Does Caffeine Enhance Athletic Performance?

Abstract

Aim: A plethora of studies have been conducted to examine the effect of caffeine on athletic performance, with conflicting results. The purpose of the study is to investigate the effects of caffeine on muscle activity, physical training, competitive sports events and short-term physical activity.


Methods: For the purpose of the research, a literature review was conducted to determine the optimal dosage of caffeine for athletes, and collected scientific evidence about the caffeine’s effect on athletic endurance. The inclusion criteria contain original articles with primary data collection, both quantitative and qualitative published research studies, and studies with athletic subjects. The exclusion criteria comprises review articles without outcome data, incorrect study type, studies with < 10 subjects, and studies with physical inactive subjects.


Results: An issue for dietitians and other sports medicine personnel is that all recommend that exercising athletes should avoid the use of caffeine because it is a diuretic, and that it may exacerbate dehydration and hyperthermia. Evidence indicates that consuming a moderate level of caffeine results in a mild increase of urine production. There is no evidence suggesting that moderate caffeine intake (<456 mg) induces chronic dehydration or negatively affects exercise performance. In addition, pre-exercise feeding may significantly affect plasma caffeine concentrations and the potential for caffeine to improve performance. On the other hand, recent studies suggest that caffeine might indeed have ergogenic potential in endurance events. Also, reports concerning caffeine’s effect on V̇O2 max and exercise performance during incremental exercise are not in agreement. However, few caffeine studies have been published to include cognitive and physiologic considerations for the athlete. Furthermore, the effects of different doses of caffeine play important role on endurance. In addition, exercise time to exhaustion seems to be different between users and nonusers with the ergogenic effect being greater and lasting longer in nonusers.


Conclusion: Caffeine consumption may enhance athletic endurance, based on strong evidence, but further research needs to be conducted. High caffeine doses than the optimal, 3-6 mg/kg, before exercise does not confer any additional improvement in athletic performance. Additional, higher caffeine doses may cause side effects in athletes.

References
[1] L. E. Armstrong, D. J. Casa, C. M. Maresh, and M. S. Ganio, “Caffeine, fluid-electrolyte balance, temperature regulation, and exercise-heat tolerance,” Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews, vol. 35, no. 3, pp. 135–140, 2007.

[2] J. J. Barone and H. R. Roberts, “Caffeine consumption,” Food and Chemical Toxicology, vol. 34, no. 1, pp. 119–129, 1996.

[3] D. S. Battram, T. E. Graham, E. A. Richter, and F. Dela, “The effect of caffeine on glucose kinetics in humans-influence of adrenaline,” The Journal of Physiology, vol. 569, no. 1, pp. 347–355, 2005.

[4] D. G. Bell and T. M. McLellan, “Exercise endurance 1, 3, and 6 h after caffeine ingestion in caffeine users and nonusers,” Journal of Applied Physiology, vol. 93, no. 4, pp. 1227–1234, 2002.

[5] B. Berglund and P. Hemmingsson, “Effects of caffeine ingestion on exercise performance at low and high altitudes in cross-country skiers,” International Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 234–236, 1982.

[6] D. Bracco, J.-M. Ferrarra, M. J. Arnaud, E. Jequier, and Y. Schutz, “Effects of caffeine on energy metabolism, heart rate, and methylxanthine metabolism in lean and obese women,” American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 269, no. 4, pp. E671–E678, 1995.

[7] L. M. Burke, “Caffeine and sports performance,” Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, vol. 33, no. 6, pp. 1319–1334, 2008.

[8] D. L. Costill, G. P. Dalsky, and W. J. Fink, “Effects of caffeine ingestion on metabolism and exercise performance,” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 155–158, 1978.

[9] J. K. Davis and J. M. Green, “Caffeine and anaerobic performance: ergogenic value and mechanisms of action,” Sports Medicine, vol. 39, no. 10, pp. 813–832, 2009.

[10] B. Desbrow, C. Biddulph, B. Devlin, G. D. Grant, S. Anoopkumar-Dukie, and M. D. Leveritt, “The effects of different doses of caffeine on endurance cycling time trial performance,” Journal of Sports Sciences, vol. 30, no. 2, pp. 115–120, 2012.

[11] S. L. Dodd, E. Brooks, S. K. Powers, and R. Tulley, “The effects of caffeine on graded exercise performance in caffeine naive versus habituated subjects,” European Journal of Applied Physiology, vol. 62, no. 6, pp. 424–429, 1991.

[12] M. Doherty and P. M. Smith, “Effects of caffeine ingestion on rating of perceived exertion during and after exercise: A meta-analysis,” Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 69–78, 2005.

[13] EFSA. Caffeine. [online] Available from http://www.efsa.europa.eu/sites/default/ files/corporate_publications/files/efsaexplainscaffeine150527.pdf.

[14] M. M. Fisher, “The Effect of Resistance Exercise on Recovery Blood Pressure in Normotensive and Borderline Hypertensive Women,” The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 210–216, 2001.

[15] S. M. Fisher, R. G. McMurray, M. Berry, M. H. Mar, and W. A. Forsythe, “Influence of caffeine on exercise performance in habitual caffeine users,” International Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 7, no. 5, pp. 276–280, 1986.

