Coffee News
Daily caffeine 'protects brain'
The easy way to neutralise cholesterol?
Coffee may cut the risk of dementia by blocking the damage cholesterol can inflict on the body, research suggests.
The drink has already been linked to a lower risk of Alzheimer's Disease, and a study by a US team for the Journal of Neuroinflammation may explain why.
A vital barrier between the brain and the main blood supply of rabbits fed a fat-rich diet was protected in those given a caffeine supplement.
UK experts said it was the "best evidence yet" of coffee's benefits.
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
Dr Jonathan Geiger
University of North Dakota
The "blood brain barrier" is a filter which protects the central nervous system from potentially harmful chemicals carried around in the rest of the bloodstream.
Other studies have shown that high levels of cholesterol in the blood can make this barrier "leaky".
Alzheimer's researchers suggest this makes the brain vulnerable to damage which can trigger or contribute to the condition.
The University of North Dakota study used the equivalent to just one daily cup of coffee in their experiments on rabbits.
After 12 weeks of a high-cholesterol diet, the blood brain barrier in those given caffeine was far more intact than in those given no caffeine.
'Safe drug'
"Caffeine appears to block several of the disruptive effects of cholesterol that make the blood-brain barrier leaky," said Dr Jonathan Geiger, who led the study.
"High levels of cholesterol are a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease, perhaps by compromising the protective nature of the blood brain barrier.
"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."
A spokesman for the Alzheimer's Society said that the barrier seemed to work less efficiently in people who went on to develop Alzheimer's or suffer strokes, and the cholesterol link might explain this.
"This is the best evidence yet that caffeine equivalent to one cup of coffee a day can help protect the brain against cholesterol.
"In addition to its effect on the vascular system, elevated cholesterol levels also cause problems with the blood brain barrier."
She called for more research into whether the same effect could be seen in humans.
Coffee 'may reverse Alzheimer's'
Drinking five cups of coffee a day could reverse memory problems seen in Alzheimer's disease, US scientists say.
The Florida research, carried out on mice, also suggested caffeine hampered the production of the protein plaques which are the hallmark of the disease.
Previous research has also suggested a protective effect from caffeine.
But British experts said the Journal of Alzheimer's disease study did not mean that dementia patients should start using caffeine supplements.
"The results are particularly exciting in that a reversal of pre-existing memory impairment is more difficult to achieve"
Dr Gary Arendash
University of South Florida
The 55 mice used in the University of South Florida study had been bred to develop symptoms of Alzheimer's disease.
First the researchers used behavioural tests to confirm the mice were exhibiting signs of memory impairment when they were aged 18 to 19 months, the equivalent to humans being about 70.
Then they gave half the mice caffeine in their drinking water. The rest were given plain water.
The mice were given the equivalent of five 8 oz (227 grams) cups of coffee a day - about 500 milligrams of caffeine.
The researchers say this is the same as is found in two cups of "specialty" coffees such as lattes or cappuccinos from coffee shops, 14 cups of tea, or 20 soft drinks.
When the mice were tested again after two months, those who were given the caffeine performed much better on tests measuring their memory and thinking skills and performed as well as mice of the same age without dementia.
Those drinking plain water continued to do poorly on the tests.
In addition, the brains of the mice given caffeine showed nearly a 50% reduction in levels of the beta amyloid protein, which forms destructive clumps in the brains of dementia patients.
Further tests suggested caffeine affects the production of both the enzymes needed to produce beta amyloid.
The researchers also suggest that caffeine suppresses inflammatory changes in the brain that lead to an overabundance of the protein.
Earlier research by the same team had shown younger mice, who had also been bred to develop Alzheimer's but who were given caffeine in their early adulthood, were protected against the onset of memory problems.
'Safe drug'
Dr Gary Arendash, who led the latest study, told the BBC: "The results are particularly exciting in that a reversal of pre-existing memory impairment is more difficult to achieve."
"They provide evidence that caffeine could be a viable 'treatment' for established Alzheimer's disease and not simply a protective strategy."
"That's important because caffeine is a safe drug for most people, it easily enters the brain, and it appears to directly affect the disease process."
The team now hope to begin human trials of caffeine to see if the mouse findings are replicated in people.
They do not know if a lower amount of caffeine would be as effective, but said most people could safely consume the 500 milligrams per day.
However they said people with high blood pressure, and pregnant women, should limit their daily caffeine intake.
Rebecca Wood, chief executive of the Alzheimer's Research Trust, said: "In this study on mice with symptoms of Alzheimer's, researchers found that caffeine boosted their memory. We need to do more research to find out whether this effect will be seen in people.
"It is too early to say whether drinking coffee or taking caffeine supplements will help people with Alzheimer's."
Neil Hunt, chief executive of the Alzheimer's Society, said previous research into caffeine had suggested it could delay Alzheimer's disease and even protect against vascular dementia.
"This research in mice suggests that coffee may actually reverse some element of memory impairment."
"However much more research is needed to determine whether drinking coffee has the same impact in people."
"It is too soon to say whether a cup of coffee is anything more than a pleasant pick me up."
Coffee & Tea Repair Damaged Skin
Like a snake oil salesman with cure-alls and spiritual remedies, BioMed Central recently claimed that green tea has medicinal powers too. In the report recently released by the London-based biomedical firm, green tea extract was found to help heal skin damaged from radiation therapy.
The report, released in December of last year, found the majority of test subjects who applied green tea extract over skin damaged by radiotherapy saw significant skin improvement. The success rate may be due to the powerful extracts green tea releases.
“The thinking is that green tea contains polyphenols - black tea does as well, but green tea may contain more,” said Dr. Emily Senay in a recent interview.
Senay, a graduate of New York’s Mount Sinai School of Medicine and longtime anchor of the Medical News Network, said the study conducted on 60 people found that after 16 days, the people who applied the green tea extract saw some skin improvement, while the people who applied black tea to the affected areas saw improvement after 22 days – six days longer than green tea. Just imagine the results if they tested it on more than 60 people for more than a month.
But tea isn’t the only thing working to improve the look of skin nowadays. Coffee powder from green coffee beans has been shown to provide antioxidant benefits as well - but people have known that for years it seems.
For generations Russian bathhouses have been using coffee as a natural antioxidant and astringent. Anti-oxidants play an important role in fighting off free radicals, according to scientists at Scranton University. Left to their own devices, free radicals would attack and kill cells – thus speeding up the aging process.
And who wants that? So drink up.
Did you know?
Despite its Italian-sounding name, the espresso machine was actually first invented in France.
A prototype appeared there in 1822, but it took over a hundred years for the actual invention of the espresso machine we know today. The modern espresso machine was invented in Italy by Achilles Gaggia in 1946.
