North Americans love coffee: Canada has 40 Starbucks for every million residents. That beats the U.S., where there are around 36 locations per million people!

And Hispanics are the most coffee-lovin': 76 percent of adult Hispanic Americans say they drank coffee in the past 24 hours, while 64 percent of whites and 47 percent of blacks make that claim.

There are lots of good reasons to love drinking coffee. If you're a fast caffeine metabolizer (you don't get a headache, heart flutters, an upset tummy or anxiety from caffeinated coffee), it can help you reduce your risk of Type 2 diabetes, improve mental focus, enhance consolidation of long-term memory and fuel good gut bacteria (those guys rule your heath in so many ways).

So it's not a surprise that someone came up with the really bad idea that pure powdered caffeine could deliver even more of the brew's benefits. Wrong!

It's all risk and no reward.

In fact, the Food and Drug Administration has issued a consumer health advisory to avoid pure powered caffeine products. Why? Well, a single teaspoon equals 25 cups of coffee!

And depending on your age, weight and sensitivity, 1-2 teaspoons can trigger a rapid or dangerously erratic heartbeat, seizures, vomiting, diarrhea, stupor, disorientation - even death.

So for an energy boost, stick with a morning cup or three of Joe, or caffeinated water.

Fuel your day with seven to eight hours of sleep every night, and you'll have the concentration and clarity of mind to excel at whatever challenge you're facing. That's all reward, no risk.

© 2014 Michael Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet Oz, M.D.
Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.