Caffeine Consumption and Academic Performance among Medical Students of Dow University of Health Science (DUHS), Karachi, Pakistan

Objective: To determine the frequency of caffeine consumption and its effect on academic performance among medical students of DUHS, Karachi, Pakistan. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Dow Medical College, DUHS. About 400 medical undergraduate students from first to final year MBBS were included through systematic sampling. Those students who were on leave on the day of interview and addicted to substance abuse other than caffeine and those who were on drug use rehabilitation were excluded from the study. The duration of study was from January 2016 to May 2016. The data was collected by self-administered structured questionnaire which included the information regarding socio-demographic characteristics, perceptions regarding caffeine consumption on academic performance. The data were entered and analysed by using SPSS version 16. Frequency and percentages were calculated and multivariate analysis was performed to determine the association of caffeine consumption and academic performance of medical students. Results: The mean age of the medical students were 20.83 ± 1.57 years. About 58.5% were females, 46.3% of the students scored less than 3 Grade Point Average (GPA). Majority (94%) of the students consume caffeine in any form such as tea, coffee. About 68% students reported that caffeine use increases their academic performance. On multivariate analyses, caffeine consumption did not show any significant association with academic performance. Conclusion: High proportions of medical students were found to be consuming caffeine due to the misconception that caffeine increases academic performance. This study found no significant association with academic performance and caffeine consumption.