Drink coffee to keep your brain healthy as you age

Coffee is perhaps one of the most controversial drinks. Numerous studies show both the harm and health benefits of coffee. For example, in a recent study, researchers found that drinking coffee over a lifetime may help you avoid a common neurodegenerative disease in old age. We are talking about Parkinson's disease, which leads to disability and the need for outside help. In addition, this disease most often develops along with dementia, characterized by a sharp decline in mental abilities. However, it is still unknown how and what substances in this drink protect the brain from disease.

Drink coffee to keep your brain healthy as you age. Coffee may protect your brain from neurodegenerative disease. Photo.

Coffee may protect your brain from neurodegenerative disease

Benefits of coffee – drink reduces the risk of Parkinson's disease

In a recent study, an international team of scientists examined data from more than 180 thousand people and concluded that people who drink coffee have a lower risk of developing the disease compared to those who do not drink coffee at all.

Parkinson's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that leads to the destruction and death of neurons that produce the neurotransmitter dopamine. Characteristic symptoms of Parkinson's disease are severe tremors, decreased motor activity, decreased human stability, etc.

To get more information, scientists recruited hundreds of people with Parkinson's disease and measured the levels of caffeine metabolites (metabolized products) in the blood: paraxanthine and theophylline. As it turned out, these metabolites have an inverse relationship with the risk of the disease, that is, the more of these substances in the blood, the lower the risk of developing Parkinson's disease.

The benefits of coffee - the drink reduces the risk of Parkinson's disease. Parkinson's disease develops in old age. Photo.

Parkinson's disease develops in old age

As mentioned above, the study does not say anything about what causes these properties of coffee. Most likely, paraxanthine and theophylline themselves do not have healing properties, but are only a marker indicating coffee consumption. However, this is not the first study that has shown that consumption of this drink, if not prevents, then reduces the risk of Parkinson's disease.

How good is coffee for the brain

As researchers report in Neurology, the richest 25% of coffee drinkers had a 40% reduced risk of developing Parkinson's disease compared to those who didn't drink the drink at all. In general, coffee consumption reduces the risk of disease from 5 to 63%, depending on the person’s country of residence.

Of course, many other factors also affect the risk of disease, such as smoking, alcohol abuse, etc. But even with these factors, coffee consumption has a positive effect.

How good is coffee for the brain? Coffee consumption reduces the risk of developing Parkinson's disease by up to 63%. Photo.

Coffee consumption reduces the risk of developing Parkinson's disease by up to 63%

Why coffee protects the brain from Parkinson's disease

< p>Conclusions regarding the reasons for the beneficial properties of coffee can be drawn based on previous studies. They suggest that caffeine has a beneficial effect because it supports the flow of dopamine into the brain. Let us remember that dopamine is a neurotransmitter and a hormone that makes us feel pleasure.

The fact is that with Parkinson's disease, there is a decrease in the level of dopamine in the brain due to the loss of nerve cells, which belong to the so-called substantia nigra. It is these cells that are responsible for the production of this neurotransmitter. This finding is consistent with the results of the current study, that is, an inverse relationship was found between the level of caffeine metabolites and the incidence of Parkinson's disease.

However, scientists to this day do not know exactly why this neurodegenerative disease occurs in the brain. Accordingly, it is even more difficult to understand what exactly prevents it. But given that caffeine affects neurons in the brain, it is not surprising that it also has an impact on the risk of disease.

Why coffee protects the brain from Parkinson's disease. Presumably, caffeine, which is contained in coffee beans, has beneficial properties for the brain. Photo.

Presumably, caffeine, which is found in coffee beans, has beneficial properties for the brain

By the way, in addition to the positive properties that caffeine may have on the brain, there are also negative ones. For example, as one recent study showed, caffeine interferes with learning, so it is not recommended for schoolchildren and students to drink it.

As the researchers report, it is now extremely important to find out what triggers Parkinson's disease and how to prevent the disease. The fact is that the number of cases of the disease is increasing in the world. According to official data, it affects from 60 to 140 people per 100 thousand population. In the United States alone, approximately one million people are currently diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

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And finally, let us remind coffee lovers that this drink is best drunk with milk. In this case, beneficial polyphenols will enter the body. How they are useful and why they are necessary for the body can be found out at the link.


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