Putting a pod into my Nespresso machine and treating myself to a frothy coconut latte used to be one of the highlights of my day. Add a dash of sugar-free vanilla syrup or half a teaspoon of brown sugar and I was ready to tackle the day head-on. Since my teenage years, I have always started the day with a coffee so when I was forced to give up my morning habit for health reasons, I didn't know how I was going to cope.
Switching to tea , which is also highly caffeinated, wasn't an option so I was forced to face one of my greatest fears - going cold turkey. I never thought my daily morning coffee was a particularly bad habit. In fact, having two to five cups of coffee a day has been linked to a lower risk of type 2 diabetes , heart disease, Parkinson's and depression, according to Frank Hu, chair of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard T.
H. Chan School of Public Health. So when I started experiencing withdrawal symptoms after skipping my morning coffee for two days, I was shocked.
A pounding headache and feeling uncharacteristically sleepy during the day were the main symptoms as well as increased irritability. A quick search on Google told me everything I needed to know - I was experiencing caffeine withdrawal. At this point, I could see why it would be easy to give in and indulge in a milky latte but I was determined to stick to my goals.
After a few days, the withdrawal symptoms eased and I started to feel more energised. Rather than clinging desperately to the idea that I.