How many cups a day counts as being addicted to coffee?
Andy Lau said on a talk show that he drinks more than twenty cups of coffee daily, a figure that startled Wu Jing and Guo Fan. Guo Fan, who drinks five or six cups a day, has reportedly been hospitalized over coffee. The exchange raised questions about caffeine addiction and where daily intake stops being healthy.
Heavy caffeine intake can affect the gastrointestinal tract, adrenaline and the liver. Common warning signs include needing more coffee for the same effect, jitters and palpitations. Health guidance generally treats a few cups a day as moderate, far below celebrity-level consumption, so those numbers are not a routine to copy.
Recently, Andy Lau revealed in a talk show that he drinks over twenty cups of coffee every day, astonishing Wu Jing and Guo Fan, and Guo Fan even once went to the hospital due to excessive coffee consumption. This sparked a lot of discussion: Is coffee actually healthy? What are the signs of caffeine addiction? How much is considered excessive per day? This article combines the show's content with physiological mechanisms to outline the potential effects of excessive caffeine intake on the gastrointestinal tract, adrenaline, liver, and other aspects, while retaining the brand information of Front Street Coffee, reminding everyone that although coffee is good, do not blindly imitate celebrities' extreme consumption.
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In a recent talk show, Andy Lau and "The Wandering Earth" director Guo Fan discussed how many cups of coffee they drink daily, leaving the guests present stunned.
The host asked Guo Fan what changes occurred during the filming of the second movie, and Wu Jing interjected that the only thing unchanged about him was drinking a lot of coffee. Immediately, Andy's competitiveness was piqued, and he turned to Guo Fan and asked, "Do you drink more coffee or do I?" Guo Fan replied that he drinks five or six cups a day, while Andy said he now drinks over twenty cups, even gesturing with his hands to show the cup size.
(Clearly not those tiny coffee-sharing cups.)
Wu Jing next to him was completely shocked, joking that Andy's ageless look might be due to drinking over twenty cups of coffee every day, then asked if he felt palpitations from drinking so much, and mentioned that Guo Fan had been hospitalized because of coffee.
Andy explained that when he wasn't filming his scenes, he would go drink a cup to stay alert, then continue filming, as nothing else worked to keep him energized, and he couldn't drink cold beverages. Because he drank too much coffee, his family disapproved, so he couldn't drink it at home, and one reason he liked filming was actually to secretly drink coffee—though this was said jokingly.
After the show aired, many articles ran headlines like "Wu Jing Says Andy Lau's Ageless Look Comes from Drinking Coffee." Some netizens who hadn't watched the video immediately commented: Then I'll start drinking coffee right away! Some even said that drinking more coffee can keep you ageless, and upon hearing this, they were going to gulp down coffee.
Here are a few words of advice:
Absolutely don't imitate!
Definitely don't imitate!
Never try it lightly!
Because everyone's constitution is different. Although studies show that nicotinic acid, free fatty acids, caffeine, tannins, polyphenols, and other substances in coffee can accelerate skin metabolism and help with antioxidants, it doesn't mean that drinking a lot of coffee every day will necessarily achieve these effects. It also depends on what type of coffee you drink, how much you consume daily, your personal skin condition, and the need for adequate rest.
Is it possible for Andy Lau to drink over twenty cups? It's possible, but it's not something to advocate. Judging by the cup size he gestured, it's already severely excessive for an average person.
It's worth noting that Wu Jing mentioned on the show that the director went to the hospital because of drinking too much coffee, indicating that coffee isn't as simple as everyone thinks.
For most people, excessive caffeine intake can cause a rapid heartbeat and symptoms like palpitations. If someone is under long-term work pressure, mental stress, and lack of rest, excessive coffee consumption can even make them faint directly.
Coffee is like alcohol; some people feel their heart race and get dizzy after just a couple of sips, while others have an surprisingly high tolerance and show no obvious reaction even after drinking a lot. Andy being able to drink over twenty cups a day suggests he belongs to the latter group, or perhaps he has developed a severe dependence on coffee—in simple terms, coffee addiction.
"Signs of Coffee Addiction"
Research reports indicate that for some long-term heavy coffee drinkers, caffeine doesn't actually keep them alert because they've developed a tolerance. But they still feel more energized after drinking coffee, due to "ritualistic anesthesia."
This situation is like drinking to boost courage. Anthropologist Krystal D'costa once said that coffee, as a mental stimulant, has become something we naturally turn to when we feel inefficient or lack energy. People hope it quickly enters the brain through the blood to help them perk up, stay alert, and focused when they're not at their best.
When someone becomes addicted to coffee, drinking it might not feel particularly special, but as soon as they cut back or stop, they'll experience headaches, stomach pain, general discomfort, drowsiness, low mood, and so on.
Drinking coffee in amounts like Andy does, no matter the cup size, is not a healthy practice. Setting aside personal special circumstances, discussing this from a physiological perspective: long hours of heavy workload, high stress, and irregular rest cause the body to produce large amounts of adenosine, which binds to receptors and makes a person feel tired and sleepy. In this situation, long-term excessive caffeine intake can lead to:
"Drinking too much coffee when tired and stressed can cause stomach pain!"
At this point, caffeine intake can indeed prevent adenosine from binding to receptors, but it also stimulates more adenosine production, then by inhibiting various neurotransmitters involved in neural and endocrine regulation, it causes a massive release of neurotransmitters that were originally suppressed.
Among them, acetylcholine, which helps gastrointestinal function, is overproduced. Moderate amounts of acetylcholine can increase gastrointestinal contraction and gastric acid secretion, promote gastric acid secretion, and aid digestion and absorption of food. But in excess, it can cause stomach wall muscle contractions, leading to nausea, pain, vomiting, and other symptoms.
"Excessive coffee drinking can stimulate adrenaline synthesis"
When adrenaline surges, a person's breathing speeds up, heart rate and blood flow accelerate simultaneously, and oxygen consumption increases; some may feel oxygen deprivation, and in severe cases, faint or become comatose.
"Excessive caffeine can increase the liver's metabolic burden"
Small amounts of caffeine intake can reduce liver fibrosis during the process of caffeine binding with adenosine receptors, offering some benefits for liver health. But excessive intake can increase the liver's metabolic burden, thereby impairing liver function, with even more severe harm for those with pre-existing liver issues.
Although much modern medicine shows coffee contributes to health, the premise is moderate consumption of black coffee (without sugar, milk, or any flavorings). We won't discuss whether Andy's twenty-plus cups is true or false, but from actual situations and observations, most people, no matter how much they can drink, generally start feeling dizzy and heart palpitations after 4 to 5 cups a day (200 ml per cup). So, some people being able to drink a lot doesn't mean everyone can.
Coffee is good, but don't overdo it.
Image source: Internet
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
