Coffee Aware is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commision. Learn more

Does Drinking Coffee Keep You Awake? Answer & Guide

Coffee is a drink that everybody loves to drink. It doesn’t matter what the weather is, we can have Coffee all the time. But have you ever thought about Does drinking Coffee keep you awake? If not, this is the right time for you to know about it. 

Does Drinking Coffee Keep You Awake

For busy people, Coffee always works. It keeps a person energized and focused on their work. Many people rely on coffee to keep them awake, and in this way, they can do all their work. So, in this article, you will know how Coffee keeps a person awake. If yes, then how? So, let’s begin.

Does Drinking Coffee Keep You Awake?

Yes, drinking coffee keeps you awake. Caffeine is one of the most powerful stimulants in the world, which is consumed in Coffee. This caffeine can keep a person awake and focused. The first thing that people do in the morning is that they turn to Coffee to keep them awake.

Coffee is a no-fail drink that can never fail to keep you awake. Making Coffee with roasted coffee beans makes the coffee even more strong and more effective. But drinking too much Coffee can also keep you awake when you actually want to sleep. 

You may also like: What You Should Know About Decaffeinated Coffee?

How does Coffee work to keep you awake?

You must have noticed that whenever you feel tired or sleepy and as soon as you drink Coffee, it wakes you up and energizes you. But have you ever thought about how? How does it happen? 

As soon as the Coffee is consumed, it is absorbed and distributed throughout our body. This includes our brain too. The brain is the area where caffeine works effectively and keeps you awake and alert.

Caffeine keeps us awake by blocking the receptors present in our brain that are responsible for our sleep cycle. These receptors are called adenosine receptors. The structure of caffeine resembles the structure of adenosine very much. Therefore, caffeine is capable of binding to the receptors in the brain. 

Adenosine in our brain is responsible for our sleep cycle. It regulates the sleep cycle and wake cycle. As adenosine binds to the receptors, it triggers the sleep cycle, which slows down neural activity and increases sleepiness. The level of adenosine in our brains keeps on fluctuating. So, you don’t suddenly feel sleepy. During the whole day, the level of adenosine is low. But it keeps on increasing. So, it increases to a level where it starts making you sleepy, and then you have the sudden urge to sleep.

In the same way, when caffeine binds to the receptors instead of adenosine, it starts fluctuating the whole cycle. As soon as it binds to the receptors, it does not activate them. But instead, block them. Therefore, the alertness starts at that moment, and you feel awake and energetic. 

Read Also: Should I Drink Coffee on a Diet? – A Detailed Answer!

How long does the effect of caffeine remain in the body?

The calculating half-life of caffeine can tell us about the effect of caffeine on our bodies. As soon as we consume Coffee, the level of caffeine in our blood remains at a peak level for one hour. It can be different for different people. This level starts to come down after one hour, and the effect of caffeine remains half after 6 hours. The whole effect of caffeine may take up to 10 hours to be removed from the body.

Is it bad to drink Coffee late in the Day or at Night?

The answer to this question mainly depends on what type of work you do. Most people drink a cup of coffee in the morning. But they feel like having another cup in the afternoon. It is difficult to give an accurate answer to this question. For me, one should not have a cup of Coffee after 2 or 3 pm.

One can also have a cup of coffee in the evening. As caffeine has a half-life of 6 hours, having a cup of coffee around 5 pm won’t affect sleep. For more information, visit and read this.

When is the best time to drink Coffee?

Cortisol is a hormone that is responsible for keeping us focused and alert. Between 8 to 9 am, noon to 1 pm, and 5.30 pm to 6.30 pm, the level of cortisol is high in our body. Therefore, 11 pm and 3 pm is the best time to drink Coffee.

It is also scientifically proven that mid-morning and early afternoon is the best time to drink Coffee.

Related Post: When is the Best Time to Drink Coffee Before or After Meal?

How much Coffee is too much in a day?

400mg, equal to 8 ounces cup, is best to consume in a day for a healthy adult. But for a teen, it should not be more than 100mg. 

Is it okay to drink Coffee every day?

Someone who loves Coffee very much can add a little part of Coffee to their day. But it is not okay to have 2-5 cups of coffee every day. Drinking too much coffee every day can lead to type 2 diabetes mellitus, heart disease, acidity, liver and endometrial cancers, Parkinson’s disease, and hypertension.

Conclusion

It is essential to know what and when is the right time to drink Coffee. Having Coffee at an irregular time can seriously affect health. Therefore, I hope you have all the necessary information related to Coffee and how it works in keeping a person awake.