Caffeine is in coffee, tea and other products people consume every day, so why is powdered caffeine dangerous?
On Tuesday (Sept. 1), the Food and Drug Administration announced that it had issued warning letters to five companies that sell powdered caffeine, saying that their products pose a "significant or unreasonable risk of illness or injury to consumers."
Powdered caffeine products are much more potent than caffeine-containing beverages like coffee, and they're dangerous because it is easy for people to consume a lethal amount of powdered caffeine, the FDA said.
Just 1 teaspoon of the caffeine powder contains about the same amount of caffeine as 28 cups of regular coffee, the FDA said. In fact, 2 teaspoons of powdered caffeine would kill most adults, according to the Centers for Science in the Public Interest.
"Powdered caffeine is very concentrated," said Henry Spiller, director of Central Ohio Poison Center at Nationwide Children's Hospital. Most people are so comfortable with the effects of caffeinated beverages like coffee and soda that they don't realize that the amount they ingest is just milligrams, Spiller said.
The amount of caffeine in a teaspoon can vary in different powdered caffeine products, the FDA noted. A teaspoon of some powdered products can have about 5 grams of caffeine; by comparison, a cup of coffee has about 65 to 100 milligrams of caffeine, Spiller said.
At that level, 1 teaspoon of the powder contains as much caffeine as 50 to 75 cups of coffee.
"This is enormous. This is an overdose," Spiller told Live Science. [7 Foods You Can Overdose On]
Another problem with the powdered products is that consumers usually don't have the tools to measure a safe dose. The recommended serving size of powdered caffeine is just 50 milligrams to 200 milligrams — or about one-sixteenth of a teaspoon.
To measure out 50 milligrams of powder using a quarter-teaspoon measuring spoon, a consumer needs to fill just 6 percent of the spoon, which "cannot be accurately measured," the FDA said.
"The difference between a safe amount and a toxic dose of caffeine in these pure powdered products is very small," the agency said.
What's more, the smallest packages of powdered caffeine sold by some of the companies contain 100 grams of product, which is 2,000 recommended servings. And some companies sell powdered caffeine in packages of 25 kilograms, which contain up to 500,000 recommended servings.
High doses of caffeine can cause serious side effects, including increased blood pressure, a rapid or dangerously erratic heartbeat, seizures and even death, the FDA said. Two young adults — an 18-year-old in Ohio and a 24-year-old in Georgia — died in 2014 from accidental overdoses of powdered caffeine.
Although it's possible to overdose on caffeine by drinking upward of 50 cups of coffee, most people would probably stop before this point because they would be experiencing uncomfortable effects, like nausea or vomiting and a rapid heart rate, Spiller said. The danger with powdered caffeine is that you take this dose of caffeine all at once, he said.
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Rachael is a Live Science contributor, and was a former channel editor and senior writer for Live Science between 2010 and 2022. She has a master's degree in journalism from New York University's Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program. She also holds a B.S. in molecular biology and an M.S. in biology from the University of California, San Diego. Her work has appeared in Scienceline, The Washington Post and Scientific American.
