This episode of The Infographics Show is brought
to you by Skillshare. Get 2 months of Skillshare for free and learn
new skills by using the link in the description. With 64% of US adults indulging in at least
one cup of coffee per day, and 11% gulping down four cups or more a day, there are over
4 billion cups of coffee thought to be consumed every year. That’s a lot of coffee. While drinking coffee has been proven to have
many health benefits, what is the effect on the body of drinking only coffee, and nothing
else? For this experiment, we will be drinking cup
after cup after cup of the beautiful bean. Just how long could you keep going on coffee
and nothing else to drink? That’s what we’ll find out, in this episode
of The Infographics Show – What Would Happen to Your Body If You Drank Only Coffee, and
Nothing Else? If I seem to be talking faster than usual
in this episode, you’ll know why.
First the good news. A cup of coffee in the morning may provide
more than just an energy boost. Coffee is thought to protect against type
2 diabetes. Researchers at UCLA found that drinking coffee
increase the plasma levels of the SHBG hormone resulting in a lower risk of diabetes. A link between Parkinson’s disease and coffee
consumption has also been found, indicating that those who drink regular cups of Java
have a lower risk of Parkinson’s. Researchers in Italy discovered that coffee
drinkers have a 40% lower risk of liver cancer, and researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical
Center and Harvard School of Public Health found that people who drink four cups of coffee
a day have a lower risk of heart failure. Coffee is also high in antioxidants, which
fight the oxidative damage that causes cancer. In years past, doctors warned patients that
drinking coffee would increase risk of heart disease and stunt growth.
They were also worried about the addictive
nature of the energy high that follows a cup of coffee. However, it turned out the old studies used
subjects who had other health risk habits such as drinking and smoking. Drinking coffee at a rate of up to six cups
a day doesn’t appear to be that harmful, and in fact, may make you live longer. One study looked at 208,000 subjects, finding
that those who drank coffee regularly, lived longer than those who refrained from the bean. On the down side, coffee addiction is a real
phenomenon, with heavy coffee drinkers suffering withdrawal symptoms such as headaches, irritability,
and fatigue. Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant
producing feel-good chemicals to spread in the brain, and when our supply is cut short,
we feel down for a couple of days. But onto the experiment. We are only allowed to drink coffee and nothing
else. So here we go.
You wake up in the morning, shower, brush
your teeth, and prepare for the day ahead. The night before, you had hydrated fully in
anticipation of your coffee experiment. So boil the water, and pour that first cup. Sip, savor, and enjoy, as those feel good
chemicals whizz around in your brain. The acidity level in your stomach increases,
possibly leading to a visit to the bathroom. Not to worry. Take a moment on the throne to catch up with
world events. After washing your hands, you can knuckle
down to do some serious work. Coffee boosts those dopamine, serotonin and
adrenaline levels, and increases the heart rate. You feel like you are on fire with enthusiasm
and determination to get the job done.
Well done, you are riding the java wave. As you work you, you hit another two cups. You pour that fourth cup and notice your left
eye begins twitching. Not to worry, pour yourself another cup. Now, after cup number 5, the muscle spasms
increase. You notice a caffeine tension headache and
your mouth feels dry. The calories contained in coffee might cause
you to feel a little raw. You are allowed to eat in this experiment,
but you don’t feel terribly hungry. That’ll be the coffee reducing your appetite. Drifting off to sleep will be tricky, too,
with all that caffeine swishing around in your system stimulating your brain, nervous
system, and heart.
Now how dangerous this coffee drinking becomes,
depends on the strength of your coffee. A coffee is a stimulant and can dehydrate
the body, but if your coffee is weak enough, the water content will probably be enough
to sustain you. But keep drinking the hard stuff, and be prepared
to come to a sticky end. As the days clock by, you will notice that
you feel weakened by the lack of hydration, and you will become wired, paranoid, and nervous. You would probably begin to increase the water
volume in the coffee to counteract the dehydrating effect of the coffee. What would happen if you kept chasing cup
after cup of strong black coffee? If you just kept drinking the hard stuff day
after day? Well, famous 19th Century French writer Honoré
de Balzac did just that when he finally cashed in his chips. The chronicler of post-Napoleonic French drama
was said to have drank 50 cups of java a day and died eventually of caffeine poisoning.
He wrote: “Coffee is a great power in my
life; I have observed its effects on an epic scale. Coffee roasts your insides.” So what would happen if you keep drinking
coffee on an epic scale? Well it would eventually kill you. But then again, so would water if you drank
enough of it. So the secret here is that everything should
be taken in moderation including your favorite cup of Joe. And an amazing cup of coffee is extremely
hard to make by yourself, but not impossible. Go behind-the-scenes with celebrated California
roaster Blue Bottle and learn what it takes to brew an amazing cup of coffee by hand! You can learn this and many more things by
joining Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community
with over 20,000 classes in design, animation, technology, and more.
Premium Membership will give you unlimited
access to topics that will improve your skills, and in the process, your life! Join the millions of other people who are
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Show at the same time, go to Skillshare.com/ infographics3 or click the link in the description
and start learning today! So, what do you think? Is it possible to stay alive drinking only
coffee? What’s the most coffee you’ve ever drank
in one day? Let us know in the comments! Also, be sure to watch our other video called:
Free Online Certifications That Will look good on your Resume. Thanks for watching, and as always, don't
forget to like, share and subscribe. See you next time!.
