The Short-Term Effect of Caffeine Consumption on Reading Performance
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31584/jhsmr.20241094Keywords:
caffeine, reading acuity, reading speedAbstract
Objective: Caffeine, a widely consumed psychoactive substance, is recognized for its cognitive-enhancing effects, notably enhancing performance on tasks requiring narrative comprehension, where it has been shown to boost both acuity and speed. This study investigates the impact of caffeine intake on reading acuity and evaluates changes in reading speed post-caffeine consumption.
Material and Methods: Employing a cross-sectional design, nineteen participants with distance best-corrected vision of 6/6 or better (equivalent to logMAR 0.00 or better) (mean age=22.5±1.00 years old) and near vision of 0.1 logMAR (N5) were recruited. Baseline measurements of reading acuity and speed were taken using the article sourced from Perpustakaan Tun Abdul Razak (PTAR) and Buari-Chen Malay Reading Chart (BCMRC) before coffee consumption, respectively. Participants consumed 200 mg of Nescafe Gold (caffeine) before the subsequent assessment. The time taken to read the reading materials was recorded, alongside any errors.
Results: While reading speed significantly increased post-caffeine consumption (t=-7.536, p-value<0.001), reading acuity remained unaffected (t=-0.378, p-value=0.705). These results suggest a moderate dose of 200 mg of caffeine can enhance reading speed without compromising acuity in young adults.
Conclusion: This indicates that caffeine mainly affects the rate of reading, while it does not alter the reading acuity of individuals.
References
Iyamu IF, Kennedy I. Caffeine and its perceived effect on tertiary students reading and comprehension tendency. ATBU J Sci Technol Educ 2018;6:227-34.
Siddharta A. Total coffee consumption in Malaysia 2013-2022 [homepage on the Internet]. Hamburg: Statista; 2023 [cited 2023 Aug 27]. Available from: https://www.statista.com/statistics/877125/malaysia-total-coffee-consumption/
Ramanathan R, Ali N. Coffee consumption and the sustainability of the coffee industry in Malaysia. TUR 2021;4:g1-10.
Murari S, Ho A, Hayes J, Cooper S. Effects of caffeine intake on visual performance of the eye among normal healthy adults. Oregon: Pacific University; 2018.
Nehlig A. Effects of coffee/caffeine on brain health and disease: What should I tell my patients?. Pract Neurol 2016;16:89-95.
Abdoli F, Davoudi M, Momeni F, Djafari F, Dolatshahi B, Hosseinzadeh S, Aliyaki H, Khalili Z. Estimate the prevalence of daily caffeine consumption, caffeine use disorder, caffeine withdrawal and perceived harm in Iran: a cross-sectional study. Sci Rep 2024;14:7644.
Ching CS, Ling TS. Caffeine consumption and knowledge among first year medical students in a Malaysian private medical school. Asian J Med Heal Sci 2021;4:120.
Dehaene S, Cohen L, Morais J, Kolinsky R. Illiterate to literate: behavioural and cerebral changes induced by reading acquisition. Nat Rev Neurosci 2015;16:234-44.
Scholey A, Savage K, O'Neill BV, Owen L, Stough C, Priestley C, Wetherell M. Effects of two doses of glucose and a caffeine–glucose combination on cognitive performance and mood during multi tasking. Hum Psychopharmacol Clin Exp 2014;29:434-45.
Berger CR. Caffeine Modulation of Attention and Focus in Task Performance. New York: The City of New York University; 2021.
Franceschini S, Lulli M, Bertoni S, Gori S, Angrilli A, Mancarella M, et al. Caffeine improves text reading and global perception. J Psychopharmacol (Oxf) 2020;34:315-25.
Sohrabi-Otaghvari P, Gavtash B, Sharifi M, Shahidi S. Effect of Caffeine on the Fixation Component of Eye Movement in the Reading Process. Caspian J Neurol Sci 2017;3:66-71.
Marques AC, Jesus AA, Giglio BM, Marini AC, Lobo PC, Mota JF, et al. Acute caffeinated coffee consumption does not improve time trial performance in an 800-m run: a randomized, double-blind, crossover, placebo-controlled study. Nutrients 2018;10:657.
Wallace S, Bylinskii Z, Dobres J, Kerr B, Berlow S, Treitman R, et al. Towards individuated reading experiences: different fonts increase reading speed for different individuals. ACM Trans Comput Hum Interact 2022;29:1-56.
Buari NH. Buari-Chen Malay Reading Chart (BCMRC): contextual sentence and random words 2-in-1 design in Malay language. Pertanika J Sci Technol 2017;25:135-50.
Ridley M. Nescafe Gold Caffeine Content. [homepage on the Internet]. Ceffeine Park 2024 [cited 2023 Nov 15]. Available from: https://caffeinepark.com/Nescafe-Gold-Caffeine-1122/.
Chen AH, Khalid NM, Buari NH. Age factor affects reading acuity and reading speed in attaining text information. Int J Ophthalmol 2019;12:1170.
McLellan TM, Caldwell JA, Lieberman HR. A review of caffeine’s effects on cognitive, physical and occupational performance. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2016;71:294-312.
Abokyi S, Owusu-Mensah J, Osei KA. Caffeine intake is associated with pupil dilation and enhanced accommodation. Eye 2017;31:615-9.
Mbatuegwu FA, Ibrahim SA, Mohammed SA. Beyond covid-19: investigating the effects of caffeinated coffee on visual acuity and pupil size among clinical students of Bingham University. Int J Sustain Dev 2021:69.
Puccio G, Franceschini S, Bertoni S, Fusina F, Angrilli A, Facoetti A. Two cups of coffee to improve text reading abilities, semantic association and to make activities more fun. International Workshop on Reading and Developmental Dyslexia. Italy: Cineca; 2023.
Sherman SM, Buckley TP, Baena E, Ryan L. Caffeine enhances memory performance in young adults during their non-optimal time of day. Front Psychol 2016;7:1764.
Lorenzo Calvo J, Fei X, Domínguez R, Pareja-Galeano H. Caffeine and cognitive functions in sports: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutrients 2021;13:868.
Saville CW, de Morree HM, Dundon NM, Marcora SM, Klein C. Effects of caffeine on reaction time are mediated by attentional rather than motor processes. Psychopharmacology 2018;235:749-59.
Gaspar C, Rocha C, Balteiro J, Santos H. Effects of caffeine on cerebral blood flow. Nutrition 2024;117:112217.
Shain C, Meister C, Pimentel T, Cotterell R, Levy R. Large-scale evidence for logarithmic effects of word predictability on reading time. Proc Natl Acad Sci 2024;121:e2307876121.
Elgort I, Wetering RV, Arrow T, Beyersmann E. Previewing novel words before reading affects their processing during reading: an eye movement study with first and second language readers. Lang Learn J 2024;74:78-110.
Sun YJ, Sahakian BJ, Langley C, Yang A, Jiang Y, Kang J, et al. Early-initiated childhood reading for pleasure: associations with better cognitive performance, mental well-being and brain structure in young adolescence. Psychol Med 2024;54:359-73.
Reina-Reina C, Antón E, Duñabeitia JA. A systematic literature review of the impact of cognitive stimulation programs on reading skills in children aged between 6 and 12 years old. Educ Sci 2024;14:229.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
