At 15:43 -0800 25/1/03, MARION R MORRIS wrote:

>I'm 61 yrs. old & have RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS (RA), insulin resistance,
>fatigue, & general malaise. I've been on this diet for17 days with no
>cheating & no relief. It's been very rough - I've never liked to cook &
>my energy level is way down by dinner time & often all day. And giving up
>coffee for green tea is hell. Still I take walks & do mild exercise for
>years.

I'm a recovering caffeine addict. All my anecdotes relate equally to
caffeine and green tea.

One of the "symptoms" I experienced while consuming caffeine was an
overwhelming lethargy. Except for the 30 minutes or so following a
"hit", I felt so weary I could hardly function.

I used to stop drinking caffeine mid-afternoon. Otherwise it interfered
with my sleeping pattern. But by about 6 pm I used to get very
depressed. This in turn triggered cravings for other drugs... alcohol
in my case, perhaps nicotine in yours.

Once I finally kicked the caffeine, I found I had a whole lot more
energy. Didn't have problems getting out of bed in the morning.
Sleeping much better. Much more stable mood, and overall much happier.

I guess what I'm saying is that caffeine *might* be having a much
greater impact on your health than you imagine. It might be worth
getting off it (and the nicotine!) to see if it helps.

Beware the caffeine withdrawal headaches though. Whenever I give up
(voice of experience -- I've given up half a dozen times now ;) about
36 hours after my last hit I get the most shocking headaches -- when I
try to stand up I nearly pass out from the pain. These mostly pass
after 48 hours. So time your last cuppa so that this bad spot falls
when there's someone around to support you. And when you don't need to
be working!

 ...Richard.