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Is Caffeine Killing Your Performance?
 

Edmundo Braverman's picture
ST
(Human, 14,329
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 7:20am
caffeine.jpg

I would drink at least a pot of coffee a day and usually more back when I was trading. The first few cups were to offset the binge drinking and lack of sleep from the night before, and the rest was to maintain a base level of alertness. But a new study from Johns Hopkins says that if you want to perform better at work, drop the Starbucks.

According to the study, caffeine can have a profoundly negative impact on your emotional intelligence, also known as your EQ. The increased alertness and small "rush" you feel when you ingest caffeine tricks you into thinking you're more focused and effective, when in fact you're merely achieving your normal levels and setting yourself up for caffeine withdrawals to boot.

By controlling for caffeine use in study participants, John Hopkins researchers found that caffeine-related performance improvement is nonexistent without caffeine withdrawal. In essence, coming off caffeine reduces your cognitive performance and has a negative impact on your mood. The only way to get back to normal is to drink caffeine, and when you do drink it, you feel like it’s taking you to new heights. In reality, the caffeine is just taking your performance back to normal for a short period.

It's even worse for traders, because the caffeine jolt increases your emotional response, especially anxiety, and we all know that emotions spell doom in trading. It all makes sense, but I couldn't imagine putting in the hours necessary for this line of work without a little chemical assistance, and caffeine is among the most benign "little helpers" if you know what I mean.

I'll admit that I was a full-on caffeine addict for much of my adult life, so I know how hard it would be to work without it. Now if I have two cups in the morning (on an empty stomach) I get the jitters and feel nauseous.

How do you guys deal with it? Are you mainlining Starbucks every day? Red Bull? White Crosses? (okay, that last one is a reference only us old timers would get) Or have you found a better way to stay "up" without all the deleterious effects of caffeine?

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Comments

BlackHat's picture

(No subject)

HF
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 7:26am

I hate victims who respect their executioners

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acrew09's picture

Love my coffee. I usually

PE
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 8:08am

Love my coffee. I usually have 2 cups in the morning and another in the afternoon.

I found an app, Caffeine Zone, a few months ago. You input how much coffee or tea you drink, when you drink it, and how quickly and it tracks how caffeinated you are throughout the day. It was really surprising to see how easy it is to be "over caffeinated".

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-02-23/ca...

McGurk's picture

1 8 oz Cup in the morning 1 8

O
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 8:17am

1 8 oz Cup in the morning
1 8 oz Cup in the afternoon

Should be set for the rest of the day. Keeping the coffee you drink at a low amount limits the up's and down's of energy levels and doesn't nurture dependance - as much.

Addinator's picture

God help you if you try and

ST
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 8:32am

God help you if you try and take my coffee away during the day. haha. Though I will say that I have been attempting to cut back on the constant ingestion of caffeine, and i've noticed that sometimes if you slip in a cup or two of decaf you will pick up a placebo effect and trick your body into thinking it's getting caffeine. I know some guys will take aderall and other types of stuff, but I haven't really had to do that yet to keep up.

I definitely think there is a point where caffeine offers diminishing returns, especially once your body gets used to it and your ordering triple and quadruple shot espressos just to keep pace. But I actually enjoy coffee so it isn't too big of a deal.

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bigtool05's picture

I never drink coffee or

CF
(Baboon, 142
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 9:11am

I never drink coffee or caffeine unless I'm unusually sleep deprived. I just never feel the need to. However I probably don't have to work the same kind of hours as most of you.

Boreed's picture

I don't really need coffee. I

PE
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 9:13am

I don't really need coffee. I like it, I mean it goes well with a cigarette, and it wakes me up but I don't feel that I can't function without it.

It's weird actually. During undergrad and my MSF I drank at least 5 cups of black coffee without sugar each day, because it was there and during my MSF it was free, and right next to the 24-hour computer room.

As soon as I moved in both cases, I stopped drinking without really even noticing that I stopped. Basically, I'm not going to make effort to get coffee. At most, I'll get it if the coffee machine is quick and not more than 50 paces from where I am.

And this is after 3.5 years of drinking every day, half a years break because I moved and forgot about coffee, and then another year of drinking several cups per day.

I'm addicted to coca-cola though. : /

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leveredarb's picture

ive dropped all caffeine a

(King Kong, 1,228
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 9:17am

ive dropped all caffeine a year ago, feel fantastic without it. I just wake up in the morning and I am good to go, i couldnt do anything without having a cup previously lol

Scott Irish's picture

I enjoy coffee more than my

O
(Orangutan, 368
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 9:17am

I enjoy coffee more than my coworkers for the time being. At this point, caffeine is my work wife, even if it isn't making me more productive.

ladubs111's picture

2 8oz cups in the morning,

IA
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 9:28am

2 8oz cups in the morning, 2-3 8oz cups in the afternoon, and 8oz after 6 pm.

