Volunteers needed for caffeine and mood study

The links between caffeine, physical activity and mood will be examined by a new University of Exeter study.

Researchers need volunteers to help them explore whether caffeine and physical activity might be useful tools to help people manage their mood.

The focus of the study is bipolar disorder, but it will also include people with depression and a control group of people with no mood disorder.

The call for participants comes at the start of Mental Health Awareness Week (May 14-20).

“Caffeine and physical activity are often used for the management of mood or energy level by people in general, including those with mood disorders such as bipolar,” said PhD student Samantha Eden, who is running the study.

“What we eat and drink and how much activity we do have important effects on our mood, but there hasn’t been much research into the interplay between caffeine, activity and mood.

“Caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive substance in the world, but because it’s so commonplace it’s often not seen as a powerful drug.

“It can be perceived quite negatively and some people with mood disorders have been advised to avoid it, but we don’t know enough about the real risks and benefits.

“Knowing this could help to understand whether it could be used as a cost-effective self-help technique – alongside medication and psychotherapies – for people with bipolar.”

The researchers need volunteers for three study groups: people with bipolar, people with depression and people with neither condition – so anyone aged 18 or over can apply.

After screening interviews, participants will take part in an individual interview and/or seven days of lifestyle monitoring – wearing an activity tracker and completing daily questionnaires and diaries.

To take part or for more information, email S.L.Eden@bath.ac.uk or call 01392 724595.

The research is supported by the University of Bath Alumni Fund.