ComBio: caffeine increases chaotic brain activity during sleep

Caffeine can alter nocturnal brain activity and reduce the effectiveness of both physical and cognitive recovery in sleep. This is the conclusion reached by scientists from the University of Montreal. The results of the study were published in the journal Communications Biology (ComBio).

Forty healthy adults took part in the experiment. On the first night before going to bed, they took capsules with caffeine (three hours and an hour before sleep), and on the second night - placebo. Their brain health was monitored using an electroencephalogram. The study showed that caffeine significantly affected neural activity, especially in the slow-wave sleep (NREM) phase, which is responsible for memory retrieval and consolidation.

 “Caffeine makes brain activity more chaotic and less predictable,” explained Philippe Telke, first author of the study. - “We used AI and sophisticated statistical analysis to capture the smallest fluctuations in neural activity.” 

The scientists recorded a suppression of theta and alpha waves, which are characteristic of deep sleep, and an amplification of beta waves, which normally occur during wakefulness. This means that the brain under the influence of caffeine remains in a less restorative state even in sleep.

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