Anomanderis's picture

1 cup of coffee (2 espressos,

ST
(Orangutan, 357
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:00am

1 cup of coffee (2 espressos, 2 Decaf espressos for the taste, water + creamer). Reheat it all day.

Most days I don't even finish it.

But Rhaegar fought valiantly, Rhaegar fought nobly, Rhaegar fought bravely.

And Rhaegar died.

JimmyDnFFX's picture

Coffee never got hold of me.

O
(Baboon, 134
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:07am

Coffee never got hold of me. Although, I do drink soda for the better part of the day. I've begun to taper off a bit though and am drinking water more (with something in it for flavor though). Can't go totally off the carbonation though.

80% of life is just showing up

-Woody Allen-

UFOinsider's picture

Down to one cup in the

O
(Human, 10,302
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:20am

Down to one cup in the morning for the last few months. It feels like a constant, ten year panic attack is ending. Only downside: need sleep, lots of it. For a while, it was approaching several pots a day, I was on a first name basis with every barista within a two mile radius and no one cares how much coffee you take when you're working in a restaurant. When I was a bartender, I worked with more than a few cokeheads and even they asked what I was on.

Coffee is part of the American nightmare: caffeine all day to keep you up doing some brainless task, drugs/alcohol to knock you down at night. Side note: nicotene is a synergist to caffeine, and functions like a mood stabilizer, so you're wired but somewhat more focused, and they go well together. They're not as expensive per dose as hard drugs, but they bleed you financially: Starbucks, Anheiser-Busch, and Phillip Morris are making a killing by nickel and diming people...or rather, dollaring people. That lifestyle is killing far more people than hard drugs, just not as quickly.

If you must drink caffeine, drink tea: it contains L-theanine, which has a LOT of properties of modern psychoactive drugs and fosters focused alertness. Ever wonder why asian people are kicking your ass at math? Six cups of tea a day is average in eastern cultures. It's non-addictive, cheap as dirt, and even helps potheads with their anxiety. Side note: an overwhelming majority of potheads are bipolar or suffer undiagnosed/untreated anxiety disorders... and the 'alternative' pothead lifestyle just further clusterfucks up their psyche. (P.S. not hating on weed). Back to the topic at hand: I'm about the last person who ever thought I'd say it, but green tea is a superior product. Check it out for yourself:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L-theanine

You're absolutely right in pointing out that after a while, caffeine brings you up to what should be your normal baseline. I saw this a few months ago and it kind of hit a nerve:
http://www.coffee.co.uk/images/spider.jpg

YOU JUST GOT TROLLED
http://www.troll.me/images/red-foreman322/dont-you...

CaR's picture

Addinator: God help you if

O
(Gorilla, 643
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:12am
Addinator:

God help you if you try and take my coffee away during the day. haha. Though I will say that I have been attempting to cut back on the constant ingestion of caffeine, and i've noticed that sometimes if you slip in a cup or two of decaf you will pick up a placebo effect and trick your body into thinking it's getting caffeine. I know some guys will take aderall and other types of stuff, but I haven't really had to do that yet to keep up.

I definitely think there is a point where caffeine offers diminishing returns, especially once your body gets used to it and your ordering triple and quadruple shot espressos just to keep pace. But I actually enjoy coffee so it isn't too big of a deal.

Well said. Just started FT and I've never had a cup of decaf until recently. After cup 2 or 3, there are noticeable instances of diminishing returns. I've been trying to limit myself to 2 "shots in the dark" (10-12 oz cup w/ shot of espresso) of caffeine a day, but with these new NFL season Monday hangovers, it's going to be tough.

I tell you, we are here on Earth to fart around, and don't let anybody tell you different.
Kurt Vonnegut

WreckEmFinance's picture

what about all positive

O
(Baboon, 144
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:13am

what about all positive studies about coffee? i.e. antioxidants, higher immunity levels, etc? anyways, good post, because i would agree one can overdo it on the sweet black bitter elixir. i am a coffee fiend, no doubt about it. and everytime i think of going off coffee or caffeine altogether, a wave of fear envelops my mind. i cannot bear the thought. that said, i feel i can drink less coffee, instead of as much i do, thereby achieving an equilibrium, whether real or perceived.

