Drinking coffee helps to relieve muscle pain

Researchers at the University of Georgia reported in the latest issue of the Journal of Pain that after testing nine female students who did not drink coffee regularly and did not exercise regularly, they found that consuming a small amount of caffeine equivalent to about two cups of coffee reduced muscle soreness by 48%. After a day or two of exercise, participants reported muscle soreness, when some were given caffeinated beverages and others alternative beverages before doing leg exercises. As a result, the former experienced 48 percent less pain than the latter, and 26 percent less pain during subsequent exercise. The researchers noted that caffeine, while effective in relieving exercise pain, tended to be effective only in people who drank less coffee and had limited effect on regular coffee drinkers, so their findings did not apply to regular coffee drinkers.