How Much Caffeine Stops Us From Sleeping?

If you can’t bear to get through your day without a good brew or a tasty cup of java, you’re not alone.

Apparently, we Brits go through 100 million cups of tea (1) and 98 million cups of coffee every single day. (2)

But can we have too much of a good thing? The answer might be yes if you want a good night’s sleep.

We were curious to find out how much of an impact our caffeine habit has on our ability to drift off into a peaceful slumber. So, we conducted a survey to find out just how much caffeine people across the UK consume daily and how is too much if we want better sleep.

How many caffeinated drinks do we consume?

Caffeine is a substance that stimulates our central nervous system. Caffeine is naturally occurring in tea, coffee, chocolate, and some other plants, however, it can also be added to energy drinks and some soft drinks (3). 

This includes drinks that are popular with teenagers and younger children, Prime Energy drinks(4) - not to be confused with Prime Hydration, one of the Prime drinks that doesn't contain any caffeine (5)

Read More: A Timeline of Kids Beds

The majority of the 500 people we surveyed report drinking at least three caffeinated beverages every day. (a)

However, we found this varies depending on your age and gender.

For example, our results showed that 15% of men abstain from caffeine, while only 6% of women do the same. (b) And for the men who do enjoy a caffeinated beverage, we discovered that most average two drinks a day, whereas most women have at least three. (c)

And it seems the older we are, the more we might be tempted to boost our caffeine intake. 14%, that’s 1 in 7 adults aged 45 to 54, say they usually get through six cups of caffeine a day, compared to just 3% of those aged 16 to 24. (d)

When do we need our caffeine fix?

If you can’t get your day going without a caffeine hit, you’re not alone. More than 44% of those surveyed say they consume most of their caffeine in the morning to help kickstart the day. (e)

A little caffeine buzz can work wonders in helping you get through your morning workout, respond to work emails, or simply make a start on that never-ending pile of ironing.

However, for some of us, the mid-afternoon slump is the kicker. We might need a bit of help to see us through till clock-off time, which might be why more than 1 in 5 said they consume the most caffeine in the afternoon. (f)

Although our results revealed men tend to consume less caffeine than women, we also discovered that men tended to consume caffeinated beverages much later in the day. For example, 41% of men say they usually have caffeinated drinks during the afternoon or evening, compared to only 24% of females. (g)

And it seems the younger population is far more tolerant of a late-night caffeine pick-me-up. More than 15% of those aged between 16 and 24 say they usually consume the most caffeine at night-time, compared to 0% of those aged 45 to 54. (h)

How much caffeine impacts our sleep?

If it takes you a long time to fall asleep, your caffeine-ladened beverages might be to blame.

Caffeine masks our body’s natural sleep drive and reduces feelings of drowsiness that would typically indicate it’s time for sleep. And while you might think that evening cappuccino won’t hurt, according to our resident Sleep Expert, Dr Sophie Bostock:

"The half-life for caffeine is around six hours...It can still disrupt the quality of your sleep more than 6 hours later." 

While some believe the amount of caffeine you consume is the culprit for a bad night’s sleep, others think it’s the time of day you drink it. But our survey results show that both could be to blame.

We looked at levels of sleep deprivation amongst populations who reported drinking the most caffeinated beverages and those who tended to drink them later in the day.

Adults aged 45 to 54 had the highest percentage of people who reported consuming up to six caffeinated drinks a day – and 1 in 4 say they always feel sleep-deprived. (i)

And when we looked at men, who tended to drink their caffeine later in the day, 22% of them say they often feel sleep deprived, (j) and 1 in 8 believe their caffeine habits are to blame. (k)

Read More: Our Favourite Morning Rituals

How does this lack of sleep affect us?

Losing sleep can significantly impact how we feel and function the following day.

More than 53% of those surveyed say a lack of sleep makes them feel more sluggish and lower in energy. (l) The bad news is that when we feel like this, we often consume more caffeine to pep us up, but this can become a vicious cycle. While the coffee may help you in the short term, its effects may mean you struggle to get to sleep, which then results in you feeling tired again the next day. (6)

Our survey also revealed you’re much less pleasant to be around when you’ve lost sleep – 39% of people say they feel grumpier and moodier when they’re sleep deprived. (m)

And not only does lack of sleep affect us physically and behaviourally, but it may also impact our cognitive function. 33% say they feel unable to focus or concentrate when they’re sleep deprived (n),and a further 18% say their productivity at work reduces. (o)

Tips to help get your sleep back on track

If you can’t bear to kick caffeine to the curb completely, don’t worry! We have some helpful tips and ideas from our resident sleep expert, Dr Sophie Bostock , to help you slightly decrease the amount of caffeine you consume, so you can go back to having a pleasant night’s sleep.

