--- title: Caffeine Health Risks: People Consume Too Much, Study Says description: A lot of caffeine is bad for your health, according to a new study, and many people are drinking too much of it canonical: https://time.com/3899601/too-much-caffeine-health/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-05-28T12:40:40.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:05:13.250Z article:section: Health og:title: Caffeine Health Risks: People Consume Too Much, Study Says og:description: A lot of caffeine is bad for your health, according to a new study, and many people are drinking too much of it og:url: https://time.com/3899601/too-much-caffeine-health/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2e40acd14f01cb12/6987eff10b72e317c26e2137/187326070-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=338&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 338 og:image:height: 190 og:image:alt: coffee-beans og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Caffeine Health Risks: People Consume Too Much, Study Says twitter:description: A lot of caffeine is bad for your health, according to a new study, and many people are drinking too much of it twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2e40acd14f01cb12/6987eff10b72e317c26e2137/187326070-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=338&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Drinking 4 Coffees a Day Is Bad for You, Study Says > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Health Matters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Health Matters is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The latest health news and expert advice on living well. Health Matters makes the fast-moving world of health more useful, surprising and human, from the latest science and medical breakthroughs to practical ideas for living better. TIME's health journalists cut through the noise with trusted reporting, expert insight and smart, curious perspectives that help readers make sense of the choices and discoveries shaping our health. 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Health Matters is TIME's daily health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free daily newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ## Video: Should I Drink Red Wine? [Watch (HLS stream): Should I Drink Red Wine?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/JLVLyuEq.m3u8) (1:35)  _Published 2015-03-12. Cheers to your health! All five of our experts give red wine a purple-stained smile._  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson May 28, 2015 12:40 PM UTC  Black Coffee Black Coffee Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson May 28, 2015 12:40 PM UTC A lot of caffeine is bad for your health, according to a new study, and many people are consuming too much of it. A new [report](http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/doc/4102.pdf) by the European Food Safety Authority says that more than 400 mg of caffeine a day, or [about four cups of coffee](http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/corporate/doc/efsaexplainscaffeine150527.pdf), is linked to heart problems, insomnia and panic attacks. This safe amount of caffeine is halved for pregnant women. Many countries recommend about this amount of caffeine intake, but the problem, according to BBC, is that people still have too much. An EFSA spokesperson [gave an example to BBC](http://www.bbc.com/news/health-32901134): “If you have a bar of dark chocolate at 11:00 and espresso with lunch, a tea at 16:00 and vodka-Red Bull in the evening – that’s a lot of caffeine over the day.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3899601/too-much-caffeine-health/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3899601/too-much-caffeine-health/"},"headline":"Drinking 4 Coffees a Day Is Bad for You, Study Says","datePublished":"2015-05-28T12:40:40.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T08:05:13.250Z","description":"Less than 400 mg of caffeine per day is safe","url":"https://time.com/3899601/too-much-caffeine-health/","keywords":["Food & Beverage","diet","Caffeine"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2e40acd14f01cb12/6987eff10b72e317c26e2137/187326070-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tessa Berenson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2e40acd14f01cb12/6987eff10b72e317c26e2137/187326070-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"coffee-beans","caption":"coffee-beans","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/food-beverage/","name":"Food & Beverage"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3899601/too-much-caffeine-health/","name":"Drinking 4 Coffees a Day Is Bad for You, Study Says"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Should I Drink Red Wine?","description":"Cheers to your health! 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