Caffeine Intake, Short Bouts of Physical Activity, and Energy Expenditure: A Double-Blind Randomized Crossover Trial

Pedro B Júdice,João P Magalhães,Diana A Santos,Marc T Hamilton,Catarina N Matias,Luís B Sardinha,Analiza M Silva,Alejandro Lucia

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0068936

Pedro B Júdice, João P Magalhães + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0068936

Copy DOI

Abstract

PA energy expenditure (PAEE) is the most variable component of Total Energy Expenditure (TEE) and largely due to the balance of sedentary time (SedT) and low intensity physical activity (LIPA). There has been an emergence for seeking an understanding of factors which determine variations in SedT, LIPA, and PAEE. Sedentary behavior and physical activity are relatively resistant to change by experimental dietary treatments and significant body weight changes. Although caffeine (Caf) is by far the most heavily used nutritional agent ingested to promote a sense of vigor/alertness, it is still unknown if Caf is effective in increasing PAEE and physical activity. The aim of the study was to test the hypothesis that 2 daily doses of Caf (as a capsule to blind the treatment and divided equally during breakfast and lunch) increase PAEE and TEE, and it would do so through increasing the frequent and brief bouts of physical activity (~1-5 min long) through the day as measured by accelerometry. In 21 low Caf users (<100 mg day-1), we used a double-blind crossover trial (ClinicalTrials.govID;NCT01477294) with two conditions (4-day each with a 3-day washout period) randomly ordered as 5 mg kg-1 day-1 of Caf and maltodextrin as placebo (Plc). Resting energy expenditure (REE) by indirect calorimetry, total energy expenditure (TEE) from doubly labeled water, PAEE calculated as TEE-(REE+0.1TEE), and accelerometry measurements of both LIPA and MVPA were not different between conditions. However, regardless of caffeine or placebo, there were several significant relationships between brief bouts of LIPA and MVPA with PAEE. In conclusion, this double-blind study found that low and moderate-vigorous activity as well as the total volume of PAEE in free-living conditions is resistant to dietary caffeine intake that was equivalent to 5 cups of espresso or 7 cups of tea.Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT01477294

Highlights

Caffeine is one of the most widely consumed food ingredients, commonly found in beverages including coffee, tea and soft drinks, as well as in products containing cocoa or chocolate, and a variety of medications and dietary supplements [1,2]
The present investigation examined the effect of a moderate dose of caffeine on physical activity energy expenditure (PAEE) and the frequency of short bouts of both low intensity physical activity (LIPA) and moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA), on real life settings and using objective methods such as doubly labeled water (DLW) and accelerometry, respectively
It is well known that caffeine works as an ergogenic substance for the central nervous system [10], it would be expected an increase on daily PA, the daily low intensity activities [40]

Summary

Introduction

Caffeine is one of the most widely consumed food ingredients, commonly found in beverages including coffee, tea and soft drinks, as well as in products containing cocoa or chocolate, and a variety of medications and dietary supplements [1,2]. Recommending the accumulation of enough time in multiple short bouts of PA, at a low intensity (i.e., LIPA) distributed throughout the day may be an effective alternative for the reduction of sedentary behavior [18]. It was hypothesized by Hamilton et al in 2007 [14] “that any type of brief, yet frequent, muscular contractions throughout the day may be necessary to short-circuit unhealthy molecular signals causing metabolic diseases”. Only one study has investigated the relationship between PA short bouts lasting less than 10min with EE [23] in laboratorial conditions using indirect calorimetry

Objectives

Methods

Conclusion