This is what happens to your brain when you drink coffee

Caffeine is the world's most highly used drug.

100,000 metric tonnes of the stuff is consumed every year, in coffee, tea, soft drinks and chocolate.

Can you honestly say you know what it does to you, though?

You know it peps you up in the morning and that it's a diarrhetic, but can you honestly say you know what it's doing to your brain?

Let's go through it.

Caffeine is a stimulant for the central nervous system, blocking one of the body's sleep-inducing molecules - adenosine.

When the body breaks down a molecule called ATP for energy, it releases adenosine, which helps make you sleepy. The more ATP you break down throughout the day, the sleepier you get.

Caffeine blocks adenosine, essentially inhibiting the sleep impulse.

Caffeine also aids the flow of dopamine and can provide long term benefits against, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and some forms of cancers.

There is also evidence that caffeine helps in the burning of fat and can increase athletic performance, which is why it has historically had limits in competitive sport.

Watch the full video, below:

More: Drinking café mocha can improve your attention span