Coffee’s Hidden Health Benefits

Do you need a reason, besides a jolt of chilled refreshment, to pour a cup of your favorite blend of coffee over ice?

According to a study done at the University of South Florida, “Caffeine Reverses Memory Impairment in Mice With Alzheimer’s Symptoms,” coffee drinkers may have a reason rather than cooling off to have an extra shot. Aged mice bred to develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease were given the equivalent of five cups of coffee, (500 mg of caffeine) and their memory impairment reversed.

The study was published online in July 2009 in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease. The caffeine administered, significantly decreased abnormal levels of amyloid protein linked to Alzheimer’s disease in the brain and blood of 55 mice examined. The research also suggested caffeine suppresses inflammatory changes that lead to an excess of beta amyloid in the brain.

Further research on the coffee crop is being done at the Vanderbilt University Institute for Coffee Studies, which is dedicated to investigating the health effects and potential therapeutic properties of the pharmacological components of coffee. The ICS seeks to expand its mission on the world’s “second most important” commodity (coffee) beyond biomedical aspects to include historical, literary, anthropological, sociological and economic properties.

Recent research at the University includes coffee’s impact on reducing the use of other vices such as alcohol and nicotine. Coffee can potentially reduce the risk of type II diabetes and Parkinson’s disease, as cited by researchers at Vanderbilt’s school of medicine. The premise is: compounds in coffee, given to rats, enhance the ability of the liver to burn sugar, similarly to anti-diabetic medications.

If sipping a cup of icy French roast brewed alongside complimentary frozen coffee ice cubes, doesn’t sound appealing, or there is a caffeine aversion, you might consider this alternative: sleep. A study done at the University of California, San Diego, Department of Psychiatry proposes that napping has been shown to increase alertness and promote learning on some memory tasks more than caffeine.

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