Argumentative Essay On Caffeine

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Caffeine is considered to be a psychostimulant along with other stimulants such as amphetamines, methamphetamines, ephedrine, nicotine, cocaine, and alcohol. Understanding the effects of caffeine can be difficult because it is most commonly associated with keeping humans aroused and awake. However, there are other effects of being exposed to caffeine that are not considered a benefit from the intake. I chose caffeine as the topic of discussion because I am not well educated on caffeine consumption and the effects of it. I find it interesting to learn more about it being that it is in the same category as illicit drugs. My reflection will discuss the implications of caffeine, why it is within the same category as illicit drugs, and the debate …show more content…

But if mild effects were to be mentioned solely for caffeine, they would consist of headaches, marked fatigue, drowsiness, dysphoric or depressed mood, irritability, flu-like symptoms, and difficulty concentrating (Ferré, 2016). Those symptoms are not deadly, but when mixed with other illicit drugs, it then has the ability to be harmful and addictive. Not knowing the effects of caffeine mixed with illicit drugs supports my implication that it is a part of the substance use disorder diagnosis which can also be known as substance addiction. The most common inference for caffeine intake is the arousal and awake feeling for the human being. Caffeine based on the psychomotor theory of addiction, induces much or even more pronounced psychomotor activity than other illicit drugs (Ferré, …show more content…

The article provided detailed information on why caffeine is categorized as a psychostimulant with illicit psychostimulants. When caffeine is administered to the human body, it promotes a change in dopamine levels regarding sensory neuron receptors. Caffeine acts as an indirect agonist to the receptor increasing dopamine transmission to the brain (Ferré, 2016). Other psychostimulants as stated above have the same enhancement and process, but in a different form of effect and can be critically harmful to human functioning. Mixing caffeine with illicit psychostimulants causes a tolerance and then can create a form of addiction to resist caffeine withdrawal. I begin to think that caffeine is an addiction based off the effects of mixing it which is why I considered it as a substance use disorder; caffeine use disorder. However, the DSM V does not consider it as caffeine use disorder. Instead, it is included in section III of disorders: conditions for further study (Ferré,

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