More people get treatment for caffeine addiction
/ Korea Times file
A growing number of caffeine addicts visit hospital for treatment as caffeine consumption has surged across the nation.
A total of 226 patients visited hospitals for caffeine addiction treatment last year, up from 180 in 2012, according to the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service.
A college student surnamed Lee usually begins his daily routine by drinking a cup of Americano.
“I drink more than three cups of ice Americano every day. It became a necessity. Whenever I am free, I go to drink coffee,” he said.
The Korean food regulator set a maximum amount for daily caffeine intake. Adults are advised to have a caffeine intake of less than 400mg a day, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The ministry advises pregnant women to take less than 300mg of caffeine (about four cups of brewed coffee).
A recent survey result showed Koreans consume coffee more frequently than rice.
In 2013, coffee topped the list of most-consumed foods, with each person drinking 12.2 times a week. Kimchi and rice followed the list with 11.9 times and 9.6 times a week, respectively, according to the joint survey conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Coffee has become a part of my life,” Lee said, “if I do not drink coffee regularly, I become easily irritable.”
But experts caution against excessive caffeine intake.
A U.S.-based medical organization says more than 250mg of caffeine (about three cups of brewed coffee) might lead to “caffeine intoxication,” according to the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.
The manual also added that those who drink more than 250mg of caffeine a day, suffer from symptoms of caffeine addiction. They usually show five or more of the following symptoms: restlessness, nervousness, excitement, insomnia, flushed face, gastrointestinal disturbance, muscle twitching, a rambling flow of thought and speech, tachycardia or cardiac arrhythmia, periods of inexhaustibility or psychomotor agitation.
But another survey conducted by a Yale University research team shows that coffee can help prevent skin cancer.
After analyzing data of some 440,000 people for 10 years, the research team revealed that those who drink one to three cups of coffee a day are 10 percent less likely to suffer from melanoma ― a common type of skin cancer.