Caffeine at work
Discussion
First posting in the lounge, not sure if this is the right section so sorry if not..
I was pondering today about the use of caffeine, which as we all know is a stimulant drug. It is perfectly legal, it is part of most people's daily lives and is almost habitually taken. Nice cup of tea, can of coke with lunch, coffee is a huge industry and energy drinks are stacked with the stuff.
Now I don't drink a lot of coffee at all, never drink tea or coke and find that Red Bull tastes like petrol. And I have compared the two. So maybe caffeine affects me more than others because I haven't built up a tolerance.
I work in a 'safety critical' role, driving Thomas and Henry, and as such have a very strict alcohol and drugs policy which amounts to less then half the drink drive limits and zero tolerance on drugs, including many off the shelf medicines. I cannot use a mobile at work, read a paper listen to a radio or anything like that, and rightly so.
It is however widely accepted that it is absolutely fine to drink as much coffee as you like, whenever you like, including when driving. Apart from the obvious(?) dangers of spilling hot liquid on your nuts and the ensuing distraction that would undoubtedly cause (and I have seen this happen, and I did laugh ever so much!) there is also the fact that somebody is operating machinery, being responsible for potentially hundreds of lives whilst technically being under the influence of a stimulant drug. This does of course apply in many other industries, and there are loads with similar or more restrictive D and A policies than mine.
Now I'm not saying that a cup of coffee is equivalent to a bomb of speed, but the effects really are rather similar, especially after a few cups. A lot of cheap speed will possibly be predominately caffeine powder, so I hear. I would get sacked and prosecuted if I went into work with even a tiny little trace of amphetamines in my system, but I can drink 15 espressos in front of my manager and drive 500 people to London whilst twitching, sweating and having the attention span of a flea perfectly legally.
What are other peoples thoughts on this matter?
And just for the record, I am not high on coffee, petrol or any other tasty liquid before you start!
I was pondering today about the use of caffeine, which as we all know is a stimulant drug. It is perfectly legal, it is part of most people's daily lives and is almost habitually taken. Nice cup of tea, can of coke with lunch, coffee is a huge industry and energy drinks are stacked with the stuff.
Now I don't drink a lot of coffee at all, never drink tea or coke and find that Red Bull tastes like petrol. And I have compared the two. So maybe caffeine affects me more than others because I haven't built up a tolerance.
I work in a 'safety critical' role, driving Thomas and Henry, and as such have a very strict alcohol and drugs policy which amounts to less then half the drink drive limits and zero tolerance on drugs, including many off the shelf medicines. I cannot use a mobile at work, read a paper listen to a radio or anything like that, and rightly so.
It is however widely accepted that it is absolutely fine to drink as much coffee as you like, whenever you like, including when driving. Apart from the obvious(?) dangers of spilling hot liquid on your nuts and the ensuing distraction that would undoubtedly cause (and I have seen this happen, and I did laugh ever so much!) there is also the fact that somebody is operating machinery, being responsible for potentially hundreds of lives whilst technically being under the influence of a stimulant drug. This does of course apply in many other industries, and there are loads with similar or more restrictive D and A policies than mine.
Now I'm not saying that a cup of coffee is equivalent to a bomb of speed, but the effects really are rather similar, especially after a few cups. A lot of cheap speed will possibly be predominately caffeine powder, so I hear. I would get sacked and prosecuted if I went into work with even a tiny little trace of amphetamines in my system, but I can drink 15 espressos in front of my manager and drive 500 people to London whilst twitching, sweating and having the attention span of a flea perfectly legally.
What are other peoples thoughts on this matter?
And just for the record, I am not high on coffee, petrol or any other tasty liquid before you start!
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