Benefits And Side Effects Of Caffeine In Sports

Caffeine is one of the best pleasures to taste and even to stay with attention to the fullest in most cases, being one of the most addictive drinks for most people in the world.

What is caffeine?

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It's an alkaloid known as trimetilxanlina, whose main function is to act as a stimulant for the central nervous system, making the body react more effectively and even accelerated. It can be obtained in coffee beans or tea leaves, and also in a synthetic way.

That is why it's vital to know what are the benefits and side effects that caffeine brings us when playing sports and even during our daily lives.

Benefits of caffeine in sports

Thanks to the popularity that caffeine has gained as the most consumed beverage by a large part of the world population, it was not surprising that it extended to energy supplements in order to maintain active body function during physical training, being used as an orogenic help. That is why I will share the effects that caffeine has on the body of athletes:

• Makes glycogen replenish after exercise, after being worn down by physical exertion.
• It makes the oxidation of fat increase more quickly during exercise.
• It makes the body take longer to tire, making sports performance more effective.
• Makes the muscles stay relaxed and prevents muscle contraction.
• It also acts as a mental stimulant, making the level of concentration more efficient.

Negative effects of caffeine in sports

Caffeine can have side effects, because when you exceed the recommended intake can act in reverse to what you want, bringing the following problems to your body:

• Because caffeine is a drug and therefore an addictive substance for the body, if it's used frequently it will cause the withdrawal syndrome, which will cause irritability and nervousness, causing instability to the individual when not having his daily dose.
• If it's consumed more than necessary it can also cause heart problems, insomnia, dry mouth, nausea, among other negative effects for the body.

In the case of physical exercise it's recommended that the consumption be interspersed with the amount of exercise that is being performed, since it can also happen that the body creates immunity to the dose (in such a case that pills are taken or a supplement containing caffeine), causing the desired effect to be lost and generating the opposite, such as fatigue after exercise or mental exhaustion. That is why it's suggested to use them only for the trainings that really require it.

References

1. McLellan TM et al. A review of caffeine's effects on cognitive, physical and occupational performance. 2016. Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews.
2. EFSA. Scientific opinion on the safety of caffeine. 2015.
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1663116/
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10499460
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27762662
6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18458357

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