FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Caffeine-containing drinks can be part of your exercise regimen, says renowned sports dietician: they aid performance and won’t dehydrate

New York, NY, Nov. 1 – According to an international expert on nutrition and sports, “The beneficial effects of small amounts of caffeine in exercise occur in both short intense effort and also in endurance exercise.”

Jane Griffin, a sports dietician in London, England, spoke at Coffee: Breaking News about Health, Fitness and Performance, a symposium for science, health and fitness editors at New York’s Reebok Sports Club in New York. She explained, “What matters most to an athlete is that he or she wins and keeps on winning. For an athlete the diet is just one aspect that can help to achieve that win.

“Performance nutrition (or winning nutrition) helps an athlete maximize training in all the different phases; prepare, perform and recover from competition/matches; optimize body weight and composition; maintain all-round health and well-being; prevent injury, and when an injury or illness does occur maximize recovery so that minimum training time is lost (time that other athletes continue to train).”

Ms. Griffin was the Consultant Nutritionist to the British Olympic Association from 1990 to 2001, and currently is the sports dietician to a number of British professional sports teams. She has written extensively for a wide range of sports magazines, women’s magazines and national newspapers. Her first book, Food for Sport (Eat well, Perform Better) has been reprinted, and her second book, Nutrition for Marathon Running, was published in August 2005.

She told the group, “Athletes read newspapers, magazines and books where they find healthy eating messages – which are of course targeted squarely at the overweight and unfit. A conflict can therefore develop – healthy eating messages versus performance nutrition. Low carbohydrate intakes will result in inadequate energy intakes and poor refueling. Reduced sodium intakes can compromise hydration status and even lead to hyponatraemia. Avoidance of caffeine (because of the supposed dehydrating effect) can actually compromise fluid intake. It can also lead to a missed opportunity to utilize the ergogenic effects of caffeine in exercise.”

Ms. Griffin said that she encourages athletes to estimate their potential fluid losses and to ensure that they drink sufficient amounts in order to maintain hydration. They should constantly be aware of the intensity of their workout, as well as the heat, humidity, and other conditions in which they exercise.

She explained that habitual caffeine intakes up to 300 mg/day don’t compromise hydration status at all, and that athletes shouldn’t avoid drinks containing caffeine, since they contribute to overall fluid intake.