Thursday, April 03, 2008

Daily caffeine 'protects brain'

Coffee may cut the risk of dementia by blocking the damage cholesterol can inflict on the body, research suggests.

The drink has already been linked to a lower risk of Alzheimer's Disease, and a study by a US team for the Journal of Neuroinflammation may explain why.

A vital barrier between the brain and the main blood supply of rabbits fed a fat-rich diet was protected in those given a caffeine supplement.

UK experts said it was the "best evidence yet" of coffee's benefits.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Jumpin' Jesus on a pogo stick, what started as a minor poison to dissuade critters from snacking is now something that's good for us. Black is white! 2+2 = 5! People are Nature's spin doctors. What'll we do next?

But seriously... you don't have a "caffeine" category tag?

Mac said...

But seriously... you don't have a "caffeine" category tag?

Not yet!

Anonymous said...

Well, all I can say, considering my own coffee habits (usually one or two large, strong coffees in the morning) is that my brain, soaked in caffeine, must now be very well protected from cholesterol and the incipient effects of Alzheimer's!!! 8^}

But, what about the negative side-effects? "Dosage," type of coffee, and other health and genetic factors must be considered before one becomes, as I have infrequently, "Mr. Too-Much- Coffeman (ala the old MadTV sketches)...don't want to over medicate my brain, or have my eyes mounted on boingy springs protruding from my skull!

Anonymous said...

I drink four cups of (strong) regular coffee on weekdays, only one usually on weekend days and holidays just to get me going in the morning. I try to space my caffeine hits out and usually succeed, starting at around 8-9, then 12, then 4, then about 6, and not usually anything after that unless I'm really dragging.

A couple of years ago, to get my blood pressure down, I tried going without caffeine altogether. Not only did my blood pressure not go down (took medication to fix that) but I generally felt like shit. I think many smokers experience something similar around tobacco but at least caffeine sounds a lot healthier. Hopefully.

Although I have to say, I strongly suspect that researchers in these types of studies find what they want to find. It wouldn't surprise me if the people who came up with this study like putting away a few lattes every day....

Anonymous said...

Although I very occasionally have to slap myself with a cup of coffee on certain particularly slow and brutal mornings, I'm pretty much coffee free these days. A couple years ago I was having anxiety issues, and coffee, even the half-caf mix I was drinking at the time, really exacerbated the problem. I've since moved to green teas, which also have added health benefits, aside from dementia preventing caffeine.

It's too bad the BBC article shills for coffee specifically, though.

"UK experts said it was the "best evidence yet" of coffee's benefits."

I wonder what Terence McKenna would have to say about the coffee-centric slant of the article.

Anonymous said...

"But Doctor! It's medicine!