3 Cups Of Coffee A Day Can Reduce Alzheimer’s Risk

Though more controversial than tea, coffee is also known as a healthy beverage with numerous benefits for our health, if taken in moderate amounts on a regular basis. Coffee is an excellent natural source of caffeine, a known tonic and stimulant for our brain, helping us wake up in the morning, get focused easily and perform at maximum at work. According to WebMD experts, moderate coffee consumption is linked to less risks for type 2 diabetes and elevated blood pressure, heart attack and a stroke, carcinoma and some other types of cancer, as well as other very serious health conditions. At the same time, the specialists of the website underline that despite great popularity of this beverage, there were not too many studies and scientific researches proving the effectiveness of this beverage for preventing or treating certain illnesses or diseases. Recently, the findings of one related study were published, and according to those, there was clear scientific evidence found to support the fact that consuming 3 cups of coffee a day can lower dementia and Alzheimer’s risk for the elderly.

A joint team of scientists at the University of Miami and the University of South Florida has found out that those with partial memory loss or mild cognitive impairment who have higher caffeine intake and higher caffeine levels in blood also have reduced risks for developing more serious mental conditions like dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. The scientists came to these conclusions after working with 124 aging volunteers (aged between 65 and 88). The study lasted for about four years, and the main work of the experts was focused on monitoring the participants’ mental abilities and caffeine levels in blood. The links between caffeine consumption and dementia-like brain disorders development has been known before (mainly, they were established after several researches on lab rats and mice), and the main objective of this study of American specialists was to find out proper evidence of the stated links by working with people.

As the results of the measurements have shown, those of the participants who had high blood caffeine levels had much lower dementia and Alzheimer’s risk. Those participants who developed dementia or related type of diseases during the research time had over 50 per cent lower blood caffeine levels compared to those elderly participants whose condition did not get worse for the time of the experiment. “Coffee would appear to be the major or perhaps only source of caffeine for such stable MCI (mild cognitive impairment) patients,” it is stated in the report about the study findings published earlier this summer in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease. “High plasma caffeine levels in MCI patients at the beginning of a 2–4 year cognitive assessment period were associated with complete avoidance of progression to dementia over that period,” the report says. As it was found out by an expert group at the Alzheimer’s Society, about 10 – 15 per cent of patients with mild cognitive impairment develop Alzheimer’s disease and dementia-like brain disorders in the next few years.

According to the conclusions of American scientists, it can be enough to consume about 3 cups of coffee a day for elderly people to benefit from the mentioned effects of coffee and reducing own Alzheimer’s risk. This will help achieve the desired levels of caffeine in blood, which is estimated as about 1200 ng/ml. The experts commenting on the study are convinced that the findings of American scientists give us all grounds to believe that the links between caffeine consumption and reduced Alzheimer’s risks should be considered properly proven after the experiment with a group of elderly people. At the same time, according to Jeremy Hughes and Simon Ridley, leading specialists at the Alzheimer’s Society, more studies are on the way to look much closely at causes and effects connections between the two factors. Check out more detailed information about the findings of American experts related to the effects of caffeine consumption on Alzheimer’s risk here.

Author Info: Hi! My name is Carla and I am a 5th year medical student at HYMS. I am interested in alternative medicine and I have done months researching the topic of herbal medicine. Besides, I like interviewing people and learning more about their experiences with one or another type of herbal treatments. I am willing to contribute to this site with my knowledge, and I would be happy to help you out to the best of my ability with any specific questions or problems related to alternative medicine.

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