The effect of guarana versus caffeine on fat oxidation in healthy college students Corrine A., Christine C., Veronica G., Jacqueline J., Lauren M., Emily S., & Tim W.

Guarana (Paullinia Cupana)

Background Traditionally used as a tonic for: u Heat fatigue u Migraine u Diarrhea u Hypertension Currently used as a supplement for: u Stamina u General stimulant

Guaranine = Caffeine u Guaranine / Guarana u Caffeine / Coffee u Theine / Tea u contains 5-10% naturally occurring caffeine u guaranine is modified by other components of guarana

Guarana u guarana contains : threophylline & theobromine u guarana is rich in seed fiber, tannins and saponins u These compounds are said to be released slowly over 6 hours u Guarana toxic at 10 grams

Hypothesis u Due to the synergistic effect of guarana’s main constituents, we speculate that an equivalent dose of guaranine will fat oxidation for a longer amount of time than caffeine

Purpose To determine if supplementation with guarana will increase fat oxidation for a greater amount of time than caffeine in healthy inviduals in a resting state.

Methods u Controlled clinical trial u Crossover design u 6 subjects (1 male & 5 females) u Similar breakfast consumed before study u RER measured w/ Metabolic Cart u Baseline RER measured

Methods u 250 mg capsule of guarana (90 mg caffeine) u 200 mg No Doz split in half (~90 mg caffeine) u RER measured every hour for 5 hours u No food or drink (except water) u Mean and standard deviation calculated

Results

Discussion u 4 out of the 6 subjects demonstrated the expected results, although to only a small degree u Insufficient evidence to conclude that guarana encourages fat metabolism for a longer time than caffeine u No difference between guarana & caffeine OR poor study design?

Limitations u Small sample size u Subjects not blinded u Study not long enough u Food as a confounder –dinner the night before –breakfast –fast u Residual caffeine from decaf coffee

Limitations u Purity of guarana capsule u Additives in No Doz u Menstrual cycle as possible confounder u Differences in lean body mass u Habitual caffeine use u Movie induced giggling / stress

Conclusions u A large difference between guarana and caffeine was not observed u A more controlled trial could provide more reliable results u More time required to observe trends

Thank you! Questions???