A somewhat misleading title, I’ll admit. It’s not that green tea is evil. The antioxidants are great. The taste is great; in fact, it’s somewhat addicting. The real evil is the caffeine.
For the past several weeks, I’ve found myself having unusual difficulty sleeping. Even though I’m exhausted, I can’t seem to fall asleep. Once I fall asleep, I have trouble staying asleep. It’s driving me crazy and making me cranky. However, I think I’ve discovered the culprits.
I start my morning with one cup of coffee (50% caffeinated, 50% decaffeinated). Later on in the morning, the group makes a run to Starbuck’s. I usually have a grande skinny vanilla latte (it’s a terrible vice). I’ve been doing that for a long time and hadn’t experienced any trouble, until recently.
I was introduced to Lipton bottled green tea with citrus (diet) and was hooked. I’ve fallen into the habit of drinking one or two during the course of the day at my desk. Generally, it’s one with lunch and maybe one during the afternoon. Then, I may have one during the evening at home. Oh my goodness, the terrible caffeinated evil I’ve unleased on my poor unsuspecting body!
So, it’s time to get myself in hand. I can have my coffees during the morning, but, no more than one green tea during the day and none after 6 p.m. This poor, tired old gal needs some sleep!
I read something recently about sleep problems associated with caffeine and the doctor involved suggested no caffeine after noon. It takes quite a while for it to get out of your system, I guess.
It’s 10:10 p.m. and I’m still up. I think the doctor’s comments have merit. I haven’t had any caffeine since my coffee this morning. I haven’t had any chocolate either, but, sometimes allergy meds can be the culprit. Oh well, at least I’m getting a lot of laundry done!
See, now I don’t want to hear any more flak about my extreme Pepsi intake. Caffeine keeps me going at two-thirty in the morning so I can keep my hotel safe.