Is Caffeine Withdrawal a Mental Disorder?
Sept. 30, 2004 — Researchers are saying that caffeine withdrawal should now be classified as a psychiatric disorder. A new study that analyzes some 170 years’ worth of research concludes that caffeine withdrawal is very real — producing enough physical symptoms and a disruption in daily life to classify it as a psychiatric disorder. Researchers are suggesting that caffeine withdrawal should be included in the next edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), considered the bible of mental disorders. “I don’t think this means anyone should be worried,” says study researcher Roland Griffiths, PhD, professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. “What it means is that the phenomenon of caffeine withdrawal is real and that when people don’t get their usual dose, they can suffer a range of withdrawal symptoms.” His research, published in the October issue of Psychopharmacology, analyzes 66 previous studies on the effects of caff
