Caffeinism

Caffeinism has been defined as the poisoning resulting from excessive intake of caffeine, whether via coffee, tea, chocolate, soft drinks, over-the-counter medications, or other caffeine-containing products. Its symptoms are both physiological and psychological. The amount of caffeine needed to generate caffeinism depends on individual sensitivity, but most people who take even fairly large doses of caffeine do not develop symptoms of caffeinism.

Related Topics:
Poisoning - Caffeine - Coffee - Tea - Chocolate - Soft drink

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Caffeinism may induce anxiety and even psychosis in some severe cases. This may sometimes lead to misdiagnoses of conditions such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia or other conditions identified with psychosis. However, many cases of caffeine-induced psychosis occur in individuals with those mental illnesses, who may already be prone to such episodes (Hughes et al 1998).

Related Topics:
Anxiety - Psychosis - Bipolar disorder - Schizophrenia

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Shannon et al (1998) point out that: "Caffeine-induced psychosis, whether it be delirium, manic depression, schizophrenia, or merely an anxiety syndrome, in most cases will be hard to differentiate from other organic or non-organic psychoses... The treatment for caffeine-induced psychosis is to withhold further caffeine."

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Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) states: "The 4 caffeine-induced psychiatric disorders include caffeine intoxication, caffeine-induced anxiety disorder, caffeine-induced sleep disorder, and caffeine-related disorder not otherwise specified (NOS)."

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