hintlSleepcaffeine timing

Does Caffeine Timing Affect Sleep? What 1 Study Shows

カフェインの摂取タイミング · caffeine timing · Last updated:

hintl editorial team / Sleep Research Desk

Sleep genre desk — research review

木製の置き時計とコーヒーカップが並んでいる様子
Research data last updated: |How this works

Key points

A possible adverse effect has been reported.

For sleep quality · 1 study

hintl Evidence Score 42/100 (1 study, confidence low).

Evidence at a glance

How does caffeine timing affect sleep quality?

possible risk
42/100 Evidence ScoreConfidence: low1 study
How the 42 is built
Study design base
meta-analysis or systematic review
+40/40
RCT bonus
no RCT
0/15
Study count bonus
1 study
+2/10
Participants bonus
participant counts not reported
0/20
Consistency bonus
needs 2+ human studies
0/10

Scoring method

A possible adverse effect has been reported.

  • 1 human study (participant counts not recorded)
  • Still unknown: few studies so far; few longer-duration studies

  • It has been reported that the timing of caffeine intake may have a negative effect on sleep quality.
  • The evidence score is 42, and the reliability of the information is limited.
  • This information is relevant to athletes aiming to balance improved athletic performance with high-quality rest.

Caffeine timing refers to the period or time of day at which caffeine is consumed.

It is generally discussed in the context of what time of day caffeine is taken for the purpose of improving performance.

The time at which caffeine is consumed may be related to the depth and quality of sleep. This study reports that the timing of caffeine intake may have a negative effect on sleep quality. This content concerns athletes. Specifically, it touches on the conflict (an opposing relationship) between improving athletic performance and maintaining high-quality sleep.

This study was conducted as a systematic review (a method that comprehensively gathers many previously conducted studies and organizes an overall picture). In other words, it can be said to be a result that comprehensively examines existing knowledge rather than a single experimental result. As a result, it is discussed from a broad perspective rather than looking only at individual phenomena. On the other hand, the evidence score here is 42, indicating that the reliability of the information is limited (low: a state where certainty cannot yet be claimed). In other words, this report alone does not settle everything.

In sports, there may be situations where caffeine is used to boost performance. The research shows that while caffeine intake is recommended for improving performance, caution is also needed regarding its effect on sleep. While caffeine can be expected to enhance athletic performance, this may come at the cost of disrupted sleep.

Looking more closely at this study, a dilemma specific to athletes becomes apparent. In particular, when competition is scheduled for the evening or later, the content reports advising against caffeine use to protect sleep quality. In other words, the choice of when to drink caffeine appears to be an important factor affecting the balance between performance and rest.

Many people may wonder how reliable this information actually is. The evidence score (an indicator of how reliable the study findings are) is 42, and the reliability is described as limited. A low value means that there is still insufficient information to draw a conclusion.

This study was based on a systematic review (a method that searches for and analyzes papers meeting certain criteria from among many published studies). However, in this case, the number of studies included was only 1, so the accumulation of data can still be considered small. In other words, this report should be taken as one clue while further investigation is awaited. It is necessary to keep in mind that the certainty of this information is limited.

StudyDesignNumber of ParticipantsDurationMain Result
Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) (2025, PMID:40579619)Systematic reviewUnknownUnknownA possible negative effect was reported

This study was conducted on athletes.

Knowing the characteristics of the subjects can serve as a reference when considering whether the situation applies to you.

This finding is based on 1 systematic review.

The reported content is described as having limited reliability.

It should be noted that this is at the stage of a systematic review summarizing existing literature.

How does caffeine timing affect sleep quality?

It has been reported that the timing of caffeine intake may have a negative effect on sleep quality. Intake aimed at improving performance is also a factor that needs consideration.

What caffeine timing should athletes consider?

There is a research report that intake in the evening or later, before nighttime competition, requires caution when sleep quality is taken into account. This is a finding based on athletes.

How reliable is the information on caffeine timing?

This report is based on 1 systematic review. The reliability of the information is described as limited.

One study has suggested that the timing of caffeine intake may have a negative effect on sleep quality. There appears to be a difficult balance between improving performance and maintaining rest. Since the evidence score is 42 and the reliability is limited, please take this as just one report. Try reviewing your current lifestyle habits with the self-check assessment.

References

This page's evaluation is based on the following peer-reviewed studies (1). Each link goes directly to the primary source (PubMed / DOI).

  1. Caffeine and Sports Performance: The Conflict between Caffeine Intake to Enhance Performance and Avoiding Caffeine to Ensure Sleep Quality.systematic review · Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2025

Things to keep in mind

  • The amount and quality of research is still limited, so the findings are not conclusive.
  • If you have any medical concerns, do not push yourself and check with a qualified professional.

Related items

Evidence Scores are computed mechanically from the published research (PubMed / Semantic Scholar / OpenAlex): study design, participant numbers, and consistency across studies. An LLM is used only to extract study data, never to decide a score.

This is research-based information, not medical advice, and not a diagnosis. Consult a qualified professional about your own situation.

How the Evidence Score is calculated

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hintl editorial team / Sleep Research Desk

Sleep genre desk — research review

We continuously check the published research and translate the technical language into plain terms. The policy is to report a trend in the research, never a flat claim that something "works".

This article was produced by an editorial system from published research and is managed by the editor-in-responsibility (Takuya Hirata, representative of AJARA LLC).