Synopsis of the App
Described as the "world's largest study on caffeine and sleep," UP Coffee is touted as the simplest way to track and understand how caffeine affects your sleep.
Platform and Price
Free: Apple
RD Score
3 out of 5
Pros
Delightful design that's uplifting, easy-to-use and encourages daily entries.
Factors in gender, weight, caffeine sensitivity to determine when your caffeine buzz will wear off.
Track caffeine intake through the course of the day and over time.
Caffeine level graphic shows where you fall from "wired" to "ready for sleep" based on your caffeine intake
Gauge shows where you are throughout the day from calm to edgy and predicts sleep for the night from good to awful based on your current caffeine intake.
Good selection of caffeine-containing food and drink from different chocolates to teas, coffee and energy drinks. Also displays the amount of caffeine in milligrams for each one.
Issues a warning when entering large doses of caffeine – "this amount of caffeine may make you jittery."
Compares and contrasts sleep patterns with caffeine intake to reveal relationships between caffeine intake and time of consumption, bedtime, sleep duration and if synced to Jawbone nighttime sleep disturbances.
Reports compare caffeine consumption in milligrams/day to average sleep.
App recommends behavior changes after analyzing 10+ days of caffeine intake.
Reveal your "Caffeine Persona" after tracking intake for 7 days or more.
Offers caffeine tips and information on getting an optimum buzz without overdoing it.
Compatible with the Jawbone UP band but not required.
Cons
The app is driven by self-report data which limits the validity of any study data.
Assumes a cause and effect relationship in a vacuum. Doesn't account for other factors that can impact sleep such as the sleep environment, hormones and other interferences.
No references listed to support the information provided.
Bottom Line UP Coffee helps you see just how buzzed you are. The effects of caffeine on sleep may be obvious to many but UP Coffee may help some people become more awareness of the amount of caffeine they take in a day. Though a useful tool, this app probably won't be used long term. Most people will learn from it and move on.
Marisa Moore, MBA, RDN, LD, is based in Atlanta and specializes in culinary nutrition, communications and consulting. She blogs at marisamoore.com. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
