Caffeinated Chewing Gum & Wrestling Performance

Caffeinated Chewing Gum Improves Sympathetic Nerve Activity and Simulates Wrestling Performance: a Double-blind Crossover Trial

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of caffeinated chewing gum on sympathetic nerve activity on wrestling simulation match.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Caffeine; Control
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: caffeine

Detailed Description

The purpose of this study was to investigated whether caffeine intake is effective in improving the performance of wrestlers in a simulated competition. The study was designed to involve 16 healthy adult male athletes who had been trained in professional wrestling and were divided into caffeine trial (CAF trial) and placebo trial (PL trial) in a randomized crossover double-blind study design. After three days of dietary control, participants arrived at the laboratory in the afternoon of the day of the trial to collect saliva samples in a quiet state and were fitted with a heart rate monitor. Participants chewed either caffeine-containing gum at 3 mg/kg body weight (CAF trial) or placebo-containing gum without caffeine (PL trial) for 10 minutes and then spit it out. Participants then underwent a 15-minute dynamic warm-up. At the end of the warm-up, participants performed 2 rounds of 3-minute wrestling-specific simulated matches, and the number of falls in the simulated matches was recorded. After the simulation match, saliva samples were collected from the participants again. The saliva samples were analyzed for caffeine alpha-amylase concentration. Differences between the two trials were analyzed using a paired sample t-test and significance was set at α<0.05.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 16
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Taiwan
  • North
    • Taichung, North, Taiwan, 404
      • National Taiwan University of Sport

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• more than 6years of professional wrestling training;
• more than 6 months of continuous training;
• recovering from sports injuries such as strains and contusions for at least 3 months.

Exclusion Criteria:

• non-professionally wrestling athlete;
• none regular training in the past 6 months;
• less than 3 months of recovery from a sports injury, or present epilepsy, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, heart disease, arthritis, osteoporosis, or brain injury;
• a history of caffeine allergy.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Crossover Assignment
• Masking: Double

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: caffeine gum; The participants chewing caffeine gum 10 minutes before exercise	Dietary supplement: caffeine; The participants chewing either caffeine Gum (CAF trial, containing 3 mg/kg of caffeine) for 10 minutes. After rested for 15 minutes, the participants underwent tests.
Placebo Comparator: placebo gum; The participants chewing placebo gum 10 minutes before exercise	Dietary supplement: caffeine; The participants chewing either caffeine Gum (CAF trial, containing 3 mg/kg of caffeine) for 10 minutes. After rested for 15 minutes, the participants underwent tests.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
The number of falls in the simulated matches	Record number of falls in the simulated matches	15 minutes after intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: National Taiwan Sport University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Chih-Hui Chiu, PhD, Sport Science Research Center

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): June 11, 2024
• Primary Completion (Actual): June 30, 2024
• Study Completion (Actual): December 23, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: December 26, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 26, 2024
• First Posted (Actual): March 25, 2025

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 25, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 26, 2024
• Last Verified: December 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Physiological Effects of Drugs; Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action; Enzyme Inhibitors; Neurotransmitter Agents; Purinergic Antagonists; Purinergic Agents; Central Nervous System Stimulants; Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors; Purinergic P1 Receptor Antagonists; Caffeine
• Other Study ID Numbers: 113-9

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: No IPD sharing plan

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No