Do you need the smell of coffee or tea to help get you going in the morning? Does that first cup of coffee help “jumpstart” your brain? Are you then on to many more cups of coffee once you are at the office?

If this sounds familiar, you are not alone. Many Americans, feel the need to have coffee or some sort of caffeinated drink to help them get their day started.

The first step in breaking down the addiction to caffeine is breaking away from the psychological “need” of it…Easier said then done you are probably thinking right now.

My challenge for the next week, to all my caffeine addicted friends is to reach for a large glass of water first thing in the morning vs. your caffeinated drink. When you hydrate your cells, you will naturally feel uplifted and you will slowly change your brain to acknowledge this feeling vs. the caffeine “induced high”. Now, if a couple hours later, you still find yourself needing or wanting that cup of coffee, go ahead and have it. The key is breaking away from the psychological need when you first wake up.

I am sure you are slowly realizing, my husband is my guinea pig for many things nutrition and health related these days. He used to have a cup of coffee each morning when he first got up, now for the last month he drinks water and might have a cup of coffee at the office later on. He has changed that psychological need for coffee to water, which let’s be honest has so many more health benefits. One or two cups of tea or coffee throughout the day or not necessary bad for you, but when you start thinking of all the extra sugar and cream (saturated fats) that get added to these drinks, it is no wonder why we get these feelings of “highs/engery” from them. We need to be honest about these feelings, and realize not only is it the caffeine but the sugar and fat high and not a natural feeling of energy. So go ahead start my challenge for the next week and let me know how it goes.