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Gustav III of Sweden's coffee experiment, also known as the "Gustavian coffee experiment," was a scientific and social experiment conducted by the Swedish king Gustav III in the late 18th century. The experiment aimed to determine the effects of coffee on the human body.
At the time, coffee was a popular beverage in Sweden, but there were concerns about its potential health risks. Some people believed that excessive coffee consumption could lead to health problems, including infertility, and that it had a negative impact on society.
To address these concerns, Gustav III devised an elaborate experiment. He recruited two identical twins who had been convicted of the same capital crime and sentenced to death. The twins were chosen to eliminate genetic variations that could influence the results.
Their sentences were commuted to life imprisonment on the condition that one of the twins drink three pots of coffee, and the other drink the same amount of tea, every day for the rest of their lives. The experiment was conducted in secret, and only a small group of trusted physicians were aware of its details.
Over time, the twin who consumed coffee began experiencing health issues, including nervousness, digestive problems, and insomnia. In contrast, the twin who drank tea remained relatively unaffected. Gustav III interpreted these results as evidence that coffee was indeed harmful to health.
The tea drinking twin died first at the age of 83, long after the death of Gustav III, who was assassinated in 1792. The age of the coffee-drinking twin at his death is unknown, as both doctors assigned by the king to monitor this study died before him.
It is worth noting that the experimental design and execution of Gustav III's coffee experiment did not meet modern scientific standards. The sample size was extremely small, and there were limitations in controlling other factors that could influence the outcomes. Moreover, the experiment was not peer-reviewed or replicated, and its results were based on anecdotal evidence.
Nonetheless, Gustav III used the experiment's findings to justify imposing restrictions on coffee consumption in Sweden. In 1794, he issued a royal edict that regulated and limited the availability and consumption of coffee within the country.
Despite the experiment's shortcomings, it remains an intriguing historical case that reflects the attitudes and beliefs towards coffee and its potential effects during the late 18th century.
