Hi, my name is... (Read 907 times)

I'm confused but I think "welcome Rick" is the correct post

Thanks, everyone! I am already feeling quite comfy in the confines of these threads with all of you. There are what I feel are some stellar, wit-filled, crack-up, yet sincere, degenerates here (to coin Drew's phrase). I should fit in quite nicely. Thanks for making me feel so welcomed everyone! Gotta get my pizza-gut out the door for a run now cause (Zoomie) I just inhaled (only 3/4's this time) pizza last night for dinner and half my youngest daughter's Reese's Peanut Butter Cup sunday (reward for obtaining "first chair" in her saxophone section in band) after spectating my elder daughter's XC race yesterday afternoon.

Heh. I will just point out and reiterate that we are not a very good representative sample, as the folks on this board are generally going to be healthier than the average person. The average person would not have a need for this site. Kudos for not giving your kids caffeine. I still think your the exception. (And by individual, I meant and think I previously stated that the people affected are a much smaller scale. Cancer is a very painful ordeal and I have had quite a few people in my family suffer from it. I don't wish it on anyone. But there are fewer people with cancer than there are people that are unhealthy and overweight, and that stay that way, and who push up the insurance premiums and taxes for the rest of us to help deal with their low-level unhealthiness.)

Caffeine is worse than alcohol or tobacco.

With all due respect. There has been a lot of excellent (and quite a bit of mediocre) scientific research into the potential effects of caffiene. In general, nearly every well done study has shown NO ill effects, and some have shown positive effects. (A recent study, an outlier, showing caffeine + tylenol increases the risk of liver damage was a good study). Clearly ANY substance can be bad for SOME people, but one cannot generalize to an entire population on the basis of how a small nonrepresentative sample responds. I am glad that you have found what works for you, but that does not mean what works for you is representative of what works for the rest of the population (especially since science shows populations DO react differently to caffeine than you do). Caffeine kills nearly nobody and causes almost no disease. Cigarettes cause damage from the first puff and kill nearly everybody who uses them lifelong. Caffeine has mild addictive properties to be sure. Cigarettes are addictive to most people who use them within the first couple puffs. Caffeine impacts only the person who uses it. Cigarettes kill those who smoke, those who work with smokers, those who live with smokers and those who are friends of smokers. Caffeine does not have negative societal economic impact, and may actually improve economic liquidity. Cigarettes cost society billions and billions of dollars in premature death, preventable illness (in smokers and their family) and lost worktime, most of it paid for by your tax dollars. And so on. And alcohol is somewhere in the middle. Personal ancedotes do not general rules make, and trying to generalize your own personal experiences to others in direct conflict with what good population-based science shows can be dangerous at worst or misleading at best. For example, my personal anecdote is that I drink coffee maybe 2-4 times per week, but on some weeks I drink none; I do get migraines and have since long before I drank coffee and now when I do get migraines caffeine helps treat them (my migraines come most often when I miss running for a few days or when I run long in the heat without adequate fluids). Would I suggest that all my patients with migraines drink coffee? No. Absolutely not. I would work with them to find their own personal triggers and therapies and consider prescribing medications to help as an adjunct. With all due respect, caffeine simply is not the scourge that tobacco is, may actually be beneficial in terms of health and economic outcomes and brings a lot of people pleasure. For me, I get that kind of pleasure from a nice double espresso (black), some dark chocolate, and from in-season local apples or peaches. Mushrooms sauteed in fresh farm butter are pretty awesome as well.

Almost done. Really.

caffeine being bad for you at Run to Win before. If you want a bit of humor, I recommend looking at this cartoon: How to Quit Drinking Coffee.

You write, "Caffeine is worse for you than alcohol and tobacco". By this, I think it reasonable to point out that caffeine is worse for you than alcohol and tobacco, but it is NOT worse for MOST than alcohol and tobacco. Again, this is supported by loads of good science. I am VERY happy for you (really) that you have figured out what works for you. That is excellent and I could not be more delighted that you have found the cause of your cluster headaches and neurologic deficits. Most people out there would not take the time to figure this out and many would simply resort to drugs. Your sleuthwork should certainly be applauded. But again, that something works for you does not make it generalizable to others. One final thing. Look back at the cartoon. The last (i.e., the bottom right) frame points out that caffeine may just be the least of our worries in our modern supersized inactive unhealthy society. I need to run. Thanks for allowing me a soapbox.

(B- I did not mean to sound harsh, you provide so much awesome info that makes the world a far better place than it would be otherwise...)

Indeed Run to WIN!