Coffee has been part of the human diet for over a thousand years.
It’s one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world.
Coffee can be pretty amazing for your brain, skin and body.
It’s not surprising that coffee’s primary active ingredient, caffeine, is one of the world’s most commonly used psychoactive drug. This stimulant puts us in the zone; it helps us focus, gives us energy and alertness, which is precisely why so many enjoy at least one cup of coffee each and every day.
But have you ever had too much coffee? Have you found yourself feeling jittery or anxious? Can’t sit still? Have a sudden case of the shakes? Unable to focus? Riddled by headaches? These are just some of the side effects of high caffeine intake (or in some cases, caffeine sensitivity). If you’ve been there, which I’m sure you have, you know full well that it’s pretty damn awful.
So how do we defend ourselves against the anxiety and jitters while still benefiting from the productive benefits of caffeine?
Introducing your new best friend, L-Theanine!
L-Theanine is an amino acid found in green tea which we know is very commonly used to help feel calm and relaxed, the opposite reasons of why we drink coffee.
Research has shown that by taking L-Theanine, a number of important reactions happen in the body: Our alpha brain waves are enhanced which trigger focus, concentration and relaxation. It elevates levels of serotonin (which controls our mood) and dopamine (which regulates our sleep cycle).
The most common word used to describe the feeling this amino acid gives us is ‘composed’, it makes you feel composed and completely in control of your situation. Add this to the heightened focus, awareness, and energy you get from caffeine and suddenly you discover true balance and become a gladiator of productivity.
You might be thinking this all seems a little too good to be true, what are the side effects? Extra toes? Tooth loss? Horn growth? Although a set of horns could be kind of cool, luckily l-theanine has been shown to have essentially zero levels of toxicity, dependency, or tolerance, this means that in theory you could take large doses every day and have no negative side effects.
So in conclusion, if you’re like so many of us who physically cannot start their day without a cup of coffee but want to control the caffeine rather than have caffeine control us then the answer could be just one capsule away.