Caffeine supplementation improves the cognitive abilities and shooting performance of elite e-sports players: a crossover trial.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to determine whether 3 mg/kg of caffeine supplementation improves cognitive ability and shooting performance in elite e-sports players.
Results Summary
Caffeine significantly improved reaction times in the Stroop task and visual search ability, as well as enhanced shooting performance (higher kill ratio, hit accuracy, and shorter target time) compared to placebo.
Population
Nine elite e-sports players with professional training and national-level competition experience.
Effective Dosage
3 mg/kg, single dose
Duration
Single intervention with testing after one-hour rest
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
3 mg/kg of caffeine supplementation | increase | performance in the Stroop task in terms of congruent condition | elite e-sports players | - | significantly superior | #1 |
3 mg/kg of caffeine supplementation | decrease | visual search reaction time with 20 items | elite e-sports players | - | significantly superior | #2 |
3 mg/kg of caffeine supplementation | increase | kill ratio | elite e-sports players | - | significantly higher | #3 |
3 mg/kg of caffeine supplementation | increase | hit accuracy | elite e-sports players | - | significantly higher | #4 |
3 mg/kg of caffeine supplementation | decrease | average time to target | elite e-sports players | - | significantly shorter | #5 |
caffeine supplementation | increase | reaction times | e-sports players | - | significantly improves | #6 |
caffeine supplementation | increase | shooting performance | e-sports players | - | significantly improves | #7 |
We explored the effect of 3 mg/kg of caffeine supplementation on the cognitive ability and shooting performance of elite e-sports players. Nine e-sports players who had received professional training in e-sports and had won at least eighth place in national-level e-sports shooting competitions. After performing three to five familiarization tests, we employed a single blind, randomized crossover design to divide participants into caffeine trial (CAF) and placebo trial (PL). The CAF trial took capsules with 3 mg/kg of caffeine, whereas the PL trial took a placebo capsule. After a one-hour rest, the Stroop task, the visual search ability test, and the shooting ability test were conducted. The CAF trial's performance in the Stroop task in terms of congruent condition (P = 0.023) and visual search reaction time with 20 items (P = 0.004) was significantly superior to those of the PL trial. In the shooting test, the CAF trial's kill ratio (P = 0.020) and hit accuracy (P = 0.008) were significantly higher, and the average time to target (P = 0.001) was significantly shorter than those of the PL trial. Caffeine supplementation significantly improves e-sports players' reaction times and shooting performance.