How to Get the Most Kick from Coffee

Go for many shorts over one tall, grande or vente—small doses of caffeine ward off sleepiness better
By Keri Schram
Betterhumans Staff

Put away that extra large coffee mug: Researchers have discovered that small, frequent doses of caffeine keep you awake better than one large cup of java in the morning.

A study conducted by scientists from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois and Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts has provided key insight into how caffeine interacts with the sleep cycle.

"I hate to say it, but most of the population is using caffeine the wrong way by drinking a few mugs of coffee or tea in the morning, or three cups from their Starbucks grande on the way to work," says study leader James Wyatt of Rush. "This means that caffeine levels in the brain will be falling as the day goes on. Unfortunately, the physiological process they need to counteract is not a major player until the latter half of the day."

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