Is coffee just as bad as drugs and alcohol?
 

To the coffee plant, caffeine is a poison that it uses to protect itself against predators.

To us humans, caffeine is a drug. It's a drug that the Western world has built much of its wealth around. The people who profit from it today are among society's elite[1], with ties to government and state controlled media. They indirectly establish coffee associations that sponsor movies and TV series that feature coffee, as well as universities that conduct research that speaks favorably of coffee. Any criticism is largely downplayed.

A large-scale Danish study, however, polled more than 80.000 pregnant women regarding their coffee intake. This study found that women who drank large amounts of coffee during pregnancy were more likely to experience a miscarriage.

It's a serious drug. We're all hooked, but nobody wants to admit it.

I know from personal experience that anything which gets you high or boosts your performance by unnatural means, will "take from that which does not exist" like a bad loan.

Hence my question - from a scientific perspective - when trying to recover from drug and alcohol abuse, will caffeine slow down or prevent the body from recovering? Is it like trying to avoid a hangover by drinking more the morning after?

Thank you!

[1] Like here in Sweden, the owner of one of the country's largest coffee breweries was recently elected mayor of one of its largest cities.

For me, no.

Coffee does not make me impaired to drive, get arrested, lose a job, have a hangover, feel out of control, feel guilty, or like I am going to lose it.

Coffee, chocolate, and my electronic cigarette are my vices now. I am not giving them up any time soon and I am doing just fine :)

I have to say no. Coffee won't wreck my life the way alcohol did. I'm not going to have to take a breathalyer after drinking coffee. I'm not going to throw my life away with coffee the same way I did with alcohol. I'm not going to drink coffee and then forget what I did the night before.

Personally I just don't think it even compares, I feel the same way about smoking cigs. But this is just my own opinion.

I never blacked out, got arrested, stole, lied and cheated over coffee. It may be bad for me but its more of a dietary concern than an addiction in my case. I dont believe its having any negative effect on my recovery either.. I drink 2/3 cups a day. I look forward to the day that coffee is the only bad habit Im worried about :)

Are you serious?????

I dunno... I'm one of those people who always needs to be sipping on something. Typically, for me, it is black coffee or plain (unsweetened) tea. (I drank a lot of plain water when I was in early sobriety, though--I think that's the best thing when you are in early recovery).

Although caffeine is a stimulant, it isn't a terribly strong one in the form of coffee or tea. (Concentrated energy drinks is a different story.) And while people do get "hooked" on it (might experience mild withdrawal headaches if you stop after drinking a lot of it), it is so much less harmful than more seriously addictive drugs or alcohol. Caffeine isn't mind-altering like alcohol or many other drugs, nobody ever hurt anyone (that I know of) in a coffee- or tea-induced rage, it doesn't make the person drinking it neglect their children or fail at their jobs.

Maybe it isn't the healthiest thing one could consume on a regular basis, but it's a far cry from alcohol or more seriously addictive drugs. My opinion.

Bad? Bad to me is anything that I do to extreme that negatively impacts my life and I cannot stop it.

Coffee is not that animal.

Oh, and I don't have to hide to drink coffee. You won't find coffee in my closet in a coat pocket.

or hide my empties!

In this day and age anything you put in your body is "bad" for you. Processed foods, meat is full of hormones etc, sugar, pesticides on fruit and veggies and the list goes on. I've beern told that even eating soya can be bad for you if you eat too much. The only thing I hide nowadays is my chocolate from my granddaughter LOL.

" It's a serious drug. We're all hooked, but nobody wants to admit it."

Okay...I'll bite...... I'm hooked, and I admit it. :dunno

There is no way I'm giving up my coffee. If that's the only "addiction" I have to worry about, then I will take it. As the other posters have said....drinking coffee NEVER made me do any of the things I did when I was drinking. There are absolutely no life long negative consequences due to my coffee consumption. For me, that's like saying my love of popcorn is bad.

P.S. I gave up coffee with all my pregnancies because I just could not stand the taste.

I'm just as hopelessly addicted to coffee as I was to drugs/alcohol. I acknowledge it's a problem and will one day do something about it.

However. Coffee is not ruining my life/family/work like drugs did, nor does it have the potential to.

Many people are addicted to sugar also.

Nobody gets arrested for driving caffeinated. :-)

If you want the experience of your life try snorting coffee. Just kidding :)

^^^ :rotfxko

Without question, scientifically and anecdotally;

No.

Err. No.
Now over in Britain, Mountain Dew is fairly high in caffeine, and after 6 litres in 18 hours - well I needed to stay awake for a game convention, when it wore off I felt pretty bad. But seriously, no, coffee isn't that bad.
Caffeine is absolutely terrible for spiders, according to the research. But we aren't spiders.

It is an addicting drug. But, then I am a coffee addict. It, like my anti-depressants will be pried from my cold, dead, hands.

Hey everyone! Thanks for the support!

There are those that can become addicted to caffiene and it can cause fairly significant withdrawal symptoms too ( headaches, nausea, muscle pain,etc.. ) It's probably not as destructive of a drug as alcohol can be to be sure, but addiction is additiction. Making light of it in a forum specifically designed to help those with addiction issues may not be in our best interest.

Oh please ! It's freezing cold outside and snowing and iam sitting here having a lovely steaming frothy hot coffee as I read the papers etc. 3/4 cups a day is that bad ? Seems to do me no harm whatsoever, not gonna fight puke or miss work , so maybe it's ok :)