If you want to step up your sleep game, a new mattress could be the answer. Whether you’re looking for a supportive memory foam or sumptuous pocket sprung mattress, our team of sleep specialists can help you find the dream-inducing mattress you’re searching for with our exclusive sleeppro® technology at any one of our nation-wide stores. In a matter of minutes, we will build your personalised sleep profile and advise which type of mattress is best for you. So, pop in-store today or read more about this fantastic service, here.

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Survey results

a.108 of 501 people surveyed answered ‘3 cups/cans/bottles a day’ when asked, ‘How many, if any, caffeinated drinks do you have on an average day, including coffee, cans or bottles of coke, energy drinks, etc?’

b.40 of 260 males surveyed and 16 of 241 females surveyed answered ‘I never consume caffeinated drinks’ when asked, ‘How many, if any, caffeinated drinks do you have on an average day, including coffee, cans or bottles of coke, energy drinks, etc?’

c.23.24% (56) of 241 females surveyed answered ‘three cups’ and 21.54% (56) of 260 males surveyed answered ‘two cups’ when asked, ‘How many, if any, caffeinated drinks do you have on an average day, including coffee, cans or bottles of coke, energy drinks, etc?’

d.12 of 85 people surveyed aged 45 to 54, and 2 of 65 people aged 16 to 24 answered ‘6 cups/cans/bottles a day’ when asked, ‘How many, if any, caffeinated drinks do you have on an average day, including coffee, cans or bottles of coke, energy drinks, etc?’

e.199 of 445 people surveyed that consume caffeinated drinks, answered ‘morning’ when asked, ‘On days when you drink caffeine, what time of day do you usually drink the most caffeine?’

f.93 of 445 people surveyed that consume caffeinated drinks, answered ‘afternoon’ when asked, ‘On days when you drink caffeine, what time of day do you usually drink the most caffeine?’

g.94 of 220 males and 55 of 225 females surveyed answered ‘afternoon’ or ‘evening’ when asked, ‘On days when you drink caffeine, what time of day do you usually drink the most caffeine?’

h.9 of 57 people surveyed aged 16 to 24, and 0 of 76 people surveyed aged 45 to 54 answered ‘night’ when asked, ‘On days when you drink caffeine, what time of day do you usually drink the most caffeine?’

i.22 of 85 people surveyed aged 45 to 54 answered ‘always’ when asked, ‘How often, if ever, do you feel sleep deprived?’

j.58 of 260 males surveyed answered ‘often’ when asked, ‘How often, if ever, do you feel sleep deprived?’

k.35 of 260 males surveyed answered ‘caffeine’ when asked, ‘What, if anything, do you think stops you from getting a good night’s sleep?’

l.Of the 501 people surveyed, 268 people answered ‘less energy’ when asked, ‘When, if ever, you’ve had a bad night’s sleep, how, if in any way, do you usually feel the next day?’

m.Of the 501 people surveyed, 200 people answered ‘grumpy/moody’ when asked, ‘When, if ever, you’ve had a bad night’s sleep, how, if in any way, do you usually feel the next day?’

n.Of the 501 people surveyed, 167 people answered ‘unable to focus/concentrate’ when asked, ‘When, if ever, you’ve had a bad night’s sleep, how, if in any way, do you usually feel the next day?’

o.Of the 501 people surveyed, 91 people answered ‘lack of productivity at work’ when asked, ‘When, if ever, you’ve had a bad night’s sleep, how, if in any way, do you usually feel the next day?’

Sources

1. UK Tea & Infusions Association - Frequently Asked Questions About Tea
2. Coffee Consumption | British Coffee Association
3. Caffeine | Psychology Today United Kingdom
4. What is Prime Hydration and why is everyone so obsessed with it? | The Independent
5. FAQ – PRIME (drinkprime.com)
6. Effects of caffeine on sleep quality and daytime functioning - PMC (nih.gov)