How to kickstart your day without any caffeine

For many of us, it’s as automatic as brushing our teeth or reaching for the remote control during breakfast TV — the day doesn’t really begin without a latte or a short black. Aside from pacifying a bit of morning grumpiness, moderate amounts of coffee has also been found help combat type-2 diabetes, depression and even liver cancer. The downside? Caffeine dependence or over-consumption is linked to jitters, a lack of focus and a withdrawal process that could fell a bucking brumby.

So, what if there was another way — or several — to get body and mind moving without the jolt of caffeine? Here are the science-backed alternatives.

HAVE FIBRE AND CARBS FOR BREAKFAST

Don’t skip brekkie. And while you’re at it, opt for high carb and high fibre options over the sugary varieties. A study in the International Journal of Food Science and Nutrition found that carb- and fibre-rich meals were the most filling and helped sustain alertness all the way through to lunch. Try good old’ porridge with fresh blueberries or some grainy toast with eggs.

OPEN THE CURTAINS BEFORE YOU GO TO BED

This tip involves melatonin, a hormone secreted by the brain which helps you sleep. Your body generates more of the stuff when it’s dark and production diminishes with light. A biological night shift if you

will. Point is, melatonin makes you groggy. By letting light into your bedroom gradually in the morning while you sleep, you’ll lower melatonin production according to your circadian rhythm and wake feeling refreshed. If prying eyes from neighbours are a concern, you can achieve similar results from an illuminating alarm clock.

SLUG A GLASS OF WATER

Generally speaking, you lose about 200ml of water over an eight-hour sleep. Most of which is simply through exhalation. Turn up the temperatures to above 30C — AKA an Australian summer — and you generally begin to sweat too. Even at rest. Add the odd tinkle in the, ahem, wee small hours and you’ve got a recipe for enough dehydration to impair your alertness. Keep a glass of H²0 bedside, knock it back first thing and your brain will thank you for it.

MOVE IT

There’s no proof that exercise will help you become more of a “morning person”. What it will do is sharpen your brain at work. A recent study published in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness found that the fitter high school students were, the better marks they got in grades and standardised tests.

In other words, the treadmill may well be your key to the corner office. Better still, neuroscientists at the University of Cambridge found that running actually stimulates the brain to grow more grey matter. Doing your exercise when you first get up gives you the rush of endorphins that will help you be more productive in your job and set up good habits for the rest of the day.

FEAST ON FRUIT

A 2015 study by the University of Reading in the UK found that the flavonoids in concentrated amounts of orange juice lead to decreases in reaction time, and boosted verbal fluency and memory in adults. Encouraging enough to suggest that we should consider swapping cappuccinos for frappaccinos.

OJ can be very high in sugar, though, so go for no more than one glass every few days. The flavonoids in oranges come mostly from the pulp, so opt for freshly squeezed.

Don’t like OJ? Lemons and other citrus fruits are rich sources of flavonoids. Blueberries are also beneficial for cognition.

GET INTO THE GROOVE

You know how that double-shot macchiato helps you not bite the head off Nigel from accounts when he asks for the 12th time how to BCC someone on an email? Tunes can do a similar job.

A study from Canada has found that a person’s favourite music unleashes a rush of dopamine, the same brain chemical that comes with the enjoyment of great food and financial windfalls.

In other words, the aggro factor is turned way down as you turn up the tunes. A morning commute playlist could save a life.

WATCH SOME CAT VIDEOS

Next time you just can’t face the weekly sales team conference call without a mocha, why not log onto YouTube for the latest supercut of cats behaving badly. We mean before, not during, your meeting. Believe it or not, scientists at the University Of NSW not only decided that this was a totally valid area of study, they also concluded that people who watched a funny video clip not only felt more cheerful but spent twice as long on a tedious task and approached it with a greater attention to detail.

HAVE A COLD SHOWER

If you really want to hit top gear at dawn, twist that shower dial to cold.

According to website Medical Daily, “The deep breathing in response to our body’s shock helps us keep warm, as it increases our overall oxygen intake.

Thus, our heart rate will also increase, releasing a rush of blood through our entire body. This gives us a natural dose of energy for the day.”

Originally published as How to kickstart your day without any caffeine