Ingredient · Other
Caffeine
A stimulant that occurs naturally in coffee, tea, and cocoa, and is also added in purified anhydrous form. Well characterised and widely tolerated, but dose-dependent — the source on the label tells you less than the milligrams do.
also known as Anhydrous caffeine, 1,3,7-trimethylxanthine
There is no chemical difference between caffeine from a coffee extract and added anhydrous caffeine; the difference is precision of dose and what comes with it.
The practical issue with packaged products is stacking. A label may list green tea extract, guarana, and added caffeine separately, and only a stated total in milligrams tells you what you are actually getting.
Why it’s classified this way
Neutral because the concern is dose and stacking rather than the ingredient itself.
References
- EFSA scientific opinion on the safety of caffeine