A new French study has found that coffee might be good not just for a morning fix but for preserving the memory and cognitive skills of older women. The study, which observed more than 7,000 elderly men and women, found that women who drank three or more cups of coffee a day were 30 percent less likely to suffer from memory loss at age 65 than those who drank only one cup or less. And this is a benefit that only increases with age: women over 80 who drank three or more cups of coffee a day were 70 percent less likely to have a memory decline than those who drank one cup or less. Caffeinated tea also had a similar effect, but more was needed to get the same boost of caffeine as in coffee, according to the French National Institute for Health and Medical Research. According to the researchers, caffeine is a cognitive stimulant that helps reduce the protein beta amyloid, which is responsible for Alzheimer’s disease when it accumulates. Strangely, the same effect was not observed among men. Scientists surmise that women may metabolize caffeine differently from men, or an interaction with the sex hormones may affect how caffeine is processed.
Caffeine May Reduce Memory Decline Among Elderly
Posted by Nirmala N.
A new French study has found that coffee might be good not just for a morning fix but for preserving the memory and cognitive skills of older women. The study, which observed more than 7,000 elderly men and women, found that women who drank three or more cups of coffee a day were 30 percent less likely to suffer from memory loss at age 65 than those who drank only one cup or less. And this is a benefit that only increases with age: women over 80 who drank three or more cups of coffee a day were 70 percent less likely to have a memory decline than those who drank one cup or less. Caffeinated tea also had a similar effect, but more was needed to get the same boost of caffeine as in coffee, according to the French National Institute for Health and Medical Research. According to the researchers, caffeine is a cognitive stimulant that helps reduce the protein beta amyloid, which is responsible for Alzheimer’s disease when it accumulates. Strangely, the same effect was not observed among men. Scientists surmise that women may metabolize caffeine differently from men, or an interaction with the sex hormones may affect how caffeine is processed.