cup of cappuccino (Photo : Reuters)
Previous research has implied that coffee consumption could reduce the risk of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which has been linked to Alzheimer's Disease. However, findings from a new study suggest that the effect could be based on how a person's coffee drinking habits change in terms of the daily intake.
The study was co-authored by Dr. Vincenzo Solfrizzi of the University of Bari Aldo Moro in Italy. Its findings were published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.
Solfrizzi's research team conducted an examination of 1,445 people between the ages of 65 and 84. It was part of a larger Italian study.
Study participants' coffee drinking habits were monitored for 3.5 years on average. The frequency of MCI was also observed.
MCI is a decline in various cognitive abilities, such as thinking skills and memory. Around 10 to 20 percent of Americans aged 65 and older could have MCI, which can progress to Alzheimer's.
The study's results showed that the cognitively normal volunteers who upped their coffee drinking during the study to over one cup of Joe daily were two times as likely to develop MCI, according to Medical News Today. That was compared to those people who consumed one cup of coffee daily.
In addition, study participants who boosted their coffee drinking over time were about 1.5 times more probable to develop MCI than those whose consumption stayed stable. They drank just one cup daily.
On the other hand, volunteers who drank moderate daily amounts (one or two cups) had lower MCI risks. That was compared to the people who rarely or never drank the beverage.
The participants found no clear link between coffee drinking and MCI frequency among those who drank "high" amounts of java (over two cups daily). That was in comparison with volunteers who rarely or never drank the drink.
Solfrizzi's team said that more studies are needed. They would discover what powers coffee's defensive impact against MCI.
Meanwhile, a recent National institutes of Health (NIH) AARP Diet and Health Study focused on the link between coffee consumption and mortality. The researchers discovered that the quantity of coffee drunk had a negative relationship on the risk of death, according to National Monitor.