"Everything comes to those who hustle while they wait."
-Thomas Edison

happypantsmcgee's picture

one or two red eyes a day. no

O
(Almost Human, 9,621
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:21am

one or two red eyes a day. no cream or sugar because I have a penis

If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford

BTbanker's picture

Avg 5 hours of sleep, hate

IB
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:26am

"A man generally has two reasons for doing anything. One that sounds good, and the real one." - J.P. Morgan

UFOinsider's picture

WreckEmFinance: what about

O
(Human, 10,302
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:30am

YOU JUST GOT TROLLED
http://www.troll.me/images/red-foreman322/dont-you...

DonVon's picture

Just use Provigil.

IB
(King Kong, 1,914
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:52am

"An intellectual is a man who takes more words than necessary to tell more than he knows."
- Dwight D. Eisenhower

Check out my blog!

JimmyDnFFX's picture

Don't you have to be a

O
(Baboon, 134
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 10:59am

80% of life is just showing up

-Woody Allen-

happypantsmcgee's picture

Vontropnats: Just use

O
(Almost Human, 9,621
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 11:37am

If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford

DonVon's picture

JimmyDnFFX: Don't you have to

IB
(King Kong, 1,914
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 11:41am

"An intellectual is a man who takes more words than necessary to tell more than he knows."
- Dwight D. Eisenhower

Check out my blog!

mperit01's picture

I have never had a cup in my

ER
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 12:10pm
ScoobyDoobie's picture

"I'm so excited... I'm so

O
(Baboon, 163
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 12:25pm

Third prize is you're fired.

Edmundo Braverman's picture

ScoobyDoobie: "I'm so

ST
(Human, 14,329
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 1:11pm

above_and_beyond's picture

I usually go running for 45

IB
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 1:19pm
slotmouth's picture

Just make sure your

O
(Monkey, 38
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 1:34pm
Saul_Villa's picture

I used to be a huge caffeine

 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 2:10pm

Personal wealth is not how much you have in the bank or the worth of your portfolio. But, rather how you've used the wealth to make your life and those around you better.

villalobos's picture

UFOinsider: You're absolutely

CO
(Monkey, 42
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 2:34pm
villalobos's picture

didn't embed - here it is:

CO
(Monkey, 42
 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 2:36pm
AndyLouis's picture

trying hard not to jump onto

 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 4:30pm

WSO's COO (Chief Operating Orangutan) | My story | Connect with me on Linkedin.

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AndyLouis's picture

trying hard not to jump onto

 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 4:30pm

WSO's COO (Chief Operating Orangutan) | My story | Connect with me on Linkedin.

2013 WSO Conference

Senvik's picture

Switch to green tea. Tastes

 
Points)
 on 9/10/12 at 7:59pm

"You stop being an asshole when it sucks to be you." - IlliniProgrammer

UFOinsider's picture

villalobos: didn't embed -

O
(Human, 10,302
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 12:21am

YOU JUST GOT TROLLED
http://www.troll.me/images/red-foreman322/dont-you...

Unforseen's picture

one cup of coffee a day in

(King Kong, 1,099
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 6:58am

Check out my Blog

duffmt6's picture

Unforseen: one cup of coffee

IB
(Neanderthal, 2,304
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 7:47am

"Social cohesion and puritanical morality place roughly on my list of concerns between whether I'll pick up jock itch at the gym this week (not likely, since I don't go the gym) and whether it'll rain in Christchurch, New Zealand next Tuesday."
-Eddie

Edmundo Braverman's picture

duffmt6: Unforseen: one cup

ST
(Human, 14,329
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 8:06am

ST Monkey's picture

I wonder if over caffeinating

ST
(Orangutan, 312
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 8:54am
JimmyDnFFX's picture

ST Monkey: I wonder if over

O
(Baboon, 134
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 10:23am

80% of life is just showing up

-Woody Allen-

WreckEmFinance's picture

UFOinsider: Studies indicate

O
(Baboon, 144
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 1:40pm

"Everything comes to those who hustle while they wait."
-Thomas Edison

Edmundo Braverman's picture

WreckEmFinance: for sure.

ST
(Human, 14,329
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 2:27pm

blackrainn's picture

Decaffeinated green tea.

O
(Orangutan, 354
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 10:04pm
GS's picture

I didn't actually start

ST
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 10:19pm
Soapy.Detergent's picture

duffmt6: Unforseen: one cup

IB
(Monkey, 63
 
Points)
 on 9/11/12 at 11:29pm
JCJC's picture

Yep people need to

(Chimp, 1
 
Points)
 on 9/12/12 at 1:36pm

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