They are fairly easy to spot: eyes blank and droopy, mouth slack and gait shuffled and their only source of energy is the caffeine they consume. It's the sleep deprived, caffeine dependent students of the University of Washington.

For many college students at the UW, caffeine is the driving fuel to get them through the day. Some get their fix through coffee, hitting up one of the dozens of coffee shops within walking distance of campus. Others however, don't like coffee no matter how many pumps of vanilla are in their cup and turn to getting their daily dose of caffeine elsewhere.

Junior Rachel Lusby, like others, prefers black, green or chai tea for a pick-me-up.

"I never developed the taste for coffee," she said. "[Tea] is a nice jolt in the morning when I have to commute 45 minutes to school."

Teas often do contain caffeine, but some students drink it primarily for taste.

For junior Chelsea Randall, drinking tea — British style in particular — is a family tradition.

"I'm about 75 percent British," she said. "I grew up drinking this and it's like a comfort food for me. Some people have mashed potatoes and gravy; I have tea."

Randall prefers Tetley, a brand of tea only available in Europe and Canada. One cup contains about 34 milligrams of caffeine.

Even though the taste of tea is satisfying, Randall does admit that she gets caffeine withdrawals if she doesn't have a cup of tea.

"I can only go a couple of days without it," she said. "If I don't drink it, I get massive headaches."

Queen Mary's Tearoom on 55th Avenue caters to tea lovers like Randall and Lusby, providing a true British teatime experience complete with crumpets and scones.

"I think tea has absolutely grown," owner Mary Greengo said. "I've found that more and more people are drinking tea. Coffee is a really hard beverage on your system while tea is not. It gives you a nice gentle boost."

The shop also sells teas from all around the world, including mate, a newly popular tea drink from South America.

"Mate is amazing stuff," Greengo said. "They call it a liquid vegetable. It's really wonderful for you. It also makes you wide awake and alert and is great for studying. I swear I would have done better on the SATs if I had it."

Energy drinks are another common caffeine alternative to coffee. However, unlike tea, most energy drinks contain twice the caffeine and sugar than a regular cup of joe.

For many college students, heavy study loads as well as lack of sleep make energy drinks very appealing.

"My freshman year I'd get like five or six hours of sleep," sophomore Dan Garland said. "Energy drinks became pretty much a necessity."

Last year, Garland's fraternity, Phi Kappa Tau, was sponsored by a new energy drink called Howling Monkey. As a result, he drank four to five energy drinks a day.

"They were just around our house," Gordon said. "It probably wasn't healthy."

Campus eateries and convenience stores also carry energy drinks, making it convenient for anyone to get a quick lift.

Is all this caffeine unhealthy? Dr. Charles Chavkin, a UW pharmacology professor, listed a few side effects.

"Caffeine does have bad side effects on some people's health," he said. "Nervousness, anxiety, insomnia are the common adverse effects."

He also mentioned negative effects on the stomach, digestive and cardiovascular systems as well.

Many people claim that they are "addicted" to caffeine, but Chavkin thinks this statement is a little too strong.

"Caffeine has many qualities in common with addictive drugs, but it is not usually addictive, and most people who consume caffeine are not caffeine-addicts," he said.

He went on to explain that sudden cessation of consumption causes a rebound depression and headache, but most don't lose control of their consumption. For some rare people they may develop a true drug addiction.

Caffeine is not all bad. To reach the effects Chavkin described, more than 500 or 600 milligrams, or four to seven cups of drip coffee, would have to be consumed.

In moderate doses, coffee is simply a stimulant and mild euphoriant, increasing alertness and boosting moods. For students, it's a godsend.

"It's just like adding more hours in your day," Garland said.

[Reach reporter Erika Cederlind at features@thedaily.washington.edu.]