Reversão da abstinência de cafeína e performance cognitiva em mulheres consumidoras habituais de café

Abstract

Caffeine (1,3,7-trimethylxanthine) is a psychostimulant consumed worldwide, and its effects have been extensively investigated in various scientific fields, such as neuroscience and genetic research. This study aims to investigate the relationship between cognitive performance, withdrawal parameters, and genetic characteristics in the context of caffeine administration in regular coffee consumers. Women coffee habitual consumers (n = 30) aged between 19 and 36 participated in the study. Cognitive performance (attention and working memory) and withdrawal parameters were analyzed. According to a crossover design, all participants were subjected to both caffeine and placebo experimental groups, and the order of capsule administration was randomized for subsequent protocol effect assessment. In each experimental session, the participant arrived at the study site after 24 hours of caffeine abstinence and was assessed with the instruments before and one hour after capsule administration. The cognitive performance analysis revealed no significant differences between the caffeine and placebo sessions, although analyses according to the order of capsule administration revealed significant differences in measures of focused attention and overall attention. With the exception of two factors, all withdrawal and drowsiness parameters showed a significant decrease in the caffeine group compared to the placebo group. Regarding genetic analysis, no significant differences were observed between the genetic groups in the variation of cognitive performance after caffeine administration. On the other hand, significant differences were observed between the genetic groups for factors 4 and 5 in the caffeine administration session. From these results, it can be concluded that the influence of caffeine on cognition is less pronounced than the effects on withdrawal parameters exerted by the stimulant. Continued research into the relationship between genetic characteristics and responsiveness to caffeine beyond the study of caffeine metabolism-related genes and other factors is suggested, as well as the development of more precise theoretical models that explain how changes in caffeine metabolism can influence responsiveness to the stimulant in terms of cognitive function.