How Much Caffeine is Considered Safe & Does Decaffeinated Coffee Contain Zero Caffeine?

According to the American Medical Association (AMA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), moderate intake of caffeine is thought to be safe. Given below are the values of what is considered be low, moderate and high intake of caffeine:

• 130 mg-300 mg of caffeine per day is considered a low to moderate intake.
• 200 mg-300 mg of caffeine per day is considered to be moderate intake.
• More than 400 mg of caffeine per day is considered to be high intake.
• More than 6,000 mg of caffeine per day comes under heavy consumption.

A common mistake made by people is assuming that decaffeinated means zero caffeine in the beverage or food item. There is a process of decaffeinating coffee where the cocoa beans are soaked in the water so that the caffeine present in them gets dissolved. The caffeine is then extracted with activated carbon or a solvent and the beans are re-soaked again in the decaffeinated water so that the flavor compounds are reabsorbed which were lost in the initial extracting process.

According to research, decaf coffee contains roughly 8 mg to 14 mg of caffeine. Even the decaffeinated espresso shots were found to contain about 2 mg-15 mg of caffeine per shot. So NO, Decaffeinated Coffee is not without caffeine and does contain caffeine. In fact, depending on the amount of caffeine consumed in a day, a person can end up with a higher intake of caffeine from decaffeinated drinks than from a single cup of coffee.

There is no sure shot way to know the exact amount of caffeine intake in a day. So it is always better to restrict the total amount caffeinated as well as decaffeinated products consumed in a day.

Also Read:

• What is Caffeine & Is There Anything Such as too Much Caffeine?
• Is Caffeine Addictive|Does Caffeine Cause Weight Loss or Bone Loss|Is Caffeine Safe for Women, Children