Some who choose not to drink coffee act like it is due to some moral virtue, while it often just comes down to preference. To elevate this preference, people sometimes like to mention that caffeine is a drug.

Big whoop. We know.

I’ll see you, and raise you one: caffeine is a psychotropic drug.

If you go with the classical definition of psychotropic as a substance that alters emotion, cognition, and behavior, caffeine certainly falls under that category — and it’s wonderful. 

According to this article in the National Library of Medicine, “Caffeine’s primary mechanism of action is on the adenosine receptors in the brain.” 

By binding to the adenosine receptors, caffeine blocks the chemical response that makes you feel tired. Otherwise, built-up adenosine would bind to the receptors and cause fatigue.

It also has been shown to improve your mood. 

In another article in the National Library of Medicine, results from a study on soldiers found that “doses of 200 to 250 mg of caffeine elevate mood, according to a 1987 study.”

“Caffeine has been found to significantly decrease reaction times in auditory and visual choice tasks when it was used at doses of as little as 32 mg and as great as 600 mg,” the same study found. 

The increased speed of discernment can clearly be felt on a subjective level, too.

Of course, caffeine is not a beneficial substance for all people, as with all drugs. It comes as no surprise that since caffeine raises blood pressure, those who struggle with high blood pressure should use caffeine within reason according to their medical situation.

For most people who enjoy and use caffeine to enhance performance in mental or physical tasks, however, it doesn’t make sense to virtue signal using the negative stigma that follows a word like “drug” to act like you are superior for making the decision not to drink coffee.