The Mycenaean

The students at Leesville Road High School are addicted to coffee. Teens often turn to caffeine as a coping mechanism for sleep deprivation. According to coffeeaffection.com, 83.2% of teens drink caffeinated beverages regularly. 

Lia Whitbeck, a sophomore at Leesville, drinks coffee every other day. She said, “I would say I have an addiction. It just kind of makes me feel like I have energy even though I actually don’t.”

Samantha McGaughey, a junior at Leesville, admits to having coffee “three times a day since seventh grade”. 

Experts recommend teens get no more than 100 mg of caffeine a day, which is about 1 cup of coffee or 2 caffeinated sodas. Many high school students surpass this by drinking 2 or 3 cups of coffee a day. 

Many people find that caffeine gives them a temporary energy boost and can even brighten their mood for a while.

Valentina Fernandez, a sophomore, drinks coffee every day. She said, “It used to be for the taste of it and now I am addicted to it.” She said she gets “pounding headaches and nauseous when I don’t drink caffeine before like 11 am.”  

“In 2022, the number of coffee drinkers in America rose to 66%.” This makes coffee the most popular beverage thanks to a 14% increase since January of 2021. 

Having too much caffeine can impact your body in many negative ways such as putting you in a bad mood and sleep deprivation. Drinking coffee doesn’t mean you won’t need sleep — it just keeps you from feeling the effects of being tired. 

Drinking too much coffee is a bad habit to develop because your body will become dependent on it.