Caffeine tablets and powder can pose serious problems for students

This article is part of a Daily Tar Heel series exploring drug and alcohol use at UNC.

The first time Chris took caffeine pills, he was on a road trip.

Chris, who asked that his last name not be included in this story for privacy reasons, is from Iowa and makes the 17-hour drive to and from Chapel Hill about four times a year.

He said during one of these trips, he became incredibly tired and decided to try caffeine pills.

“I’m tired, there is a snowstorm, this could end poorly so I’ll pick up some caffeine pills,” Chris said he thought at the time.

For him, the caffeine tablets are a safety catch.

“I keep it in my car because I don’t want to crash my car,” he said.

When he takes caffeine tablets, he said he always takes a safe dosage, but he knows the danger for an overdose exists.

It’s this danger for an overdose that have some medical experts concerned about caffeine tablets and, especially, pure caffeine powder.

In May 2014, Logan Stiner, an Ohio high school student, died of an overdose after he took pure caffeine powder.

In June 2014, James Wade Sweatt of Georgia died after being in a coma caused by his use of pure caffeine powder.

After these deaths, both New York and Illinois proposed bills to outlaw or restrict pure caffeine powder.

While a bill to prohibit the sale of powdered alcohol has been introduced to the N.C. House of Representatives, the state has no plans to take action on caffeine powder yet.

“I do think that access for young people to those kinds of things is something we would want to regulate,” said Rep. Verla Insko, D-Orange.

Caffeine can make users more awake and alert. But too much caffeine can cause serious health consequences, including headaches, dizziness or increased blood pressure.

An overdose of caffeine can cause vomiting, fainting and organ failure.

Caffeine tablets usually have 200 milligrams of caffeine per tablet — about half the amount of caffeine in a large Starbucks coffee — and are available at drug stores and online.

For $2.19, the Pit Stop sells boxes of 16 caffeine tablets with 200 milligrams of caffeine each, said John Gorsuch, the director of UNC Student Stores. The Pit Stop has sold 259 boxes since July 2014.

Caffeine powder is much more powerful than the tablets. One teaspoon of pure caffeine powder is equivalent to 25 cups of coffee, with more than 4,000 milligrams of caffeine.

The recommended daily caffeine dosage for adults with no medical problems is 300 to 400 milligrams, according to a study by the European Food Safety Authority.

“It’s far too dangerous from a simple mistake, a teaspoon,” said Henry Spiller, director of Central Ohio Poison Center. “It’s far too easy to have really significant consequences from lack of understanding.”

A safe dose of caffeine powder is small enough — with estimates hovering around one thirty-second of a teaspoon — that it requires special measuring equipment.

“It’s a dosage difference that they are not aware of,” he said. “Everyone has experienced caffeine. It’s a pretty safe, widely used substance. They see the powder caffeine, and they think it is safe.”

Spiller said caffeine powder is often used for studying, but also for partying and working out — which can be dangerous.

He said the misunderstanding about the potency of pure caffeine powder is similar to trying to buy fireworks and being given dynamite.

“That’s the problem. We have seen fatalities, kidney failures, really significant injuries,” Spiller said. “All of these people weren’t aware of what they were dealing with.”

Spiller is concerned that caffeine powder is still being sold, despite deaths like Stiner’s.

“That’s another death waiting to happen,” Spiller said.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration classifies caffeine as both food and drugs, but the department has yet to figure out how best to classify and regulate caffeine’s more specific variations, including powders and tablets.

“We are working right now on our next steps,” said Michael Landa, director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition in a December blog post. “In the meantime, I cannot say strongly enough how important it is to avoid using powdered pure caffeine.”

Following deaths caused by caffeine powder overdoses, the FDA released a statement in December warning consumers about pure caffeine powder.

“The FDA is warning about powdered pure caffeine being marketed directly to consumers, and recommends avoiding these products,” the release stated.

“In particular, FDA is concerned about powdered pure caffeine sold in bulk bags over the internet.”

Powdered caffeine bags are easily found on the internet and are relatively cheap compared to other supplements or drugs.

Online, 50 grams of powdered caffeine — 250 caffeine tablets — is available for $2.75.

Currently, there are no restrictions on who can buy caffeine powder or how much someone can buy.

New York state Sen. Kemp Hannon introduced a bill that would ban the sale of pure caffeine powder in the entire state of New York.

“People think it’s very safe because it’s just called caffeine,” said Alison Kane, counsel to Hannon.

She said Hannon introduced the bill because if the FDA is able to ban the sale of pure caffeine powder, it could take years.

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