Caffeine: How Caffeine Created the Modern World by Michael Pollan (15+)

What if I told you that you’re (likely) a part of the world’s largest unsupervised drug experiment on the human race? You probably wouldn’t believe me. But what if I also told you that the drug in question is caffeine …?

From fizzy drinks to the classic morning joe, caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive drug in the world, producing the astounding figure of 90 per cent of people ingesting caffeine regularly. Who knew!

Well, apparently Michael Pollan (the author of this short and sweet book) knew, and decided to conduct a thorough self-experiment on his body and mind’s experience with, without, and with (again) caffeine.

This book presents his experience, as well as his findings, in an engaging as well as informative way.

This digital diary of Pollan’s self-experiment with the invisible yet ever-present caffeine drug is incredibly eye-opening – much more so than that morning cuppa!

The main idea is that caffeine lifts us out of the state of nature by enhancing a variety of cognitive areas, such as improving focus by clearing out that morning mental fog.

Having said that, the jarring truth is that caffeine doesn’t help us cope with the world around us, it helps us cope with the world that it helped to create …

What this means is that caffeine contributes immensely to heightened levels of productivity in the workforce, offering an “increased capacity for work”.

This spike of energy, however, does not last for ever. For example, the quintessential cup of morning joe provides a burst of energy that dies out into sluggishness just in time for the next day’s cup.

Are you seeing the pattern? Caffeine causes the very morning slump it is believed to cure.

This hidden cycle is why Pollan recorded his experience with caffeine, off caffeine, and with caffeine again.

I appreciate the thoroughness of his experiment due to its structure as well as Pollan taking the opportunity to delve into the history and politics of caffeine since its discovery.

Two major takeaways from this culturally-rich section: caffeine changing our fundamental understanding of energy and the Chinese opium wars.

Before caffeine took over, energy was only thought of in relation to calories. As such, it was baffling for scientists to see a zero-calorie caffeinated drink inspire factory employees to work with such vigour!

Some even reached to say this upends Newton’s first law of thermodynamics, positing that if it is true that energy can neither be created nor destroyed, where is this caffeinated energy coming from?

Additionally, Pollan has an interesting take on how the caffeine trade is linked to the mid-19th century opium wars in China.

So, if you’re interested in caffeine’s role in shaping history, culture, and science, I highly recommend giving Caffeine: How Caffeine Created the Modern World a read.

On a final note, I’d also like to hear your thoughts on my column; for any comments on Caffeine: How Caffeine Created the Modern World or simply to give me a book recommendation of whatever you’re reading at the moment (I appreciate all messages from members of our community!), contact me at bookspacebda@gmail.com to tell me all about it.