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Research Finds This Amount Of Coffee Can Adversely Affect Brain Health
MindBodyGreen ^ | 01/06/2025 | Sarah Regan

Posted on 01/06/2025 8:04:04 AM PST by SeekAndFind

For many of us, that morning cup of coffee feels essential to getting the day started. And while some research has shown moderate coffee intake can be beneficial, how much is too much?

That's what researchers from Australia wanted to know, and they published their findings in the journal Nutritional Neuroscience.

Studying how high doses of coffee affect the brain

Researchers from the University of South Australia wanted to know how coffee affects the brain (specifically, brain volume, and the risk of dementia and stroke). They studied the effects of coffee on nearly 18,000 people between the ages of 37 and 73, making this the largest study of its kind.

Based on their findings, it seems coffee in excess doesn't reap the same brain benefits as coffee in moderation. Those who drank more than six cups of coffee per day had a 53% increased risk of dementia, as well as smaller brain volume.

As study co-author and Ph.D. candidate Kitty Pham explains in a news release , "We consistently found that higher coffee consumption was significantly associated with reduced brain volume—essentially, drinking more than six cups of coffee a day may be putting you at risk of brain diseases such as dementia and stroke."

As professor and study co-author Elina Hyppönen, Ph.D., MPH, MSc, notes in the release, the exact mechanisms behind why excess coffee consumption can have negative effects aren't fully understood. However, she says, "One simple thing we can do is to keep hydrated and remember to drink a bit of water alongside that cup of coffee."

Don't ditch the coffee just yet

Don't fret, coffee lovers! This research only linked the adverse effects on the brain to excessive coffee intake (over six cups per day). Moderate caffeine intake, on the other hand, has actually been positively associated with brain health.

According to one 2010 study, drinking three to five cups of coffee per day while middle-aged was associated with a decreased risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease by about 65% later in life.

On top of that, coffee is a good source of antioxidant polyphenols and trigonelline, which support cognitive functioning and may lower the risk of memory loss, nutritional psychiatrist Uma Naidoo, M.D., previously explained to mbg.

Additional research also suggests coffee has beneficial impacts on brain health , fatty liver, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome.

The takeaway

"Everything in moderation" is the key takeaway here. You don't have to give up your morning brew, but if you're reaching for your seventh cup of the day, you might want to pump the brakes and find energy elsewhere: Take a cat nap, fit in a quick workout, and consider how you can get better sleep at night and wake up more refreshed.


TOPICS: Food; Health/Medicine; Science; Society
KEYWORDS: alzheimers; brain; coffee
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1 posted on 01/06/2025 8:04:04 AM PST by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

Heresy! Worthy of Exterminatus!


2 posted on 01/06/2025 8:06:51 AM PST by Skwor
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To: SeekAndFind

More correlation vs. cause and effect BS for the non-analytical. So, 5 cups is great and 6 will kill you deader than Hell. Just clickbait. Why post such nonsense?


3 posted on 01/06/2025 8:09:15 AM PST by FirstFlaBn
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To: SeekAndFind

Two in the morning and that’s it, maybe, maybe one in the afternoon ....


4 posted on 01/06/2025 8:10:24 AM PST by SkyDancer ( ~ Am Yisrael Chai ~)
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To: SeekAndFind

I could see how it would impact brain volume since caffeine is a diuretic...so less water, less sloshy sloshy in the cranium.


5 posted on 01/06/2025 8:12:04 AM PST by reed13k
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To: SeekAndFind

Must this be ‘coffee’ or would equivalent benefits/ side effects be found in taking a 200 mg caffeine pill?
Sometimes, I don’t want to drink anything, but only want the perky boost of caffeine.


6 posted on 01/06/2025 8:12:10 AM PST by lee martell
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To: SeekAndFind

7 posted on 01/06/2025 8:12:37 AM PST by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: FirstFlaBn

RE: Why post such nonsense?

So that readers like you can critique it and tell us why studies like the one made by University of South Australia ( in the article ) is bunk.


8 posted on 01/06/2025 8:14:43 AM PST by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

Well, what size cup do they measure?


9 posted on 01/06/2025 8:15:22 AM PST by odawg
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To: dfwgator

Is that a meme about ex-wives or coffee?


10 posted on 01/06/2025 8:16:04 AM PST by ansel12 ((NATO warrior under Reagan, and RA under Nixon, bemoaning the pro-Russians from Vietnam to Ukraine.))
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To: odawg

I would guess, regular size cups that are usually served.


11 posted on 01/06/2025 8:16:06 AM PST by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

Those who drank more than six cups of coffee per day had a 53% increased risk of dementia, as well as smaller brain volume.


That explains a lot - I used to drink a quart or more of Espresso a day while fishing commercially.


12 posted on 01/06/2025 8:18:13 AM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now its your turn)
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To: PIF

for 30 years


13 posted on 01/06/2025 8:18:32 AM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now its your turn)
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To: SeekAndFind
Pretty worthless article, unless one dives deep into the actual research papers (which I don't have time to do at the moment).

Yawn.
14 posted on 01/06/2025 8:18:50 AM PST by dayglored (This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalms 118:24)
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To: SeekAndFind

“”Everything in moderation” is the key takeaway here.”

Many of us almost instinctively know this.


15 posted on 01/06/2025 8:19:26 AM PST by plain talk
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To: SeekAndFind

16 posted on 01/06/2025 8:19:58 AM PST by stars & stripes forever (Blessed is the nation whose GOD is the LORD. (Psalm 33:12))
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To: SeekAndFind

17 posted on 01/06/2025 8:22:18 AM PST by stars & stripes forever (Blessed is the nation whose GOD is the LORD. (Psalm 33:12))
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To: PIF
> ... I used to drink a quart or more of Espresso a day...

I make my coffee from very dark/espresso beans, but run some additional water through, so it comes out like heavy-duty coffee but not true espresso. And I use the equivalent of 4 "shots" worth, all in one big 16-oz cup. That's my one "cup" of coffee for the day, but it's a serious cup. LOL

18 posted on 01/06/2025 8:23:02 AM PST by dayglored (This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalms 118:24)
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To: odawg

I think most coffeemakers have their capacities marked in six-ounce cups. I drink two 14-ounce mugs of coffee most mornings, but I put water in the coffeemaker to the six-cup line.


19 posted on 01/06/2025 8:23:03 AM PST by HartleyMBaldwin
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To: SeekAndFind

THIS WEEK:

COFFEE BAD!........................


20 posted on 01/06/2025 8:23:12 AM PST by Red Badger (Homeless veterans camp in the streets while illegals are put up in 5 Star hotels....................)
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