At this point, we have every possible way of getting our caffeine fix. Yes, there's coffee — but there are also pills, energy drinks for the coffee-averse, and even caffeinated candies and peanut butter. And if you contribute to this Indiegogo page, you can get your caffeine from a bracelet come July.
According to its Indiegogo page (where the product has raised upwards of $63,000), the Joule caffeine bracelet allows you to slip in a transdermal caffeine patch, permitting you to absorb the substance through your skin. Each bracelet comes with 30 patches, and you can buy in batches of 30 after that, the founders say.
Transdermal patches are already used for delivering medications through your skin, like nicotine in anti-smoking aids, motion sickness meds, and some pain relievers.
The pros? Joule's founders argue that you won't get energy crashes, jitters, or any other negative side effects of coffee since the patch is designed to deliver a steady stream of caffeine, without giving you bad breath and stained teeth.
The cons — recent studies have shown that coffee itself (not just its caffeine components) could have some health benefits. One recent study found that coffee may reduce liver damage, and others have suggested drinking it regularly has heart health benefits. Also, the one bad thing about caffeine is that depending on how sensitive you are to it, it can seriously disrupt your sleep, which the inventors fail to mention.
Joule does promise that the bracelet has about the same caffeine content as a cup of coffee, so it's not an insane amount. Still, is that better than sitting down with a hot cup of Joe or a perfect cappuccino? A few food editors definitely disagree.