Synopses & Reviews
We all know that caffeine helps keep you awake and alert, but the things we don't know about caffeine could fill a book. Now Bennett Alan Weinberg and Bonnie K. Bealer, the award-winning authors of
The World of Caffeine, the foremost reference book on the science and culture of caffeine, have done just that -- creating an authoritative self-help guide to caffeine's little-known practical secrets and benefits. Based on groundbreaking new research,
The Caffeine Advantage offers step-by-step programs that show you how caffeine can improve your IQ, memory, mood, athletic ability, physical condition, and performance at work. In the process, Weinberg and Bealer debunk common myths and misconceptions -- that caffeine causes hypertension, anxiety, heart disease, even cancer -- and show the many positive and life-changing effects of strategic caffeine use.
Everyone in today's competitive environment is looking for an edge, and caffeine can provide the little boost that gives you the advantage you need to succeed. The key is knowing what caffeine can do for you and how to use it effectively. Here are just some of its amazing advantages:
- Improves your ability to think clearly and solve problems, and can actually raise your IQ
- Increases your short-term memory, helps you concentrate, and relieves boredom
- Is a powerful antioxidant, combating muscle damage and helping you to stay younger
- Improves your mood and overcomes depression, creating an "attitude of success"
- Helps you run, swim, and cycle longer and faster
- Increases the painkilling power of common analgesics and is itself a strong pain reliever
- Grows brain cells in the areas of the brain responsible for long-term memory
Already widely acclaimed by many of the foremost academic researchers in the world, including Dr. Paul Kulkosky, whose foreword introduces the book, The Caffeine Advantage delivers a comprehensive program for working smarter, not harder, and for improving mood, athletic fitness, and mental performance.
Review
Dr. Paul Kulkosky
Professor of Psychology, Colorado State University
The Caffeine Advantage will be an important and popular book, indeed a boon to humanity! It is a wonderful work of popular science that will improve many lives if read properly. A copy should be placed in every café! It should win public-service awards and sell many copies. Reading it was a pleasure not unlike drinking coffee made from freshly ground beans.
Review
Professor Andrew Smith
Director, Centre for Occupational and Health Psychology, Cardiff University, U.K.
This book does an excellent job in organizing a vast amount of complex information about caffeine. Readers will find the prescriptive approach helpful and the practical advice well presented. It represents an excellent example of how to go about improving the public understanding of science.
About the Author
Bennett Alan Weinberg is a leading authority on the science of caffeine. In 1986 he founded a consulting firm specializing in pharmaceutical and medical communications, serving many of the Fortune 500 companies. His work includes developing Continuing Medical Education (CME) programs to train physicians in the diagnosis and treatment of disease and in the use of pharmaceuticals. A graduate of Columbia College and New York University School of Law, he has taught at Temple University.
Table of Contents
ContentsForeword
Introduction: The World of Caffeine
1: Getting Started with Caffeine
Neurotransmitters: How Caffeine Does All Those Wonderful Things
How Caffeine Affects Different People
Dosing: When to Use It and How Much to Use
How Do You Take Your Caffeine?
Dependence, Tolerance, and Withdrawal
2: Caffeine and Your Body Clock
Overcoming Fatigue
The Cure for "Afternoon Slump"
Safer Driving Alert
The Pause That Refreshes: Napping on Caffeine
Shift Work
Getting a Good Night's Sleep
Determining Your Caffeine Cutoff Point
Self-Assessment of Sleep Onset and Quality
3: The Jet Lag Program
A Real Malaise
Strategic Caffeine Use: Knowing When to Stop...and When to Start Again
The Caffeine Jet Lag Program
Kicking Caffeine
The Caffeine Cure: Getting the Caffeine Lift After You Land
Summing It Up
4: Sharpening Your Mind
The Arousal Theory: How Caffeine Affects Mental Performance
Arousal Factors and Performance: Customizing Your Dose
The Impulsivity Theory and Caffeine's Cognitive Effects
Using Caffeine to Sharpen Your Mind
Self-Assessments of Cognitive Abilities
5: Enhancing Your Creativity
Creativity and the Great Leap Forward
Feeling Deeply: Becoming More Sensuous with Caffeine
6: Getting in a Good Mood
Improving Your Mood
Getting What You Need: Caffeine as an Adaptogen
The Friendliness Factor: Caffeine and Conviviality
Eliminating Hostility and Aggression
Overcoming Boredom
Putting It All Together: The Attitude of Success
Self-Assessment of Mood
7: Relaxation and Meditation
The Truth Behind the Coffee Break
Taking the Edge Off Caffeine
Meditating on Caffeine
The Mystery of Tea vs. Coffee
8: Improving Your Athletic Performance
Coffee vs. Caffeine in Athletic Performance
Is Caffeine Good Only for Endurance Exercise?
Caffeine Tolerance and Withdrawal in Athletics
Long-Term Exercise
Short-Term Intense Exercise
Strength
Reaction Time
Lung Capacity
Caffeine as an Antioxidant
9: How Much to Take and When to Take It to Boost
Athletic Performance
Timing
Dosage
"Caffeine Inspiration": Developing a Winning Attitude
The Ethical Considerations of Caffeine Use in Competitive Athletics
Passing? Urine Testing for Caffeine
Are There Adverse Effects of Caffeine on Athletic Performance?
Self-Assessments of Caffeine's Effects on Athletic Attainment
10: Weight Loss
The "Satisfaction Diet": How Caffeine Suppresses Appetite
Increasing Your Metabolic Rate
Increasing Fat Burning and the Benefits of Exercise
Self-Assessments
11: An Elixir of Life? Caffeine and Staying Younger
"I'll Never Forget What's-His-Name": Combating Memory Loss
Combating Parkinson's Disease and Alzheimer's Disease
The Antioxidant Power of Caffeine
Self-Assessments of Virtual Age
12: Caffeine and Good Health
Controlling Pain
Hypertension and the Cardiovascular System
Preventing Strokes and Stroke Damage
Fighting Cancer
When Undergoing Surgery
Glaucoma
Preventing Gallstones
Creating Beautiful Skin
Osteoporosis
Asthma, Pulmonary Problems, and Smoking Cigarettes
Alcohol and Alcoholism
Caffeine and Diabetes
Fertility
Pregnancy: A "No-Caffeine" Zone?
Appendix A: Tables of the Caffeine Content of Common Sources of Caffeine
Appendix B: Drug and Food Interactions
Appendix C: Children and Caffeine
Notes
Acknowledgments
Index