Everyone agrees that the sleep disruption is the biggest reason to avoid caffeine. But what if we can make a caffeinated product that only lasts a few hours, so that we can fall asleep both on time and for sufficient duration? In fact maybe such miracle substance can help people with insomnia sleep better, paradoxically. I wonder if there has been research into such short-lived caffeine product, or mechanisms to prematurely evict caffeine from the body?
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1Welcome to Medical Sciences! Questions here are required to show results of prior research. As described in the help center and the reasons mentioned in this meta post, this demonstrates that you’ve taken the time to try to help yourself, saves us from reiterating obvious answers, and helps you get more specific and relevant answers. Please edit your question with links to or references to what you've found in your search. Otherwise your question may be closed.– Carey Gregory ♦Commented Jan 29 at 22:20
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In addition to Carey's comment, you might want to investigate pharmacokinetics and what influences that...– bob1Commented Jan 29 at 22:24
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"Everyone agrees that the sleep disruption is the biggest reason to avoid caffeine." I don't remember agreeing to that.... Trying to shore up your position with these kinds of false statements never looks good. If you can't sleep, try sleep hygiene, only part of which concerns caffeine and alcohol.– anongoodnurseCommented Jan 30 at 6:36
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1 Answer
According to https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK223808/ caffeine spreads readily throughout the body, including the brain, and has only few things that influence its metabolisation positively or effect negatively, namely:
- the main metabolic product of itself (paraxanthine), which has the same effect equipotentially and differs mainly by being able to readily be excreted through the renal tract,
- smoking, and
- exogenous estrogen.
Therefore, given you do not want to take estrogen pills or smoke a lot, you will hardly be able to reduce or shorten the effect of caffeine.
This paper reinforces the point and makes clear that the main factor for interindividual differences in the usual half-life of about 4-5 hours is genetics.
That said, paraxanthine itself is the only substance of the chemical family caffeine belongs to which kind of fits the bill since its half-life is about an hour shorter while having the same effect as caffeine itself, with slightly less toxicity. But beware, you may be a bit more wriggly than under caffeine for as long as it lasts. This may, in turn, let you sleep better, who knows?
