People guzzle coffee as if it's just another beverage, but the ostensibly safe comfort drink is laced with a "psychoactive drug": caffeine. In fact, stressed-out people who drink five cups or more a day are vulnerable to hallucinations, says researcher Simon Crow of Australia's La Trobe University. Crow's team found, for instance, that highly caffeinated people were three times more likely than a control group to erroneously hear Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" in white noise. They're also "more likely to notice things that aren't there, see things that aren't there." Will such findings scare people away from java... or make them drink more?
Bring on the buzz: "Hours of hallucinogenic fun" sounds like a "bonus side effect" to me, says Margaret Hartmann at Jezebel. And here I thought coffee "couldn't get any better!" Still, the study involved only 92 subjects — a very small sample — and used a questionable methodology, so maybe the real lesson is that "if you're hopped up on Starbucks, just ignore any scientists trying to screw with you."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.