Study finds coffee consumption linked to lower Parkinson’s risk
Scientists decided to investigate the relationship between coffee and Parkinson's disease. The results of this exploration are pretty surprising. Popular beverages can significantly reduce the risk of disease.
An international team of scientists determined that consuming caffeinated coffee might influence the risk of developing Parkinson's disease. An analysis from "Association of Coffee Consumption and Prediagnostic Caffeine Metabolites With Incident Parkinson Disease in a Population-Based Cohort" suggests that 25% of coffee drinkers had a 40% lower risk of developing Parkinson's disease compared to people who did not drink coffee at all.
"Bild" reports that scientists studied 184,024 people for 13 years. During further analysis of the results of hundreds of patients with Parkinson's disease, the concentrations of caffeine, paraxanthine (a chemical compound and psychoactive stimulant of the central nervous system with effects similar to caffeine), and theophylline (a chemical compound found in cocoa beans and tea leaves) in the blood were measured.
While the studies are inconclusive enough to determine direct cause and effect, they indicate that caffeine might protect the human brain.
Does caffeine protect against Parkinson's disease?
Based on previous studies, scientists believe that the reason might be the way caffeine affects dopamine flow in the brain.
Onet highlights that Parkinson's disease causes a decrease in dopamine levels in the brain due to the loss of nerve cells. However, it is still not entirely clear how Parkinson's disease develops in the brain. Further research is required in this area.
Explaining the biological impact of caffeine on Parkinson's not only has important public health implications but also enhances our understanding of the disease and promotes possible prevention strategies, according to scientists cited by Onet.
