When I read something which I think is potentially medically important for my readers to know about, I feel that it is my duty to pass it on.
As an aside when I was working, I used to drink three, four, or five cups of coffee per day. Furthermore, I would drink coffee after dinner and go right to sleep soon thereafter. Back then ‘De-caf’ was not in my vocabulary. Now I still drink coffee, but am down to two or three cups per day … again leaded, and not the unleaded variety.
So far I do not think that I have dementia. Is this coincidental or perhaps cause-and-effect related to my long term chronic coffee intake? I can almost hear most of you scoffing … but read the following and then reconsider.
From Epoch Health:
“A 2016 study published in the Journals of Gerontology, tracked 6,467 women aged 65 and above for up to 10 years, investigating the relationship between caffeine intake and cognitive impairment or probable dementia.
The study findings suggested an inverse association between caffeine intake and age-related cognitive dysfunction. Older women with higher than the median caffeine intake were found to be less likely to suffer from dementia or age-related cognitive impairment. The median level of caffeine consumption was 261 mg, equivalent to three 8-ounce cups of coffee, or six cups of black tea.”
Okay. So women might benefit from coffee, but what about men?
“Another study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2007 found that drinking coffee can reduce cognitive decline in older males. A total of 676 healthy older men from Finland, Italy, and the Netherlands, born between 1900 and 1920, participated in the 10-year prospective group study. The study suggests that elderly men who do not drink coffee have a higher cognitive decline than coffee drinkers, with the least cognitive decline for those who drink three cups of coffee daily.”
If three cups of coffee a day is good, could six cups be better?
“Compared with participants who only drink a small amount of coffee, research (research which analyzed the coffee-drinking habits of 398,646 British Biological Sample Bank participants between 37 and 73 years old and examined the associations with brain volume and with the incidence of dementia and stroke.) showed that people who drink over six cups of coffee per day, are 53 percent more likely to suffer from senile dementia than those who drink one to two cups daily, with less evidence of an association with stroke.”
Is the beneficial effect of caffeine limited to the risk of dementia?
“A study published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology in 2022 showed that two to three cups of coffee a day could significantly lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and death compared with non-coffee drinkers.
A review published in the British Medical Journal in 2017 found that consuming up to four cups of coffee daily can minimize specific health risks compared with no coffee intake, including all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, cardiovascular diseases, and liver and kidney diseases”
Ergo, in my opinion, an impressive array of data suggests that coffee is indeed good for a lot of individuals. However, I must advise some caution, as in certain individuals coffee can have some adverse effects. (Furthermore … my opinions should not be construed as medical advice.)
4/26/24