As her alarm goes off at 6 a.m., junior Sara Hempleman gets out of bed feeling tired and groggy. Before leaving for school, she grabs a 12-ounce can of Mountain Dew to wake herself up. The caffeine keeps her energized for several hours, but once its effects wear off, she feels herself slipping back into the same fogginess she awoke with. When she gets home, she refuels with one or two more cans of soda, sometimes including a large drink from McDonald’s. Later that night, Hempleman drinks another soda to keep herself awake while she studies. By the end of the day, she has consumed between 160 and 250 milligrams of caffeine.

Hempleman isn’t alone — according to the Food and Drug Administration, the average American consumes nearly 150 milligrams of caffeine every day.

“If I don’t drink [soda] at least twice a day, something’s wrong,” Hempleman said. “When I don’t have it, I feel tired [and I get migraines]. This sounds so bad, but I actually feel like I can’t really function without it.”

Hempleman has been consuming caffeine regularly ever since she was 10. Now, she depends on caffeine daily.

According to dietitian Mary K. Wolarik, Hempleman’s inability to function without caffeine is a common effect of regular caffeine intake. Continual progression of the habit, however, leads to more serious long-term effects. These effects could include heart attacks and bone loss in women.

“Beverages that teens love are usually loaded with caffeine and other stimulants, along with too much sugar and too many calories.” Wolarik said. “Taking all of this into consideration … moderation is key.”

Junior Rachel Morgan also relies on caffeine to stay alert and focused throughout the day.

“When I first started drinking caffeine, it would be insane,” Morgan said. “I’d go crazy for a long time and then I’d crash. Now it just keeps me awake.”

Morgan said her reliance on caffeine has made Lent, a religious tradition where members of certain Christian denominations give up selective luxuries for 40 days, a seemingly impossible obstacle to overcome.

“I’ve thought about giving up Diet Coke [for Lent], but it’s never going to happen,” Morgan said. “Partially it’s my surroundings and partially it’s just my brain telling me I should have one, even though I probably shouldn’t. Talking about it makes me want to go home and drink a Diet Coke.”

Also incapable of abstaining from caffeine consumption, social studies teacher Dustin Stinnett said he drinks at least two cups of coffee a day. Although he has never tried to stop drinking coffee, Stinnett believes he would not be able to give it up for more than one day.

“One of the reasons I know I have a dependency is I need coffee to feel normal,” Stinnett said.

Although dependency on a seemingly-harmless substance like caffeine seems trivial, Wolarik  has encountered the effects of caffeine firsthand. When her son was 14 years old, he began having nystagmus episodes — meaning he would have sudden, rapid involuntary eye movements. The episodes were accompanied by dizziness and generally ended in him collapsing.

“These episodes were ultimately caused by his over-consumption of sugary, caffeinated drinks that all teens [drink],” Wolarik said.  “I eliminated all sugar and caffeine [from his diet]. Today, John is 17 and episode-free.”

Although she would like to cut caffeine from her diet, Hempleman deems it unlikely.

“I don’t think [my caffeine consumption] will lessen in the future,” Hempleman said. “I would like to see it go down, but I think I see it staying pretty constant.”