New Study Says Caffeine Slows Alzheimer's, Other
Dementias, Restores Cognitive Function
Positive impact of caffeine on cognition and memory
performance, other benefits of caffeine in special supplement to the
Journal of Alzheimer's Disease
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, May 17, 2010 - Although
caffeine is the most widely consumed psychoactive drug worldwide and a
particular favorite for senior citizens who thrive on coffee, its
potential beneficial effect for maintenance of proper brain functioning
has only recently begun to be adequately appreciated. The latest
research says caffeine may be protective against the cognitive decline
seen in dementia and Alzheimer's disease (AD).
Coffee, the favorite drink of senior citizens, sure
to get more popular with discovery of the memory recovery power of five cups
a day that reduces beta-amyloid protein in blood
A special supplement to the Journal of
Alzheimer's Disease, "Therapeutic Opportunities for Caffeine in
Alzheimer's Disease and Other Neurodegenerative Diseases," sheds new
light on this topic and presents key findings based on substantial
evidence from epidemiological studies and fundamental research in animal
models.
A group of international experts were organized to
explore the effects of caffeine on the brain by guest editors Alexandre
de Mendonça, Institute of Molecular Medicine and Faculty of Medicine,
University of Lisbon, Portugal, and Rodrigo A. Cunha, Center for
Neuroscience and Cell Biology of Coimbra and Faculty of Medicine,
University of Coimbra, Portugal.
The resulting collection of original studies
conveys multiple perspectives on topics ranging from molecular targets
of caffeine, neurophysiological modifications and adaptations, to the
potential mechanisms underlying the behavioral and neuroprotective
actions of caffeine in distinct brain pathologies.
"Epidemiological studies first revealed an inverse
association between the chronic consumption of caffeine and the
incidence of Parkinson's disease," according to Mendonça and Cunha.
"This was paralleled by animal studies of
Parkinson's disease showing that caffeine prevented motor deficits as
well as neurodegeneration.
"Later a few epidemiological studies showed that
the consumption of moderate amounts of caffeine was inversely associated
with the cognitive decline associated with aging as well as the
incidence of Alzheimer's disease. Again, this was paralleled by animal
studies showing that chronic caffeine administration prevented memory
deterioration and neurodegeneration in animal models of aging and of
Alzheimer's disease."
Key findings presented in "Therapeutic
Opportunities for Caffeine in Alzheimer's Disease and Other
Neurodegenerative Diseases":
● Multiple beneficial effects of caffeine to
normalize brain function and prevent its degeneration
● Caffeine's neuroprotective profile and its
ability to reduce amyloid-beta production
● Caffeine as a candidate disease-modifying
agent for Alzheimer's disease
● Positive impact of caffeine on cognition and
memory performance
● Identification of adenosine A2A receptors as
the main target for neuroprotection afforded by caffeine consumption
● Confirmation of data through valuable
meta-analyses presented
● Epidemiological studies corroborated by
meta-analysis suggesting that caffeine may be protective against
Parkinson's disease
● Several methodological issues must be solved
before advancing to decisive clinical trials
Mendonça and Cunha also observe that "the daily
follow-up of patients with AD has taught us that improvement of daily
living may be a more significant indicator of amelioration than slight
improvements in objective measures of memory performance.
"One of the
most prevalent complications of AD is depression of mood, and the recent
observations that caffeine might be a mood normalizer are of particular
interest."
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, May 17, 2010 - Although
caffeine is the most widely consumed psychoactive drug worldwide and a
particular favorite for senior citizens who thrive on coffee, its
potential beneficial effect for maintenance of proper brain functioning
has only recently begun to be adequately appreciated. The latest
research says caffeine may be protective against the cognitive decline
seen in dementia and Alzheimer's disease (AD).