New Study Finds Drinking 3 Cups Of Coffee A Day Could Lower Dementia Risk But Theres A Catch

Et al. (2017) ‘Moderate alcohol consumption as risk factor for adverse brain outcomes’, BMJ, 357, j2353. For example, an older adult who consumes a small glass of wine with meals, maintains social engagement and follows a balanced diet may show lower dementia risk. However, it would be inaccurate to attribute this benefit solely to alcohol. Dementia refers to a group of progressive neurocognitive disorders characterised by declines in memory, executive function, language and daily functioning (Livingston et al., 2020).

Key Factors Behind Alcohol-Related Dementia

Among a subset of participants, those who drank caffeinated coffee or tea also had slightly better scores on cognitive tests than those who drank less. Intriguingly, no association was found for decaf drinkers, suggesting caffeine itself is the protective component. Evidence from a study of more than 130,000 people suggests that two to three cups of coffee a day can reduce dementia risk and slow cognitive decline. From these large cohorts, the researchers settled on 131,821 participants to include in a meta-analysis. They arrived at this number by using only data that included dietary records, excluding people who had any kind of major disease at the start of the study, and eliminating those who reported caloric intake outside of biologically plausible ranges.

Health News

The biggest complication of alcohol-related dementia is the damage in your brain. That can cause permanent changes to your personality and your ability to think and use your body. The best way to prevent alcohol-related dementia is to avoid drinking too much alcohol. Talk to a healthcare provider or a loved one if you’re worried you’re drinking too much.

Guidelines for moderate drinking

But as tolerance builds, consumption often increases, leading to serious health consequences. Their study, published Monday in JAMA, determined that those who drank two to three cups of regular coffee daily, or one to two cups of caffeinated tea, had lower rates of dementia, slower cognitive decline and more preserved cognitive function. Coffee and tea contain bioactive ingredients like polyphenols and caffeine, which have emerged as possible neuroprotective factors that reduce inflammation and cellular damage while protecting against cognitive decline. The diagnosis of an alcohol problem is best made by review of medical histories and interviews with patients. Preventive Services Task Force, current estimates are that fewer than 50% of people who visit primary care providers for alcohol-related issues are asked about the problem. “Our study findings support a detrimental effect of all types of alcohol consumption on dementia risk, with no evidence supporting the previously suggested protective effect of moderate drinking,” said the authors.

The less alcohol you drink, the lower your risk for these health effects, including several types of cancer. Excessive alcohol use is a term used to describe four ways that people drink alcohol that can negatively impact health. With timely treatment, some individuals can recover brain function, overcome addiction, and live healthier, alcohol-free lives. Long-term heavy drinking can also https://ecosoberhouse.com/ result in a lack of vitamin B1 (thiamine) and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome which affects short-term memory. Often, symptoms stop progressing and even improve after you stop drinking. But in some cases, your care team may prescribe medication like rivastigmine or memantine, which are typically used for managing Alzheimer’s disease symptoms.

Participants also self-reported caffeine consumption via soda and chocolate, which aren’t typically considered healthy. Dr. Kellyann Niotis, a preventive neurologist at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City, said her patients often ask her what they can do to decrease their odds of developing dementia, including whether coffee may help or harm them. “This finding suggests that caffeine may be the primary putative neuroprotective agent underlying the observed association,” write the researchers in their study, which has been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. To reach this conclusion, investigators from Harvard University, Mass General Brigham, MIT, and other institutes looked at data that was tracked through two large, long-term health studies. First was the Nurses Health Study which tracked data from female registered nurses from 1976 through 2023, and the second was the Health Professionals Follow-up Study which gathered health data from male health professionals from 1986 through alcoholism and dementia 2023. There are some lifestyle behaviours with enough evidence to show that changing them will reduce your risk of dementia.

Their caffeine intake was calculated using food frequency questionnaires conducted every two to four years. Participants were drug addiction also asked about changes they had noticed in their memory, attention, and other cognitive skills. Some 17,000 people completed telephone tests of cognitive function, conducted several times during the study period. “Our study suggests that caffeinated coffee or tea consumption can be one piece of that puzzle.”

Moderate Alcohol Intake and Dementia Risk in Older Adults: Protective Effect or Persistent Myth?

In total, more than 5,000 articles were considered; about 400 are herein referenced. The brains of participants who were drinking three units of alcohol a day over the previous month had reductions in both white and gray matter, making their brains appear three and a half years older. For reference, one unit is considered a half pint of beer or a small glass of wine. ARD is a type of cognitive impairment that occurs as a result of heavy alcohol consumption over a long period.

CSF and blood biomarkers

While the researchers point out that their study – like all studies of this kind – is observational, not causal, they do offer some reasons why the relationship between caffeine intake and lowered dementia risk might exist. It is clear that excessive drinking increases a person’s risk of dementia compared with not drinking at all. A small number of studies seem to suggest that drinking moderate amounts of alcohol reduces dementia risk compared to not drinking at all. Despite some claims, drinking alcohol in moderation has not been shown to offer significant protection against developing dementia. So if you do not currently drink alcohol, you should not start as a way to reduce dementia risk.

More in Health

• Caffeine may interfere with processes in the brain that allow the buildup of harmful proteins like amyloid beta that are linked to Alzheimer’s disease, a common form of dementia, Dr. Chen says.
• Researchers also determined the optimal number of cups, or 8-ounce servings, of each beverage.
• Note that alcohol-related dementia is sometimes confused with Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome.

Alcohol-induced dementia can affect anyone, regardless of age, gender, or body type. It develops from long-term, heavy drinking of any kind of alcohol—beer, wine, spirits, or liquor. While moderate drinking (a few drinks per week) is generally considered safe, frequent intoxication depletes the body of nutrients, damages the brain, and harms vital organs like the liver, kidneys, and pancreas.

Aside from caffeine, coffee and tea contain polyphenols, compounds which scientists believe contribute to heart health, reduced inflammation, improved gut health and lower blood sugar. The researchers said both compounds may contribute to improved cognitive functioning. Another question the researchers hope to tackle in the future is whether caffeine’s effects may vary depending on how an individual metabolizes the stimulant. While some people can consume caffeinated drinks late in the day and still sleep well at night, Zhang noted that others experience insomnia. Consuming too much caffeine can also contribute to other health risks, including anxiety, rapid heart rate, digestive problems and blood pressure spikes. In terms of total caffeine intake, researchers found that people who consumed more caffeine had a lower risk of dementia.