@article{ref1,
title="Caffeine effects on learning, performance, and anxiety in normal school-age children",
journal="Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry",
year="1994",
author="Bernstein, G. A. and Carroll, Marilyn E. and Crosby, R. D. and Perwien, A. R. and Go, F. S. and Benowitz, N. L.",
volume="33",
number="3",
pages="407-415",
abstract="OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this investigation was to study the acute effects of caffeine on learning, performance, and anxiety in normal prepubertal children. METHOD: Twenty-one children were evaluated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover design. Subjects were studied during four sessions, 1 week apart, under the following conditions: baseline, placebo, 2.5 mg/kg caffeine, and 5.0 mg/kg caffeine. Subjects were randomized to order of placebo and the two dosages of caffeine. Dependent measures included tests of attention, manual dexterity, short-term memory, and processing speed. Anxiety rating scales were also administered. Saliva samples were analyzed for caffeine levels. RESULTS: Caffeine improved performance on two of four measures of the Test of Variables of Attention and on a test of manual dexterity in the dominant hand. There was a trend toward increased current level of self-reported anxiety after caffeine on a visual analogue measure of anxiety. Children reported feeling significantly less &quot;sluggish&quot; after caffeine ingestion than after placebo ingestion. CONCLUSIONS: In a small sample size, there was indication that caffeine enhanced performance on a test of attention and on a motor task. Children also reported feeling less &quot;sluggish&quot; but somewhat more anxious. Because caffeine is so widely available and frequently consumed by children, these results are important and need replication.<p /><p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0890-8567",
doi="10.1097/00004583-199403000-00016",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00004583-199403000-00016"
}