ELI5- If calories are units of energy how does caffeine give you energy if it doesn’t contain calories?
In: Chemistry
Caffeine has many effects on the body, all of which synergistic to giving you more “energy.”
The brain: Caffeine stimulates the methlyxanthine receptors which are involved in the focus/drive/alert feeling.
Cardiovascular: Here it mimics adenosine, which increases heart rate/blood pressure and overall cardiac functions. Adenosine is what you inject into someone who’s heart has stopped, to make it start again.
Metabolic: in high doses it increases fat mobilization which can indirectly help keep you fueled for activity.
Muscles: in high doses causes calcium leakage intra muscle which increases rate of force/power development.
Sidenote: the kcal is a unit of heat, not energy. When we burn fuel in the body we give off heat and thus the kcal is used as a proxy for actual energy consumption.
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