myself get that extra source of energy. Whether it’s that cup of coffee in the morning or a pop during lunchtime, I believe that a little bit of caffeine goes a long way if not overly abused. As students, caffeine helps us to be in a better mood in the morning instead of being tired and crabby. It also helps us to focus on our schoolwork and to get it done properly. So next time someone asks me what I want to drink, I will say, “More caffeine, please!”