--- title: "Caffeine Absorbed in the Mouth Peaks Faster Than a Pill" url: https://stacklist.com/card/61014022-014e-4029-8105-beebf6ad37ea source_url: "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11839447/" stack: https://stacklist.com/c/wellness/stack/4dffb12a-725e-4048-883c-4782b5959050 summary: "Caffeine absorbed through chewing gum reaches peak plasma levels significantly faster (44.2-80.4 min) compared to capsule formulation (84.0-120.0 min), suggesting buccal mucosa absorption. The gum formulation provides comparable systemic bioavailability to capsules while enabling earlier onset of pharmacological effects, which is advantageous for rapid reversal of alertness deficits from sleep loss." tags: "caffeine-absorption, bioavailability, chewing-gum, pharmacokinetics, drug-delivery, clinical-trial" key_entities: "caffeine absorption (concept), bioavailability (concept), Stay Alert chewing gum (technology), buccal mucosa absorption (concept), pharmacokinetics (concept), UV-HPLC method (technology)" classification: "analysis" content_hash: "sha256:7a034f5f4ae3da0905c8a526ea33f2abf1d0455796d8474fad9d847e1310357a" acp_version: "0.2" token_counts_approximate: 1191 visibility: public agent_accessible: true status: "final" --- # Caffeine Absorbed in the Mouth Peaks Faster Than a Pill Full text links Cite Display options Display options Format Abstract PubMed PMID Linked Discoveries Abstract Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the rate of absorption and relative bioavailability of caffeine from a Stay Alert chewing gum and capsule formulation. Methods: This was a double blind, parallel, randomized, seven treatment study. The treatment groups were: 50, 100, and 200 mg gum, 50, 100, and 200 mg capsule, and a placebo. Subjects consisted of 84 (n=12 per group); healthy, non-smoking, males who had abstained from caffeine ingestion for at least 20 h prior to dosing and were randomly assigned to the treatment groups. Blood samples were collected pre-dose and at 5, 15, 25, 35, 45, 55, 65, 90 min and 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, 16 and 29 h post administration. Plasma caffeine levels were analyzed by a validated UV-HPLC method. Results: Mean Tmax for the gum groups ranged from 44.2 to 80.4 min as compared with 84.0-120.0 min for the capsule groups. The Tmax, for the pooled data was significantly lower (P<0.05) for the gum groups as compared with the capsule groups. Differences in Tmax were significant for the 200 mg capsule versus 200 mg gum (P<0.05). The mean ka values for the gum group ranged from 3.21 to 3.96 h-1 and for the capsule groups ranged from 1.29 to 2.36 h-1. Relative bioavailability of the gum formulation after the 50, 100 and 200 mg dose was 64, 74 and 77%, respectively. When normalized to the total drug released from the gum (85%), the relative bioavailability of the 50, 100 and 200 mg dose were 75, 87, and 90%, respectively. No statistical differences were found for Cmax and AUCinf for comparisons of the gum and capsule formulations at each dose. Within each dose level, there were no significant formulation related differences in Cmax. No significant differences were observed in the elimination of caffeine after the gum or capsule. Conclusions: The results suggest that the rate of drug absorption from the gum formulation was significantly faster and may indicate absorption via the buccal mucosa. In addition, for the 100 and 200 mg groups, the gum and capsule formulations provide near comparable amounts of caffeine to the systemic circulation. These findings suggest that there may be an earlier onset of pharmacological effects of caffeine delivered as the gum formulation, which is advantageous in situations where the rapid reversal of alertness and performance deficits resulting from sleep loss is desirable. PubMed Disclaimer Publication types Clinical Trial Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Comparative Study Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Randomized Controlled Trial Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S. Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search MeSH terms Adolescent Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Adult Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Area Under Curve Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Biological Availability Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Caffeine / administration & dosage* Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Caffeine / chemistry Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Caffeine / pharmacokinetics* Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Capsules Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Central Nervous System Stimulants / administration & dosage* Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Central Nervous System Stimulants / chemistry Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Central Nervous System Stimulants / pharmacokinetics* Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Chewing Gum* Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Double-Blind Method Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Humans Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Intestinal Absorption Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Male Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Substances Capsules Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Central Nervous System Stimulants Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Chewing Gum Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search Caffeine Actions Search in PubMed Search in MeSH Add to Search LinkOut - more resources Full Text Sources Elsevier Science Other Literature Sources The Lens - Patent Citations Database Medical ClinicalTrials.gov MedlinePlus Health Information