The Effect of Caffeine on Athletic Performance

Abstract

Hypothesis: The intake of caffeine can increase physical performance during athletic activity Methods: A search for primary sources was done using PubMed with MeSH terms. The search was limited to randomized controlled trials that were published between 2015 and 2020. After application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, seven articles were selected for this literature review. Results: Of the seven randomized controlled trials selected, six demonstrated caffeine ingestion led to a statistically significant increase in physical performance. One of the randomized controlled trials found no statistically significant relationship between caffeine and run timings. Major findings and results of the studies were stated and contrasted against each other. Conclusion: With regards to the results of the selected studies, caffeine was shown to have ergogenic activity and was able to increase physical performance during exercise and sporting competition through multiple mechanisms. Further research should be done with greater sample sizes to determine the effect of rate of metabolism on caffeine activity and to compare caffeine responders and non-responders.