STOCKHOLM, Sweden—Midlife coffee drinking can decrease the risk of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) later in life, according to the Finnish Cardiovascular Risk Factors, Aging and Dementia (CAIDE) Study, published in the January 2009 issue of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.
"We aimed to study the association between coffee and tea consumption at midlife and dementia/AD risk in late-life, because the long-term impact of caffeine on the central nervous system was still unknown, and as the pathologic processes leading to Alzheimer’s disease may start decades before the clinical manifestation of the disease," said lead researcher, associate professor Miia Kivipelto, from the University of Kuopio in Finland and Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm.
At the midlife examination, the consumption of coffee and tea was assessed with a previously validated semi-quantitative food-frequency questionnaire. Coffee drinking was categorized into three groups: 0-2 cups (low), 3-5 cups (moderate) and >5 cups (high) per day. Further, the question concerning tea consumption was dichotomized into those not drinking tea (0 cup/day) vs. those drinking tea (=1 cup/day).
The study found that coffee drinkers at midlife had lower risk for dementia and AD later in life compared to those drinking no or only little coffee. The lowest risk (65 percent decreased) was found among moderate coffee drinkers (drinking three to five cups of coffee/day). Adjustments for various confounders did not change the results. Tea drinking was relatively uncommon and was not associated with dementia/AD.
