Because it has previously been shown that it takes much more caffeine to cause fat mobilization in vitro than in vivo, it has been suggested that there may be an active metabolite working with caffeine causing an increase in lipolysis in vivo. To determine the relationship between the appearance of paraxanthine (caffeine's major dimethylxanthine metabolite) and free fatty acid (FFA) mobilization after intravenous caffeine administration, 10 men were studied at rest after receiving a dose of 4 mg/kg lean body mass. Venous blood samples were obtained before dosing and at minutes 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, 150, and 180. Serum levels of FFA, glycerol, caffeine, and paraxanthine were determined in duplicate. Concentrations of FFA and glycerol were corrected for plasma volume changes. A high negative correlation was seen between decreases in caffeine and increases in FFA (r = -0.90) and a high positive correlation was seen between the appearance of paraxanthine and FFA (r = 0.93). It was concluded that paraxanthine may play a role in increased lipolysis after caffeine administration in humans.