Caffeine Increases Plantar Flexion Peak Torque In Young But Not In Older Men
Ugliara, Lucas Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: July 2020 - Volume 52 - Issue 7S - p 5
Ageing is associated with neurodegeneration and loss of muscle function, driving to adverse age-related health events and decreasing quality of life. Of the many contributors to the ageing process, decreased skeletal muscle function plays a large role, but physical, nutritional, and ergogenic interventions can have positive effects on muscle function. For example, evidence suggests that a low dose of caffeine may act on the central nervous system and may improve force-generating capacity. However, the majority of these studies have focused in young individuals, and no study has compared the effects of caffeine on strength between older and younger individuals.
PURPOSE: To compare the effect of caffeine on force-generating capacity between older and young adults.
METHODS: 21 older (68 ± 6 years) and 22 young men (25 ± 5 years) were tested for peak torque (PT) and contractile impulse (CI; torque integrated to time) of the plantar flexors using a Biodex 4 dynamometer. Participants were familiarized with testing procedures on the first day, and the experimental protocol was applied on two other days (2-7 days apart), which consisted of four maximal isometric contractions before and 60-min after 3 mg/kg of caffeine or placebo (double-blinded). PT, CI 0-50 (CI0-50), and 100-200 ms (CI100-200) were analyzed. A three-way mixed ANOVA was used to investigate potential differences between conditions (pre vs post-supplement) and groups (older vs young). Cohen’s effect size (ES) was used to show the magnitude of differences and the standardized mean differences for caffeine versus placebo in both groups.
RESULTS: Caffeine increased PT in young (3.2%; p = 0.007, ES = 0.21) but not in older individuals (2.7%; p = 0.104, ES = 0.13). No differences were seen in CI0-50 and CI100-200 in young and older (p > 0.05). The standardized mean differences showed a small effect in favor of caffeine on PT in young (ES = 0.47), CI0-50 in young (ES = 0.41) and older (ES = 0.40), and CI100-200 in older (ES = 0.24).
CONCLUSIONS: Caffeine increased isometric peak torque in young but not in older individuals. Caffeine did not increase rapid torque output (i.e. CI0-50 and CI100-200) in either young or older individuals. However, a small effect was observed in favor caffeine against placebo in both groups.