Effect of single or combined caffeine and L-Theanine supplementation on shooting and cognitive performance in elite curling athletes: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study

Abstract

Purpose: Previous studies have investigated the effect of single or combined caffeine (CAF) and L-theanine (THE) intake on attention performance. However, its effect on shooting performance and cognitive performance in a sport is unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the hypothesis "Does single or combined CAF and THE supplementation have an effect on shooting and cognitive performance in elite curling athletes?." It is predicted that over the next decade, studies based on nutritional ergogenic supplements in the developing sport of curling will continue to increase, leading to a significant increase in studies examining the effects of CAF and THE supplementation, alone or in combination, on throwing and cognitive performance in elite curling athletes.

Methods: In this double-blind, randomized controlled crossover study, twenty-two elite national curling athletes (age 20.20 ± 1.61 and sports age 6.20 ± 0.51 years, height 174.10 ± 7.21 cm, BMI 21.80 ± 3.47 kg/m²) were randomly assigned to CAF (6 mg/kg single dose CAF), THE (6 mg/kg single dose THE), CAF*THE (6 mg/kg CAF and 6 mg/kg THE combined) and PLA (400 mg maltodextrin) groups at each of four sessions. 60 minutes after taking the supplement, the athletes were first given the Stroop test and then asked to shoot.

Results: Our main findings have shown that the performance of athletes in guard (F=_3.452, P < .001, η_p² = .842), draw (F=_1.647, P < .001, η_p² = .485), and take-out (F=_3.121, P < .001, η_p² = .743) shot styles significantly improved when comparing the combined intake of CAF and THE to the PLA. Regarding cognitive performance evaluation through the Stroop test, during the NR task (F=_4.743, P = .001, η_p² = .653), the combined intake of CAF and THE significantly improved reaction times compared to the intake of single CAF, THE, or PLA. The best reaction times during the CR and ICR (respectively; F=_2.742, P = .004, η_p² = .328; F = 1.632, P < .001, η_p² = .625) tasks were achieved with the combined CAF and THE intake, showing a significant improvement compared to PLA. During the NER (F=_2.961, P < .001, η_p² = .741), task, the combined intake of CAF and THE significantly improved error rates compared to the intake of CAF, THE, or PLA single. The best accuracy rates during the CER and ICER (respectively; F=_4.127, P < .001, η_p² = .396; F=_3.899, P < .001, η_p² = .710) tasks were achieved with the combined CAF and THE intake, leading to a significant reduction in error rates compared to PLA. Based on these findings, it has been demonstrated in this study that the best shooting scores and cognitive performance were achieved, particularly with the combined intake of CAF and THE.

Conclusions: Based on these findings, it has been demonstrated in this study that the best shooting scores and cognitive performance were achieved, particularly with the combined intake of CAF and THE. The combined use of these supplements has been found to be more effective on shooting and cognitive performance than their single use.

Keywords: Caffeine; L-Theanine; cognitive performance; curling.

Figure 1.

Experimental representation of the test protocol.

Figure 2.

Positional display and scoring of shots.

Figure 3.

PLA: placebo, CAF: caffeine, THE: L-Theanine, NR: neutral reaction, CR: congruent reaction, ICR: incongruent reaction. Stroop task accuracy (ms) in different supplement conditions. *: significantly different according to PLA values, #: significantly different according to CAF values, Ϯ: significantly different according to the values (P < .05).

Figure 4.

PLA: placebo, CAF: caffeine, THE: L-Theanine, NER: neutral error rate, CER: congruent error rate, ICER: incongruent error rate. Stroop task accuracy (error rate) in different supplement conditions. *: significantly different according to PLA values, #: significantly different according to CAF values, Ϯ: significantly different according to the values (P < .05).