Few people give caffeine the credit it deserves. Anxiety disorders that are on the verge of being a problem can be exaggerated by coffee. Humans have never consumed as much caffeine as today's homosapien. If you are not prone to anxiety or obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) then go ahead and drink away ( ). Otherwise I would suggest putting that down the coffee cup. An anxious person may continue to feel the negative effects of caffeine for up to a month. Problems from coffee may also arise due to dehydration and these symptoms are too long to list.

Back in the early days of soda pop the average amount a person would drink at a time was 8oz and a cup of coffee was never more than this. Today I see kids drinking 64oz tubs of Pepsi and caffeine-packed energy drinks. Espressos are abused quite commonly even among adolescents. Our generation is currently in the early years of an experiment where the subjects commonly come close to consuming an entire gram of caffeine in a 24-hour period. I’ll admit that the majority of people do fine on this amount of caffeine (some even thrive), but some of us have adverse reactions to this drug. I’ve known people who went on antidepressants after starting coffee and later realized that their anxiety was due entirely to their morning Joe.

It is believed by some that mega doses of inositol (a member of the b-vitamin family) can help with OCD symptoms and it is believed that coffee depletes inositol levels, which illustrates a cause and effect scenario between coffee and OCD in more than one respect—the other being the dopaminergic effect.

If you do not require medication to reduce anxiety but are still a little unsettled at times, there are some natural options available at the health food store. My favorite is Kava Kava ( ), which has been linked to some liver problems but I think they're rare. Hawaiians will consume mass quantities of Kava Kava without any problems. This herb enhances the presence of GABA activity in the brain, which reduces activity in areas of the brain that tend to make us nervous. There are other supplements that have positive benefits for people including 5-HTP, Saint John’s Wort, and L-Tryptophan, all of which target the serotonin system. If a person is deficient in any of the b-vitamins or any vital minerals, all kinds of adverse symptoms have been shown to occur. Taking vitamins and minerals (available at ) can remedy these deficiencies. It may take extended periods of time to replenish your body’s depleted sources.

Most doctors do not seem to advocate multi-vitamins or anything sold in a supplement store but I personally believe that they undervalue the effect of these isolated substances. One good way to find out if a nutrient is helpful is by checking to see if it makes you feel better or if they remedy an issue or problem. Everyone agrees that the nutrients contained in multivitamins are essential for life but if you are getting all your vitamins from the food you eat then the multivitamin becomes an insurance pill.