Coffee and the Heart (Brilliant Biology Experiments)

You will need:

1. Mp3 player with some relaxing music
2. Blindfold
3. Clock and stopwatch
4. 5 cans of a caffeinated drink
5. 5 cans of a non-caffeinated version of the same drink
6. Pen, paper and tape
7. Volunteers, room, stool

Conduct this simple experiment to find out how
caffeine affects the heart and your pulse rate.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. First, learn to take a person’s pulse accurately.
2. Record the volunteer’s history of caffeine consumption and his pulse rate before you begin.
3. Ask him to sit in a stool in an empty room. Put a blindfold on him and let him listen to some relaxing music for 5 minutes.
4. After 5 minutes take his pulse without disturbing him.
5. Give 1 of the two volunteers a caffeinated drink and the other a non-caffeinated drink. Do not let them know what they have just taken.
6. Wait for 5 minutes and check their pulse rates again. Repeat taking their pulse rates every 5 minutes for the next 15 minutes.
7. Repeat this experiment with two volunteers every day for a week.

RESULT

The effects of caffeine on people vary from person to person. While caffeine acts as a stimulant which increases the heart rate making one more energetic, many people are born immune to its effects. That is why a larger pool of volunteers will yield a better result.