Dosage · Supplement
Caffeine: dosage and how to take it
80–200 mg; theanine 200 mg to smooth it.
- Overall grade
- Grade A
- Last revised
- 0
- graded outcomes
- 0
- references listed
Assembled by the app from other entries in this library. It adds no evidence of its own — follow the links to the entries it draws on.
The evidence in words
How much to take
1–3 mg/kg (roughly 80–200 mg) for focus or ~3–6 mg/kg pre-exercise. Hard cutoff by early afternoon — caffeine within ~8–10 hours of bed measurably degrades sleep even when you fall asleep fine.
Timing & separation
Take Caffeine apart from: Melatonin (Opposing circadian signals — the afternoon cutoff protects the melatonin window.) · Iron (Cuts non-heme iron absorption ~40% — separate by 2 hours.)
Why the dose is what it is
It blocks adenosine receptors, masking the 'sleep pressure' adenosine builds through the day, which sharpens alertness and lowers perceived exertion. Its ~5-hour half-life is why late doses wreck sleep.
Bottom line
A genuinely effective, cheap ergogenic and nootropic. Dose to purpose, respect the early-afternoon cutoff, and pair with theanine if it makes you jittery.
How it is used
As the entry records it, from the studies it summarises. Not a recommendation for you — doses that suit a trial population may not suit you.
- Focus
- 80–200 mg; theanine 200 mg to smooth it.
- Pre-exercise
- 3–6 mg/kg, ~45–60 min prior.
Goes with
- CaffeineFull Caffeine monographEvidence grade A
Related reading
Entries that share this one's tags or conditions.
- Caffeine for Alertness / reaction timeEvidence grade A — Acute, tolerance-limitedEvidence grade A
- Caffeine for Endurance performanceEvidence grade A — Well establishedEvidence grade A
- Caffeine for Sleep (afternoon dosing)Evidence grade A — Degrades sleep — the key costEvidence grade A
- Caffeine for Strength / powerEvidence grade B — Smaller effectEvidence grade B
Sources
This entry lists no references of its own — it is assembled from the entries it links to, whose sources are on their pages.
Last revised . A grade is this entry's reading of the evidence, not medical advice.