Heart Rate Variability Behavior during Exercise and Short-Term Recovery Following Energy Drink Consumption in Men and Women.

David H. Fukuda,Erica R. Goldstein,Jeffrey R. Stout,Nicolas W. Clark,Chad H. Herring,Adam J. Wells

doi:10.3390/nu12082372

David H. Fukuda, Erica R. Goldstein + Show 4 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12082372

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Journal: Nutrients	Publication Date: Aug 8, 2020
Citations: 11	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: University of Central Florida

Abstract

This study examined the cardiac autonomic responses, as measured by heart rate variability (HRV), during cycling exercise and short-term rest after energy drink consumption. Seventeen participants (seven males and 10 females; age: 22.8 ± 3.5 years; BMI: 24.3 ± 3.3 kg/m2) completed this double-blind, placebo-controlled, counterbalanced crossover design study. Participants received an energy drink formula containing 140 mg of caffeine and a placebo in a randomized order before completing a 10-min steady-state warm up (WUP) and a graded exercise test to exhaustion (GXT) followed by a 15-min short-term rest (STR) period. Heartbeat intervals were recorded using a heart rate monitor. Data were divided into WUP, GXT, and STR phases, and HRV parameters were averaged within each phase. Additionally, root mean square of the standard deviation of R–R intervals (RMSSD) during GXT was analyzed to determine the HRV threshold. Separate two-way (sex (male vs. female) x drink (energy drink vs. placebo)) repeated measures ANOVA were utilized. Significant increases in high frequency (HF) and RMSSD were shown during WUP after energy drink consumption, while interactions between drink and sex were observed for HRV threshold parameters (initial RMSSD and rate of RMSSD decline). No significant differences were noted during STR. Energy drink consumption may influence cardiac autonomic responses during low-intensity exercise, and sex-based differences in response to graded exercise to exhaustion may exist.

Highlights

The consumption of energy drinks (ED), featuring caffeine as the primary active ingredient, has largely increased in the past two decades, and its market is expected to increase from 11 billion in 2018 to 83.4 billion in 2024 [1]
Significant drink were shown for LnHF and high frequency (HF)% during the graded exercise test to exhaustion (GXT); post-hoc comparisons did not detect significant differences for LnHF
This study examined the influence of ED ingestion on the autonomic nervous system (ANS) as measured by heart rate variability (HRV) time and frequency domain parameters during warm up (WUP), GXT, and short-term rest (STR) while comparing responses between males and females that habitually consumed caffeinated products

Summary

Introduction

The consumption of energy drinks (ED), featuring caffeine as the primary active ingredient, has largely increased in the past two decades, and its market is expected to increase from 11 billion in 2018 to 83.4 billion in 2024 [1]. Heart rate variability is a well-established biomarker that provides insight into ANS function, including cardiac parasympathetic nervous activity (cPNA) and cardiac sympathetic nervous activity (cSNA) [10,11]. Some evidence suggests that low doses of caffeine (100 and 200 mg) may decrease cPNA at rest in non-habitual caffeine users [12]; a more recent study showed no differences in HRV for the same amounts of caffeine while testing a group of habitual coffee drinkers who consumed one or more cups per day [13]. A previous study from our laboratory showed maintenance of vagal tone at rest with time-release caffeine supplementation (194 mg), and vagal withdrawal during placebo trials in a group of habitual caffeine consumers with a reported daily average intake greater than 200 mg [14]

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