Can Coffee Combat Alzheimer's?

Are
you a coffee person? Do you know that over 2 billion people drink
coffee everyday?! There are many benefits of coffee, and this article
will tell you about the effect that coffee consumption has, on
Alzheimer's disease. Keep reading.

Do you wake up to the smell of
freshly brewed coffee every morning? Does a steaming cup of coffee
provide the kick you need, to start off your day? If yes, then rejoice!
Researchers have recently added another factor to the list of health
benefits of coffee. It now seems to be a potential viable treatment for
the irreversible Alzheimer's disease. Many experiments are being carried
out on people as well as animals, to ascertain the effects of caffeine
on memory. And, an as yet unidentified component of coffee, helps reduce
the levels of a protein in our brain, which is thought to cause
Alzheimer's...

A Little about Alzheimer's Disease

Before
trying to understand what is the cure for Alzheimer's, let us first
understand what this disease implies. Once we know that, we'll be better
able to understand how to combat it. Alzheimer's is a progressive
disease associated with memory. Short term memory is the first to be
affected, followed by long term memory. It starts off with the person
forgetting small things like keys, having lunch, forgetting some
occasions, etc., and then gradually progresses to a stage where he/she
cannot even remember their addresses, family members and friends, and
even their own name. The last stage is when, even basic things like
brushing, bathing, eating cannot be carried out by them, and they become
disoriented, utterly confused, suspicious, moody, and completely
incapable of caring for themselves.

Alzheimer's disease has many
indefinite causes ranging from genetic, hereditary, environmental, to
build up of a particular protein in the brain cells. Although a cure is
being worked on, it is better to keep in mind that right now,
Alzheimer's disease is not curable (symptoms can be cured, but not the
disease itself). The only thing that can be done, is delaying its onset
as much as possible. One of the causes of Alzheimer's is the build up of
a protein fragment called ABeta. One reason for the increase in the
chronic buildup of ABeta, is lack of sleep, since the production of
ABeta has a circadian rhythm (increases when awake, and falls when
asleep). Here is where coffee can help in delaying the onset of
Alzheimer's. Let's find out how...

How Coffee Helps in Combating Alzheimer's Disease

Improvement
in Functioning of the Brain: Our brain remains sharper for longer, the
more stimulation you give it. Other than the known methods of
stimulating the brain, like solving puzzles, logical problems, etc.,
coffee is known to stimulate the brain. On a daily basis, the caffeine
in coffee helps keep you alert and remove the cobwebs from your mind.
That is precisely why, students swear by a cup of coffee taken before
they sit down to study! It helps in better focusing. Stimulation of the
brain on a daily basis, in any way, helps delay the onset of
Alzheimer's.

* It is important to note that although coffee helps
in stimulating the brain, it is not an alternative to the intellectual
methods of stimulation (puzzles, Sudoku, scrabble, etc.). It is not
enough by itself, it is complimentary to these primary methods, in
proroguing the onset of Alzheimer's.

Helps in Reducing the
Production of ABeta: Recent experiments conducted on mice indicate, that
those given water with coffee perform much better than those given only
water, when tested for memory. It was found, that coffee helps counter
the production of ABeta, thus helping delay Alzheimer's. An unidentified
component of coffee (other than the main components, quinine and
caffeine), is the reason for this. And research is on to find which
component exactly is responsible.

Growth Factor and Other
Components: The blood levels in a growth factor commonly known as
Granulocyte Colony Stimulating Factor (GCSF), are low in Alzheimer's
patients as compared to others. Caffeine increases the blood levels in
this growth factor, helping ward off Alzheimer's. The anti-Inflammatory
compounds and the antioxidants present in coffee also help in the
prevention of Alzheimer's. Another research conducted on humans, showed
that those who had developed Alzheimer's, had consumed a lot less
caffeine in the past two decades of their lives, than those who had not
developed Alzheimer's.

Daily Coffee Intake

Statistics
reveal that the average American drinks around 2 cups of coffee on a
daily basis. According to the reports presented in Journal of
Alzheimer's Disease, the actual amount required is around 5 cups of
coffee daily! Though it may look like too much coffee to consume in a
single day, we have to remember that the caffeine content in every cup
is a lot less than the actual amount of coffee. This was, again,
concluded by the research carried out on mice. They were administered a
daily dose of 500 milligrams of caffeine, and positive effects were seen
in their memory over a couple of months. Translated in human terms,
this is equivalent to almost 5 medium cups of coffee. There are so many
types of coffee to choose from, go get your daily dose!