[16] T. E. Graham and L. L. Spriet, “Caffeine and Exercise Performance,” in Sport Science Exchange, vol. 9, p. 60, Sport Science Exchange, 1996.

[17] T. E. Graham and L. L. Spriet, “Metabolic, catecholamine, and exercise performance responses to various doses of caffeine,” Journal of Applied Physiology, vol. 78, no. 3, pp. 867–874, 1995.

[18] T. E. Graham, “Caffeine and exercise metabolism, endurance and performance,” Sports Medicine, vol. 31, no. 11, pp. 785–807, 2012.

[19] T. E. Graham, “Caffeine and exercise metabolism, endurance and performance,” Sports Medicine, vol. 31, no. 11, pp. 785–807, 2001.

[20] C. R. Hendrix, T. J. Housh, M. Mielke et al., “Acute effects of a caffeine-containing supplement on bench press and leg extension strength and time to exhaustion during cycle ergometry,” The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 859–865, 2010.

[21] J. R. Hoffman, J. I. E. Kang, N. A. Ratamess, P. F. Jennings, G. T. Mangine, and A. D. Faigenbaum, “Effect of nutritionally enriched coffee consumption on aerobic and anaerobic exercise performance,” The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 456–459, 2007.

[22] J. L. Ivy, D. L. Costill, W. J. Fink, and R. W. Lower1, “Influence of caffeine and carbohydrate feedings on endurance performance,” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 6–11, 1979.

[23] B. H. Jacobson, M. D. Weber, L. Claypool, and L. E. Hunt, “Effect of caffeine on maximal strength and power in elite male athletes,” British Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 276–280, 1992.

[24] L. A. Kaminsky, C. A. Martin, and M. H. Whaley, “Caffeine consumption habits do not influence the exercise blood pressure response following caffeine ingestion,” The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness , vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 53–58, 1998.

[25] L. L. Spriet, “Exercise and Sport Performance with Low Doses of Caffeine,” Sports Medicine, vol. 44, pp. 175–184, 2014.

[26] A. J. Lorino, L. K. Lloyd, S. H. Crixell, and J. L. Walker, “The effects of caffeine on athletic agility,” The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 851–854, 2006.

[27] B. R. MacIntosh and B. M. Wright, “Caffeine ingestion and performance of a 1,500-metre swim.,” Canadian journal of applied physiology = Revue canadienne de physiologie appliquée, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 168–177, 1995.

[28] S. R. McClaran and T. J. Wetter, “Low doses of caffeine reduce heart rate during submaximal cycle ergometry,” Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, vol. 4, article no. 11, 2007.

[29] R. Meeusen, B. Roelands, and L. L. Spriet, “Caffeine, exercise and the brain,” Nestle Nutrition Institute Workshop Series, vol. 76, pp. 1–12, 2013.

[30] W. J. Pasman, M. A. Van Baak, A. E. Jeukendrup, and A. De Haan, “The effect of different dosages of caffeine on endurance performance time,” International Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 16, no. 4, pp. 225–230, 1995.

[31] S. K. Powers and S. Dodd, “Caffeine and Endurance Performance,” Sports Medicine, vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 165–174, 1985.

[32] T. Richardson, A. Rozkovec, P. Thomas, J. Ryder, C. Meckes, and D. Kerr, “Influence of Caffeine on Heart Rate Variability in Patients with Long-Standing Type 1 Diabetes,” Diabetes Care, vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 1127–1131, 2004.

[33] CA. Rosenbloom and EJ. Coleman, “Sports Nutrition: A Practice,” in Manual for Professionals, Chicago, IL: Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, IL, 5th edition, 2015.

[34] T. L. Skinner, D. G. Jenkins, J. S. Coombes, D. R. Taaffe, and M. D. Leveritt, “Dose response of caffeine on 2000-m rowing performance,” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, vol. 42, no. 3, pp. 571–576, 2010.

[35] B. Sökmen, L. E. Armstrong, W. J. Kraemer et al., “Caffeine use in sports: considerations for the athlete,” The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, vol. 22, no. 3, pp. 978–986, 2008.

[36] T. E. Graham and L. L. Spriet, “Performance and metabolic responses to a high caffeine dose during prolonged exercise,” Journal of Applied Physiology, vol. 71, no. 6, pp. 2292–2298, 1991.

[37] B. H. Sung, W. R. Lovallo, T. Whitsett, and M. F. Wilson, “Caffeine elevates blood pressure response to exercise in mild hypertensive men,” American Journal of Hypertension, vol. 8, no. 12, pp. 1184–1188, 1995.

[38] T. J. Vandenbogaerde and W. G. Hopkins, “Monitoring acute effects on athletic performance with mixed linear modeling,” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, vol. 42, no. 7, pp. 1339–1344, 2010.

[39] B. A. Weinberg and B. K. Bealer, The Caffeine Advantage, The Free Press, New York, 2002.

[40] J. Weir, T. D. Noakes, K. Myburgh, and B. Adams, “A high carbohydrate diet negates the metabolic effects of caffeine during exercise,” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 100–105, 1987