Practices
Less caffeine
What the traditions say
This is the old knowledge, not health advice. Check everything yourself before you use it.
The guides are AI characters sharing the old knowledge of their traditions.
What Elijah says
Jamaica, West Africa, Amazon · Bush Doctor · Jungle Medicine
“"Dandelion" = Senna occidentalis (coffee senna), not European dandelion (Taraxacum). Linnaeus described it from Jamaican specimens. Its seeds have killed children. European dandelion facts do not apply.”
“Plants: guayusa and guarana are both caffeine plants, guayusa with theobromine. "Clean energy without the crash" is marketing talk, not the forest's words. Guayusa is a brewed leaf tea. Guarana also turns up in energy drinks, where the reported seizures happened. Muira puama, suma and clavo huasca are the forest's tonics.”
What Dr. Miyagi says
Okinawa, Japan · Okinawa Kitchen
“Barley tea (mugicha). Roasted barley, no tea leaf, so no caffeine (recipe and tea-guide sources). Barley contains gluten: not for coeliac disease. Cold in summer, warm in winter. Good daily water with flavour.”
“Sleep. Ekiken: dinner smaller than breakfast, stop reading and talking by about 11 pm. Caffeine in the morning, barley tea in the evening, a warm bath, not too hot.”
What Jeanny says
The Peel, Netherlands, and Spain · The Spanish Kitchen · Grandma's Remedies
“Café: a cup of strong coffee with the paracetamol, the abuelas' trick. Stopping a daily coffee habit gives a withdrawal headache, and frequent painkillers with caffeine feed a medication-overuse headache. Paracetamol only at the package dose.”
“Een sterke kop koffie. A strong cup of coffee next to the paracetamol or ibuprofen from the kast, at the package dose. Daily caffeine then stopping gives a withdrawal headache, and painkillers plus coffee several days a week feeds medication-overuse headache, a weekday huisarts call.”
What Djanija says
Serbia, the Balkans · The Story of Your Road
“No coffee needed: anyone can skip the cup and still get the story, and a child always does.”
“Djanija drinks her coffee strong and sweet and turns the cup over afterwards, out of habit. Baba did the same. For Baba the turned cup was a reason for the women to sit a little longer and talk. The grounds made shapes, and the shapes became a story about whoever held the cup.”

What Master Liang says
Sichuan, China · Food as Medicine
“One line: long-steeped and strong teas carry the most caffeine.”

What Ang says
Tibet, now Dharamsala · Growing Old
“No coffee or strong tea from early afternoon, no alcohol as a sleeping aid (it makes sleep lighter and more broken later in the night).”
“One fixed weekly appointment: a coffee, a walk with someone, a choir, a card game, a place of worship, a community centre.”

What Farzana says
Isfahan, Iran · The Persian Kitchen
“Tea and the other drinks. Coffee is sard on one list and argued about on others. Herbal teas from the shelf belong to the attari skill set and its safety rules.”
“Where the lists disagree. The Proportional Plate author, who is not a medical professional, says the classifications are learned intuitively and are not systematic. Her readers argued over fish and coffee. Rose water sits on the garm side of one list and elsewhere on the other. Farzana turns this into warmth: "Every grandmother's list differs a little. Mine put rose water with the warm things, my neighbour's with the cool. We still drank tea together."”

What Marty says
Netherlands · Biohacker
“Coffee enemas: Stimulate bile flow and glutathione production via palmitic acid in coffee activating the liver's detox pathways (via the hepatic portal vein). Gerson therapy protocol. Use organic, mold-free coffee. Body temperature water. Retain 12-15 minutes. 1-3x/week during active detox. Evidence: weak-moderate (mostly Gerson therapy observational data). Controversial in mainstream medicine. Practically: many people report significant benefit. Risk of electrolyte imbalance if overdone, bowel perforation if done improperly (rare).”
“After 1 week (Tier 1): No caffeine after noon, dim all lights after sunset, blue-blocking glasses if you must use screens”

