Only this morning, I received a press release for ‘the UK’s first melt-form caffeine supplements'. Launched by Nutrition X, it’s a ‘fast-acting caffeine tablet designed to melt on the tongue, offering higher bioavailability and a faster absorption rate than other caffeine-based options such as liquids, capsules or gums’.
I haven’t tested the melt-form madness, but there is a reason that caffeine gum has become increasingly popular in football, especially at half-time.
Is caffeine chewing gum more effective than caffeine capsules?
A recent study out of China revealed that caffeine delivered via chewing gum starts appearing in the blood in less than 10 minutes, which is much quicker than ingested caffeine forms like capsules and coffee that have to flow through the digestive system before delivering a boost. That takes around 30 to 45 minutes.
And a boost it will deliver for whichever activity you’re undertaking, be it hiking, running, swimming or gardening. That’s because caffeine is arguably the most proven ergogenic aid around; in other words, hundreds of studies for decades have shown that caffeine will improve your performance. And in a multitude of ways due to you having caffeine receptors all over your body – even in your brain – so caffeine can latch onto these for specific effects.
Find out when you should time your caffeine supplement intake to boost performance here.
Why is caffeine so effective in boosting energy?
Firstly, caffeine acts on the central nervous, dampening messages that are channelled to your brain saying you’re tired. You’ll no doubt have experienced this if you’re turning and tossing wide awake after consuming an espresso at dinnertime. More specifically, in the brain a substance called ‘adenosine’ builds up during the day and acts as an inhibitory neurotransmitter, meaning it slows you down.
The problem is, caffeine has a similar structure to adenosine, so high levels of caffeine increase nerve activity rather than slow it down. The pituitary gland in the brain senses this neuron activity, perceives it as an emergency and so releases hormones that orders the adrenal glands to produce adrenaline, which stimulates the fight or flight response of increased heart rate and blood pressure. This is bad for sleep but does make exercise feel easier.
Does caffeine make you stronger?
There’s also evidence that caffeine makes you stronger. Take a 2017 study that showed consuming caffeine improved participants’ maximal strength by 3 to 5%. In practical terms, if you can chest press 50kg, you could increase that to 52.5% simply by drinking coffee around 45 minutes before. Or a couple of cups of coffee as those gains came from around 5 to 6mg of caffeine per kilogramme of bodyweight, so up to 420mg of caffeine for a 70kg male. Or two strong espressos.
How it achieved this performance nudge again came down to firing up your nervous system and subsequently activating more muscle fibres. Caffeine’s also been shown to improve reaction times and burn more fat.
What are the negative side effects of caffeine supplements?
In short, caffeine powers you up. But there are potential side-effects. As we’ve seen, caffeine’s stimulant qualities accelerate heart rate that not only impacts sleep but can raise blood pressure. People with anxiety disorders and certain heart rhythm conditions are advised to limit or avoid caffeine intake.