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Caffeine is said to produce headaches, which is somewhat accurate. Caffeine withdrawal symptoms might result in headaches. The more people drink it daily, the more addicted they become, so having a headache in the morning while addicted to caffeine is likely to occur, but this is more likely to happen to adults and older people because the body changes as you age and reacts differently to different foods. According to an article I read, "The blood vessels in the brain dilate, or swell, in certain types of headaches." Pain is caused by their expansion into the surrounding tissues. Some headache discomfort can be reduced or even reversed by consuming coffee, which narrows the arteries. Ironically, headaches might result from abruptly cutting back on daily caffeine intake. It sets off a chain of actions that result in dilated blood vessels and, ultimately, headache discomfort. Those who frequently consume caffeine can reverse their headaches by increasing their intake; however, this can lead to addiction, and the more you consume, the more difficult it will be to quit or the more severe the withdrawal symptoms will be.

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by Novice (840 points)
selected ago by
 
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This claim is slightly misleading as caffeine doesn't necessarily contribute to headaches on its own. Caffeine is more likely to influence headaches when it comes to withdrawals. Similar to drugs or alcohol, caffeine can become an addiction. Caffeine consumption is tracked via milligrams. Overtime the milligrams of caffeine must be increased to reach the same energizing  factor as the original dosage of caffeine. As time goes on caffeine becomes a necessity for many. A side effect of not consuming the usual dosage of caffeine is in fact a headache. According to "Baptist Health" The reasoning for caffeine related headaches are "Caffeine causes blood vessels in the brain to constrict, slowing blood flow. Experts believe that if you stop consuming it, your blood vessels expand, blood flow accelerates, and the added pressure gives you a caffeine withdrawal headache." This shows that the headaches are more closely related to having NO caffeine. Than caffeine being the cause of the headache.  https://www.baptisthealth.com/blog/health-and-wellness/how-to-manage-caffeine-withdrawal#:~:text=Caffeine%20causes%20blood%20vessels%20in,you%20a%20caffeine%20withdrawal%20headache.

by Novice (660 points)
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Well researched comment! I checked out the original source and Baptist Health as well. Both agree that headaches are caused by coffee. Baptist health seems to say that headaches are closely related to withdrawal from caffeine, and the original source states that headaches are complicated. If Baptist health is credible (and it appears to be so) I agree with this response!
by Genius (47.3k points)
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So you'd rate the claim as misleading/exaggerated? Always specifically state your rating in the fact-check and select a rating. Thanks!
ago by Novice (990 points)
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I agree heavily with this fact check and would like to add that caffeine is a common ingredient in migraine medication, which adds to your evidence that caffeine only causes headaches when having caffeine withdrawals. An article on Webmd says, "Caffeine can sometimes help a headache go away in the short term, but it can also cause headaches Many things play a role in this, including how much caffeine you consume and your own tolerance level". Overall I think this fact check gets the point across that the claim is misleading.

https://www.webmd.com/migraines-headaches/triggers-caffeine
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by Novice (620 points)

Your main claim is the consistent consumption of caffeine leads to addiction which leads to headaches in the morning when you haven't consumed caffeine yet. The source you use is UCLA Health which is a legitimate source, and for this article specifically uses two internal medicine professors to explain the science of why these headaches occur. To double check the information, I used an article from the National Library of Medicine, an official website of they government. In the article they say "Long-term consumption of caffeine in migraine patients triggers a cascade of physiological processes that can result in three different clinical situations: worsening of the original headache, headaches associated with caffeine withdrawal (e.g., weekend migraine attacks) and headaches caused by overuse of painkillers containing caffeine. Caffeine can both relieve and trigger migraine attacks. Habitual caffeine consumption is associated with migraine and the development of chronic daily headaches." With the source being a legitimate source, the information being proven to be true by another source, it's easy to say that this is not misinformation and is true. 

True
by Novice (940 points)
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You did a really good job with this fact check and I completely agree with your claim. I have found some more sources to support this claim as well as some personal perspectives. I love coffee, I was a barista for 2 years however it does give me a headache, stomachache and shakes sometimes. However, I have found that this only happens to me on an empty stomach. The NLM states "Caffeine, through various and not yet fully investigated mechanisms, affects headaches" so clearly, caffeine does not only bring negative affects on an empty stomach, that is just my personal experience. The original article also discusses how the lack of caffeine may also cause negative symptoms. It is clear that caffeine is good in moderation.
https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/does-caffeine-treat-or-trigger-headaches
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10385675/
by Novice (700 points)
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I enjoyed reading your response, and we both had similar conclusions regarding the article response to be true.  I found it insightful that you included your own personal experience, because I think it adds a different perspective to this claim. Overall I found caffeine withdrawals to be the source of headaches rather than the caffeine itself as did you.
ago by Novice (780 points)
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I really appreciate the way you researched this claim. I think you did a great job highlighting the important parts and putting aside the misleading key words that get caught up in some claims. Your source is very credible, as well, and I like how you went straight to the source to fact check the claim. I also think it's super important that you included the direct quote to help prove your claim.

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