Caffeine ni katika kahawa, chai na bidhaa nyingine watu kula kila siku, hivyo kwa nini poda caffeine ni hatari? "Mwezi Septemba, Shirika la Chakula na Dawa la Marekani (FDA) lilitangaza kuwa limetoa barua ya onyo kwa makampuni matano ya kuuza poda ya caffeine, likisema kuwa bidhaa zao zina ""hatari kubwa au isiyo ya busara ya kuambukiza au kuumiza watumiaji.""" "Kuwa na poda ya caffeine ni hatari kwa afya ya binadamu, na inaweza kuwa hatari kwa sababu inaweza kuwa na athari kubwa kwa afya ya binadamu, ""alisema FDA." Kahawa moja ya unga wa caffeine ina kiasi sawa cha caffeine kama kikombe cha kahawa ya kawaida. Kile kikombe cha chai cha caffeine cha unga chaweza kuua watu wazima wengi, kulingana na Shirika la Sayansi kwa Maslahi ya Umma. "Kafeni iliyo katika unga ni yenye nguvu sana", akasema Henry Spiller, mkurugenzi wa Kituo cha sumu cha Ohio ya Kati katika Hospitali ya Watoto ya Kitaifa. "Watu wengi wanafurahia sana athari za vinywaji vyenye kafeini kama vile kahawa na soda hivi kwamba hawatambui kwamba kiasi wanachokula ni miligram tu, ""alisema Spiller." Kiasi cha caffeine katika kijiko cha chai inaweza kutofautiana katika bidhaa tofauti za caffeine poda, FDA alibainisha. "Kikombe cha chai cha bidhaa fulani za unga kinaweza kuwa na karibu gramu tano za kafeini; kwa kulinganisha, kikombe cha kahawa kina karibu miligram 65 hadi 100 za kafeini, ""alisema Spiller." Kwa mfano, kijiko kimoja cha chai cha unga wa kahawa kina kiasi cha kafeini kinachotumiwa katika vikombe 50 hadi 75 vya kahawa. "Hii ni kubwa sana. Hii ni overdose, "Spiller aliiambia Sayansi ya Maisha. "Kama ilivyoelezwa hapo juu, ""Tatizo jingine na bidhaa za unga ni kwamba watumiaji kwa kawaida hawana zana za kupima kipimo salama.""" Kiasi cha kawaida cha poda ya caffeine ni miligramu 50 hadi 200 au karibu sehemu ya kumi na sita ya kijiko cha chai. "Kutumia kijiko cha kipimo cha robo ya kijiko cha chai kupima miligramu 50 za unga, watumiaji wanahitaji kujaza asilimia 6 tu ya kijiko, ambacho ""hawezi kupimwa kwa usahihi,"" FDA ilisema." "Tofauti kati ya kiasi salama na kipimo chenye sumu cha kafeini katika bidhaa hizi safi zenye unga ni ndogo sana", shirika hilo likasema. Kwa mfano, vifurushi vidogo vya caffeine vinavyopatikana kwenye duka la kawaida vinaweza kuwa na kiasi cha gramu 100 za bidhaa, ambayo ni kiasi cha 2,000 cha kawaida. Kampuni kadhaa za kahawa zinauza poda ya kafeini katika vifurushi vya kilo 25 na vina kiasi cha kiasi cha 500,000 cha kafeini. """Kunywa kiasi kikubwa cha kafeini kunaweza kusababisha athari mbaya, ikiwa ni pamoja na shinikizo la damu, moyo wa haraka au hatari, mshtuko wa moyo na hata kifo,"" FDA ilisema." Wavulana wawili, mmoja mwenye umri wa miaka 18 kutoka Ohio na mwingine mwenye umri wa miaka 24 kutoka Georgia, walikufa mwaka 2014 kutokana na matumizi ya kupita kiasi ya kafeini. "Hata kama unaweza kupata overdosage ya caffeine kwa kunywa kikombe cha kahawa, watu wengi wataacha kabla ya hatua hii kwa sababu watakuwa na athari zisizofaa kama vile kichefuchefu au kutapika na moyo wa haraka, ""alisema Spiller." "Uwezekano wa kuwa na caffeine ya unga ni kwamba unaweza kuchukua kiasi hiki cha caffeine mara moja. """ Kujiandikisha kwa Live Science jarida la kila siku sasa Kupata ulimwengu wa uvumbuzi wa kuvutia zaidi alitoa moja kwa moja kwa sanduku lako la barua. Rachael ni mchangiaji wa Sayansi ya Moja kwa Moja, na alikuwa mhariri wa zamani wa kituo na mwandishi mwandamizi wa Sayansi ya Moja kwa Moja kati ya 2010 na 2022. Ana shahada ya uzamili katika uandishi wa habari kutoka Chuo Kikuu cha New York Sayansi, Afya na Programu ya Ripoti ya Mazingira. Yeye pia ana shahada ya B.S. katika biolojia ya molekuli na M.S. Biolojia katika Chuo Kikuu cha California, San Diego Kazi yake imeonekana katika Scienceline, The Washington Post na Scientific American.