by Lydia Mason

Created on: February 11, 2009   Last Updated: February 12, 2009

Coffee breaks are an important and necessary institution in any working environment, but whilst you wait for your favourite cup of java to brew, let's consider the origins of this vital institution, and why it's so important to us.

There is evidence of coffee beans being consumed since around 1,000AD in Abyssinia, and evidence suggests that first cup of roasted beans was brewed in the 13th century. However, it was not popularly received and has throughout its history been banned by a theological court in Mecca, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, and there were even appeals to Pope Clement VIII to ban the drink throughout Europe. Despite this, coffee steadily gained popularity until in 1773 the Boston Tea Party made drinking coffee an apparent patriotic duty.

The claim to who invented the first coffee break at work is highly disputed, and many US businesses vie to claim the title, including the Bacolo Manufacturing Company, the Larkin Company and the Williamatic Linen Company; all claiming they instituted coffee breaks in the very late 18th or early 19th century.

In each case the story is a similar one: that the owner noticed that the employees were working extremely long shifts in these factories, and either to improve productivity, or in an extremely unprecedented case of humanitarian kindness, the owner provided a break where a snack and a drink were provided.

The term "coffee break" itself did not become part of popular culture and vocabulary, however, until the Pan-American Coffee Bureau ran an advertising campaign with the slogan "Give yourself a Coffee-Break - and Get What Coffee Gives to You".

The British tradition of "elevenses", a break at eleven for tea and cake, merged with this and over time a coffee break became a given standard within the workplace, and gives workers a chance to take a break, catch up on the gossip and restore their energy for the work ahead.

The rest, as they say is history, but why is a coffee break such an important part of our daily routine? It is impossible to remain productive on any task without taking some breaks, so the break alone is good for you. Also coffee contains caffeine which acts as a stimulant and so provides a boost to your energy levels when you return to your work. In fact recent research suggests that it's not the caffeine alone that gives the stimulant effect, but drinking even decaffeinated coffee causes a rise in cortisone and adrenaline, two stimulating hormones.

Therefore drinking coffee enables you to focus better at the tasks ahead. Psychological research has also shown that drinking coffee increases your reaction time, short term memory recall and there is even an argument that it boosts your IQ.

There is also a huge social element to the coffee break; it allows workers to catch up on office gossip, which may give them a greater understanding of the workings of the office.

A coffee break can also allow a time for any rivalries or grievances within the workplace to be aired, and hopefully resolved, and it gives an opportunity for people to be more aware of their colleagues and allows greater social functioning within the workplace. You may suddenly find out that your colleague who sits on the desk in the corner is under a lot of pressure, whilst another colleague is bored and has nothing to do, so it can allow imbalances to be addressed.

So next time your boss glares at you when you sit down with your cup of coffee, explain to them that you are following in a great tradition, which is not only improving your performance, focus, and IQ, but is also improving the social functioning and efficiencies of the office. If they disagree with you, suggest you sit down and discuss it over a cup of coffee!

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