long-term study found that drinking larger amounts of coffee may make you less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease

As part of the Australian Imaging, Biomarkers and Lifestyle Study of Aging, researchers at Edith Cowan University (ECU) investigated whether coffee consumption affected the rate of cognitive decline by more than 200 Australians over a decade.

Lead researcher Dr Samantha Gardener said the results showed an association between coffee and several important markers linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

“We found that participants without memory impairment and with higher coffee consumption at the start of the study had a lower risk of transitioning to mild cognitive impairment – which often precedes Alzheimer’s disease – or develop Alzheimer’s disease during the study, ”she said. noted.

Drinking more coffee has shown positive results in certain areas of cognitive function, particularly executive function which includes planning, self-control and attention.

Higher coffee consumption also appears to be linked to slowing the buildup of amyloid protein in the brain, a key factor in the development of Alzheimer’s disease.

Dr Gardener said that while more research is needed, the study was encouraging because it indicated that drinking coffee could be an easy way to delay the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.

“It’s a simple thing that people can change,” she said.

“This could be particularly useful for people at risk for cognitive decline but who have not developed any symptoms.

“We might be able to develop clear guidelines that middle-aged people can follow and hopefully that might have a lasting effect then.”

Make it a double

If you only allow yourself one cup of coffee a day, the study says you might be better off indulging yourself in an extra cup, although a maximum number of cups per day that provides a beneficial effect won’t work. could be established from the current study. .

“If the average cup of home-made coffee is 240g, switching to two cups a day could potentially reduce cognitive decline by 8% after 18 months,” said Dr. Gardener.

“He could also see a 5% decrease in amyloid accumulation in the brain over the same period.”

In Alzheimer’s disease, amyloid clumps together to form toxic plaques in the brain.

The study could not differentiate caffeinated coffee from decaffeinated coffee, nor the benefits or consequences of its method of preparation (method of brewing, presence of milk and / or sugar, etc.).

Dr Gardener said the relationship between coffee and brain function needed to be explored.

“We need to assess whether coffee consumption could one day be recommended as a lifestyle factor aimed at delaying the onset of Alzheimer’s disease,” she said.

More than caffeine

Researchers have yet to determine precisely which constituents in coffee are responsible for its apparently positive effects on brain health.

Although caffeine has been linked to the results, preliminary research shows that it may not be the only contributor to the potential delay in Alzheimer’s disease.

“Raw caffeine” is the by-product of the decaffeination of coffee and has also been shown to be effective in partially preventing memory impairment in mice, while other components of coffee such as cafestol, kahweol and eicosanoyl-5-hydroxytryptamide have also been observed to affect cognitive impairment in animals in various studies.

“Higher coffee consumption is associated with slower cognitive decline and less brain accumulation of A? -Amyloid over 126 months: Data from the Australian Imaging, Biomarker and Lifestyle Study” was published in Frontiers of Aging Neuroscience.