Coffee is America’s favorite and most accepted delivery system of caffeine, the drug that gives people the energy they need to go through the slog of work or for high school students, well… high school. Overall, while it does have it’s negative effects on students, coffee being banned to students would be outrageous, as it’s benefits when used correctly are great.

What I mean by used correctly is responsibly drinking coffee in a manner that helps students wake up for their early morning classes, and using it effectively during study sessions. Academic pressures on students are heavy, with schools generally starting early in the morning, when it is common knowledge amongst teens and teachers that starting from 7:30 to 8:30 in the morning is not beneficial to students. If this country’s government is willing to put the pressure on us for grades on tests, with unrealistically high expectations, then there should be certain privileges, such as coffee, given to us that would help us meet the government standards.

Banning coffee might also see the side effect of having students search for more risky ways of staying up. In a sense, getting rid of it might be a gateway to having students try alternative methods of getting up, such as Adderall, a drug for patients with ADHD that helps them focus, and instead is being used by college and high school students to study for exams and tests. Pressure to help stay awake and do the tasks necessary for school would put students that care for their future on edge, pushing them to the limits.

Some could say that the drug is more dangerous than it’s worth, citing the American Academy of Pediatrics denouncement of coffee due to its effects on neurological and cardiovascular development, with anxiety, sleep deprivation and nervousness being listed symptoms. However, this is after the use of the drug consistently in an unhealthy manner, drinking several cups a day over long periods of time. It is not indicative of the drug being used responsibly, and should not be a consideration in why it should be banned. Many students use it effectively and properly, and to take the privilege of using it would be wrong. Instead, it should be used by students cautiously, and if the government is concerned about it, it should find ways to properly train students in planning out how to weigh the responsibility school puts on students.

Coffee is an essential privilege to students so that they can live in the school system. If it were to be banned here as it was in South Korea, it would open up a can of worms on why our school system is not what it properly should be.