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Is it smart when coffee is your start?
Coffee makes many people feel alert, energized and even more cheerful, but can that steaming espresso, latte or cappuccino make you smarter?
Not exactly, researchers say, but studies show that it does give brain power a wake-up jolt.
"It allows you to use what brain power you have in a much more efficient and focused way," said a reporter, an avid coffee-drinker who's been looking at caffeine's effects on the brain for a recent article.
The drug - it is a drug - works by blocking the neurotransmitters that would normally calm the brain and cause a sleepy feeling.
Other stimulants work by increasing the amount of stimulating neurotransmitters in the brain.
Caffeine tends to energize people and help them focus on boring and repetitive tasks, even if when they are well rested.
If you're sleep-deprived and you take caffeine almost anything you measure will improve: reaction time, vigilance, attention, logical reasoning - that is, most of the complex functions you associate with intelligence.
Scientists at the Medical University in Innsbruck, Austria, found that men performed significantly better in short-term memory tests after being given a dose of caffeine equivalent to about two cups of coffee.
Any java junkie will tell you caffeine is addictive - but you shouldn't worry as drinking a couple of cups of coffee every day does not appear to cause any serious side effects.
There have been concerns that drinking too much coffee could increase the risks of cancer or high blood pressure, but that has not been proven.
But there are some evidences that caffeine can protect against diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, as well as liver damage, gallstones and depression.
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