Love coffee? Know how much caffeine a day is safe

Are you a coffee lover who begins your day with a refreshing hot brew? Usually, coffee is linked to high blood pressure, among other conditions. Caffeine - found in coffee, carbonated drinks, energy drinks, and even chocolate to some extent - can be harmful. Hence, reducing the intake of any beverage or drink containing caffeine is often recommended. The percentage of caffeine in each item could be understood from the nutrition label on it. Caffeine stimulates the adrenaline gland to release more adrenaline into the body, which may lead to high blood pressure.

Need not avoid coffee
Latest studies show that there is no need to avoid coffee completely. Studies say consuming up to 350 – 400 mg of caffeine daily is not harmful to the body. A cup of coffee contains 60 – 70 mg of caffeine. So, 4 – 5 cups of coffee daily shouldn't be dangerous in ideal circumstances. But, some people drink coffee excessively to relieve stress. Too much caffeine and stress is a deadly combination that may lead to high blood pressure.

Tension and habits
When you are stressed, emergency hormones like adrenaline rush into the blood. This leads to elevated heartbeats and faster breaths. The blood vessels, meanwhile, contract a bit to supply blood and strengthen the muscles. This is called the flight and fight response, which leads to blood pressure spikes. The blood pressure drops to previous levels when you are relaxed. However, these sudden hormone rushes may damage the blood vessels. Sometimes such severe stress may even lead to stroke or heart attacks. We might resort to certain habits to fight the stress levels. Alcoholism, excessive coffee drinking and emotional eating are some of them. So, the better solution is to stay away from stressful situations and face them healthily. Practising yoga, meditation, and breathing exercises have been proven to be effective methods to relieve stress.

How does blood pressure fluctuate
Sympathetic and parasympathetic systems are the two types of nervous systems that are active in our body. Blood pressure rises when the sympathetic nervous system functions increasingly, and the parasympathetic system helps reduce the blood pressure. Meanwhile, the sympathetic nervous system motivates us to respond during dangerous situations. These nerves produce hormones called catecholamine when you are stressed or suffer tension. Dopamine, adrenaline, and noradrenaline are some of the major hormones that are thus produced. Noradrenaline increases the heart rate and blood pressure, too. The blood pressure level would be normal if the sympathetic nervous system is less active. For example, basal sympathetic activity level would be less in those who exercise regularly. So, their blood pressure levels would be naturally low (below 120). Meanwhile, the blood pressure would be controlled if the parasympathetic nervous system functions excellently. Consuming a nutritious and well-balanced diet, giving up alcohol and smoking and exercising regularly are ways to ensure the quality of the parasympathetic nervous system.