What are soft drinks doing to your children? Researchers say caffeinated drinks can affect girls and boys differently

Caffeine affects children in a far more complex way than previously though, researchers have found.

They say that after puberty, boys and girls experience different heart rate and blood pressure changes after consuming caffeine. 

Girls also experience differences in their response to caffeine during their menstrual cycles, the team found.

They say the finding could have a major effect on how much caffeine young people should be allowed to take.

 

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'We found an interaction between gender and caffeine dose, with boys having a greater response to caffeine than girls, as well as interactions between pubertal phase, gender and caffeine dose, with gender differences present in post-pubertal, but not in pre-pubertal, participants,' said Jennifer Temple at the University at Buffalo.

'In this study, we were looking exclusively into the physical results of caffeine ingestion,' she said.

The findings also suggest that menstrual cycles can change the way caffeine affects girls.

'We found differences in responses to caffeine across the menstrual cycle in post-pubertal girls, with decreases in heart rate that were greater in the mid-luteal phase and blood pressure increases that were greater in the mid-follicular phase of the menstrual cycle.'

In the study, researchers examined 96 children, looking at their heart rates and blood pressure before and after giving them a caffeinated beverage or a placebo during six visits to the laboratory.

The children, who ranged in age from 8 to 17, also completed a questionnaire about their caffeine use.

Past studies have shown that caffeine increases blood pressure and decreases heart rate in children, teens and adults, including pre-adolescent boys and girls. 

However the new study of the first to spot the gender differences - and menstruation cycle effects.

Caffeine consumption by children and teenagers has increased in recent years, Temple said. This is possibly due to a greater availability of caffeinated beverages and energy drinks, she believes.

'While the data suggests that boys and girls respond differently to caffeine, both genders experienced cardiovascular effects of caffeine, she told Livescience.

'And while it does not suggest that caffeine is particularly harmful to children and adolescents, there is little evidence that caffeine consumption is beneficial to health in this population.'

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