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.
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."
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.
LOL
So my coffee IV is not good for me? Who would have known.
THIS WEEK:
COFFEE BAD!........................
“Two in the morning and that’s it...”
Cups or pots?
Two in the morning for me, too. If I have an afternoon cup, I have decaf. I have three exceptions: Because of a different schedule, I allow myself more on Sunday, although it's been months since I wanted more than two cups. I also allow myself to drink as much coffee as I want when I'm making long drives. Finally, I allow myself unlimited coffee when I'm camping but once again, I seldom go much beyond two cups. No coffee tastes better than on a pleasantly cool summer morning in camp in the North Idaho forests with the smell of a bacon and eggs breakfast being prepared.
I have found that when I cut back on coffee consumption, I really started to enjoy it much more.
“Those who drank more than six cups of coffee per day had a 53% increased risk of dementia, as well as smaller brain volume.”
correlation is not causation ... did this study control for the other gazillion potential confounding variables? ... of course not ... AND self-reported food/beverage/behavior studies are the weakest studies of them all, verging on being practically useless ... except of course for snagging taxpayer funded grants ...
Per the actual article:
High coffee consumption, brain volume and risk of dementia and stroke
ABSTRACT
Background
Coffee is a highly popular beverage worldwide, containing caffeine which is a central nervous system stimulant.
Objectives
We examined whether habitual coffee consumption is associated with differences in brain volumes or the odds of dementia or stroke.
Methods
We conducted prospective analyses of habitual coffee consumption on 398,646 UK Biobank participants (age 37–73 years), including 17,702 participants with MRI information. We examined the associations with brain volume using covariate adjusted linear regression, and with odds of dementia (4,333 incident cases) and stroke (6,181 incident cases) using logistic regression.
Results
There were inverse linear associations between habitual coffee consumption and total brain (fully adjusted β per cup −1.42, 95% CI −1.89, −0.94), grey matter (β −0.91, 95% CI −1.20, −0.62), white matter (β −0.51, 95% CI −0.83, −0.19) and hippocampal volumes (β −0.01, 95% CI −0.02, −0.003), but no evidence to support an association with white matter hyperintensity (WMH) volume (β −0.01, 95% CI −0.07, 0.05).
The association between coffee consumption and dementia was non-linear (Pnon-linearity = 0.0001), with evidence for higher odds for non-coffee and decaffeinated coffee drinkers and those drinking >6 cups/day, compared to light coffee drinkers. After full covariate adjustment, consumption of >6 cups/day was associated with 53% higher odds of dementia compared to consumption of 1–2 cups/day (fully adjusted OR 1.53, 95% CI 1.28, 1.83), with less evidence for an association with stroke (OR 1.17, 95% CI 1.00, 1.37, p = 0.055).
Conclusion
High coffee consumption was associated with smaller total brain volumes and increased odds of dementia.
My excerpt from above:
“with evidence for higher odds for non-coffee and decaffeinated coffee drinkers and those drinking >6 cups/day, compared to light coffee drinkers.”
Guess I need a bigger cup so I can drink fewer cups per day.
With all these “studies,” I remain skeptical about the conclusions that are drawn. There should be no conclusions, since the “studies” ONLY show a correlation. Most of the time there is no proof of causation. But that doesn’t stop commentators from saying there is causation.
It’s quite possible that people who are already feeling the effects of dementia drink a lot of coffee because it gives them a boost, and some added mental clarity.
Not only is the “study” on shaky ground, but it’s unrealistic. Very few people drink that much coffee, but those who do, that I know, are very active high achievers.
You're OK. You're measuring in milliliters not cups.
This is a population analysis through a national database. It is not an experiment. Thus, the specific attributes of data variables may NOT be well defined.
You could say it is a correlational analysis which does not show cause and effect.
Coffee bad, coffee good, coffee bad, coffee good, coffee bad coffee good, and that’s just the past two months. Do what you want, and you have to die of something.
3 Sources/References for article
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1028415X.2021.1945858
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20182054/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5696634/
p
two in the morning.. YES! and POSSIBLY one in he afternoon. NEVER over 3.....
8 oz cups here!
yeah!!!! YES!
So average cup size for coffee is 6 oz per cup. That means in excess of 36oz is potentially hazardous to your brain health. I guess I’m good at my 36 oz mug.
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