Coffee is good for you – why can’t people seem to get that? Though coffee does have its adverse effects, it does have good benefits! Yeah, I am biased, but this new research adds more proof to the concept that coffee can be good for the health.
According to research carried out by scientists from the North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, a coffee a day keeps dementia away. The findings of the research were published in the Journal of Neuroinflammation and showed that daily doses of caffeine prevents the destructive effects of high cholesterol levels, which have been linked to occurrences of dementia, of which Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form.
The scientists used rabbits in their study and gave the little critters 3 mg of caffeine daily. This is roundabouts a cup of coffee. The rabbits were also given a very rich cholesterol diet during the course of the study. The indicator used was the blood brain barrier – which was more significantly intact in the rabbits that were dosed with caffeine.
According to the report published by the Press Assocation:
Jonathan Geiger, of the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, said: “For the first time we have shown that chronic ingestion of caffeine protects the blood brain barrier from cholesterol-induced leakage.”
He added: “Caffeine is a safe and readily available drug and its ability to stabilise the blood-brain barrier means it could have an important part to play in therapies against neurological disorders.”
The research confirms earlier studies showing that caffeine intake protects against memory loss in ageing and in Alzheimer’s disease.
I have always thought that coffee was good for my sanity – and I was right all along!
Originally posted on April 5, 2008 @ 4:30 am