So technically caffeine is methyltheobromine? Nifty :D (And it does explain why they have similar, if not identical, effects.)
(And yes, Wikipedia does at least seem to confirm the chemical structure of caffeine as methyltheobromine, of a sort; caffeine article notes specifically that most plants that naturally contain caffeine also contain the related xanthine alkaloids theobromine (which not only is the stuff that makes chocolate Happy Stuff but is also a mild bronchodilator--you can give it to rats with respiratory problems, and I've found if I'm feeling particularly bronchial-cruddy some 90-100 percent cacao stuff does quite the trick to clear my chest out) and theophylline (which is typically used for asthma and is much stronger than either caffeine or theobromine).
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Date: 2007-12-23 12:21 am (UTC)(And yes, Wikipedia does at least seem to confirm the chemical structure of caffeine as methyltheobromine, of a sort; caffeine article notes specifically that most plants that naturally contain caffeine also contain the related xanthine alkaloids theobromine (which not only is the stuff that makes chocolate Happy Stuff but is also a mild bronchodilator--you can give it to rats with respiratory problems, and I've found if I'm feeling particularly bronchial-cruddy some 90-100 percent cacao stuff does quite the trick to clear my chest out) and theophylline (which is typically used for asthma and is much stronger than either caffeine or theobromine).