Epilepsy and Caffeine

Intake

Since caffeine is a drug, it has the potential for tolerance, dependency and withdrawal. For instance, if you regularly consume caffeine, you will eventually need to drink more of it to feel its effects. You may also come to require a certain amount of caffeine in your body, without which you may experience withdrawal symptoms such as headache and fatigue. In addition, people with low body weight are generally more sensitive to the effects of caffeine than heavier people. As such, Teens Health suggests a limit of 100mg of caffeine per day for teenagers as opposed to 200 or 300mg per day for adults. According to "Neurology Reviews," excessive caffeine intake is associated with higher rates of seizures as well as a lower threshold for seizures

Epileptic Medication

Anti-convulsive medications such as oxcarbazepine, topiramate, valproate and carbamazepine are common medications prescribed to treat seizures. One of the side effects of anti-convulsant medications is tremors. A drug-induced tremor results in involuntary shaking. Tremors can also be caused by caffeine. However, drug-induced tremors are worsened by caffeine use, according to Drugs.com. Since the symptoms of tremors resemble those of seizures, tremors may be misidentified as seizures. This is potentially dangerous since medical decisions such as type of medication are based on the frequency of seizures. As such, an effective medication could be mistakenly stopped due to tremors exacerbated by caffeine.