Caffeine Research Paper

Since humans discovered caffeine, the common commodity has been used as an ingredient in several foods and beverages, most commonly in coffee, been used in the medicinal industry, been used by workers to stay awake ever since the industrial revolution, to fuelling the economy on the global scale; clearly demonstrating the process of increasing complexity. The origins of caffeine can be traced all the way back to the period of time where Earth was forming. When Earth formed and cooled down, it fitted the goldilocks conditions for the growth of plants- sun light, water, good soil composition- which meant that plants containing caffeine, such as, could grow. It was until later in history when humans discovered the true power of caffeine, changing

Many legends and folklore exist about the usage of caffeine, going as far back as the 10th century, however these cannot be verified. According to Francine Segan, a food historian and author, the origin of caffeine extends all the way back to mountain rainforests in the Ethiopian province of Kaffa, the home to Coffea arabia, a tree species that produce fruits called coffee cherries. Francine Segan wrote that “a thousand years ago in Africa, locals would mash the ripe ‘cherries’ from wild coffee trees to create a dried traveling food packed with protein and nutrients,” however she points out they had not yeat discovered the multiple uses that caffeine can serve. The cherries were taken to Mocha, the great Arab port of the day. Many reports suggest that slaves from the current area now referred to as Sudan ate the cherries containing caffeine and took them into Yemen and Arabia. In the 15th century, Sufi monasteries of Yemen are said to have unearthed the wonders of caffeine. The Sufis roasted the coffee cherries and made it into a beverage, called coffee. They drank coffee to stay awake and alert for long periods of devotion, prayer, and concentration. Caffeine blocks the effect of adenosine, a hormone that instructs the body to rest and go to sleep, and keeps the consumer from falling asleep and alert. The message of a drink that keeps one’s body awake for extended periods of time travelled through several cities, and would soon redefine the lives of many. From the Sufi monasteries in Yemen, plants containing caffeine, that would be used to make coffee, spread to cities such as Mecca, Medina, and stronger and larger cities such as Cairo, Damascus, Baghdad and Constantinople. By the 16th century, coffee was all around the Ottoman Empire, Safavid Empire, and the entire Middle East.