Coffee, tea, and energy drinks fuel our mornings, our focus, and sometimes our entire lives. But beneath the daily ritual lies a question few ever ask: is caffeine truly helping us... or just keeping us hooked? 

In this episode of The Dr. Kumar Discovery Podcast, Dr. Ravi Kumar takes you deep into the biology, history, and modern science of caffeine, the most widely used psychoactive drug on Earth. You’ll learn how it sharpens the brain, enhances performance, and even supports long-term health, but also where it can quietly undermine sleep, anxiety, and blood pressure. 

In this episode, you’ll discover: 

• The surprising origins of caffeine and how plants evolved to make it 

• How coffeehouses once powered revolutions and reshaped societies 

• The neuroscience of caffeine: how it boosts dopamine, focus, and movement 

• Why caffeine makes workouts feel easier and improves endurance 

• How caffeine enhances pain relief when paired with common medications 

• The truth about caffeine’s long-term effects on heart, liver, and brain health 

• The hidden downsides: anxiety, hypertension, reflux, and pregnancy risks 

• The myth of “waiting 90 minutes” after waking, what science really says 

• How to find your personal caffeine “sweet spot” for focus and performance 

Whether you drink coffee, tea, maté, or energy drinks, this episode will help you understand how caffeine works, so you can use it deliberately, not dependently. 

For more health insights, subscribe to The Dr. Kumar Discovery Podcast on any major platform. 

To explore references and related resources, visit: 

👉 https://drkumardiscovery.com/podcast/ 

Cheers!