The Science Behind: Caffeine
Waking up for high school (and staying awake) is hard sometimes. But caffeine, with its warm, welcoming aroma, friendly familiarity, and empowering jolt, is the spark of hope that all students need.
But how does it work?
It all comes down to brain chemistry; specifically, to adenosine, a compound created in the brain that binds to adenosine receptors. When adenosine binds to these receptors, nerve cell activity slows down, causing drowsiness.
Without caffeine, adenosine would continue to bind to adenosine receptors as usual, making you feel tired over time. But when caffeine enters your system, this all changes.
Caffeine and adenosine look very similar to nerve cells, allowing caffeine to bind to the adenosine receptor. However, unlike adenosine, caffeine does not slow down nerve cell activity. And when caffeine attaches to the adenosine receptor, adenosine can no longer bind to the receptor and cause drowsiness.
When bound to an adenosine receptor, adenosine would also open up the brain’s blood vessels, but when caffeine takes adenosine’s place, it does the opposite and causes the brain’s blood vessels to constrict.
On top of all of this mayhem, caffeine’s effect causes increased neuron firing in the brain, which the pituitary gland takes as a sign of an emergency. So, it releases hormones — a substance used in the body to stimulate specific cells or tissues so that they act accordingly — that tell the adrenal glands in the brain to produce adrenaline. Adrenaline causes your heart to beat faster, your blood to flow to muscles at a faster rate, your liver to release sugar into the bloodstream for more energy, and your muscles to prepare for action.
By replacing adenosine, constricting blood vessels, and causing adrenaline release, caffeine works. And without its power, thousands of stressed, sleep-deprived, hopeless students would be left tired for the rest of their high school careers.
Works Cited
Brian, Marshall, et al. “How Caffeine Works.” howstuffworks, science.howstuffworks.com/caffeine4.htm. Accessed 26 Dec. 2018.
“Caffeine.” University Health Service, www.uhs.umich.edu/caffeine. Accessed 26 Dec. 2018.
National Center for Biotechnology Information. PubChem Compound Database; CID=2519, https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/2519 (accessed Dec 26, 2018).
Smith, Andrew. “Under the Microscope: How does caffeine work?” Independent, 7 June 2010, www.independent.co.uk/news/science/under-the-microscope-how-does-caffeine-work-1993056.html. Accessed 26 Dec. 2018.
+++
To learn more about making your voice heard, visit us at our website. To take action, sign and share our petition to safeguard science in our schools, communities, and futures. To be a part of our conversation, join us on Twitter@ScienceTeens, on Instagram at scienceteens, and on Snapchat at march4science.
