Welcome to my blog post Coffee and Parkinson’s Disease.
You may also be interested in these other blog posts:
- Is coffee as healthy for you as fruit and vegetables: click here.
- Coffee: Good or bad? click here.
Parkinsons disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease, affecting 1% of the world population age 65 and older. The number of individuals diagnosed with PD is expect to double by 2030 in line with the ageing population. It is related to degeneration of dopamine neurons in the mid-brain and as a result treatment includes dopamine replacement to control symptoms.
Does Coffee Reduce Risk Of Parkinson’s?
“Lifelong coffee/caffeine consumption has been associated with prevention of cognitive decline, and reduced risk of developing stroke, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease.”
That’s a pretty powerful quote!
Studies have established a reduced risk of memory decline during normal ageing in regular coffee drinkers. As already mentioned, we also see a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and Parkinson’s Disease, as well as mood based disorders such as depression and anxiety. Research has also looked in to the role of caffeine and its benefits in headaches and migraines when taken with classical analgesics such as ibuprofen.
Of the 59 unique outcomes examined in the selected 112 meta-analyses of observational studies, coffee was associated with a probable decreased risk of breast, colorectal, colon, endometrial, and prostate cancers; cardiovascular disease and mortality; Parkinson’s disease; and type-2 diabetes
Several meta-analyses have shown that moderate coffee intake lowers one’s risk of developing PD by 24–30%. A maximal effect was found at about 3 cups of coffee per day.
How Does Coffee Reduce Risk Of Parkinson’s disease?
It is thought that the reduced risk partly comes from coffees high polyphenol content, such as chlorogenic acid, an antioxidant that has anti-inflammatory benefit. As many now know, chlorogenic acid is something Exhale Coffee have specifically test for to ensure our beans are of the highest quantity of this antioxidant compound.
But on the antioxidant point, research suggest that coffee consumption can increase glutathione levels and improve protection against DNA damage. Glutathione is the main antioxidant in the body with anti-inflammatory and immune benefiting properties. Essentially coffee seems to up regulate our own endogenous antioxidant systems.
This anti-inflammatory benefit also helps restore serotonin levels and inhibits NDMA. NDMA is associated with depression and chronic pain.
Inflammation is considered one of the hallmarks of neurodegeneration and depression.
Another mechanism that might explain the reduced risk of these conditions in regular coffee consumers is related to blood sugar balance. Research suggests that consumption of coffee reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
“It has been shown that drinking four cups of coffee daily would decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes by more than 25%.”
Type 2 diabetes has also been heavily linked to neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia, Parkinson’s disease, and most notably Alzheimer’s disease.
Alzheimer’s disease has recently been referred to informally as “type 3 diabetes.”
Research also discuses the role that caffeine plays within this relationship.
Polyphenols found in coffee also have systemic benefit which translates in to cognitive benefits. Chlorogenic acids have been shown to counter hypertension and obesity, both of which are risk factors for cognitive decline, leading to mild cognitive impairment and AD. A recent study has also shown that chlorogenic acids can shorten sleep latency, which is the amount of time taken to transition from wakefulness to sleep. This is significant in improving sleep quality, which is essential in maintaining cognitive function, as metabolic waste products in the brain are cleared during sleep (by something called the lymphatic system).
Moreover, the adenosine A2A receptor (the main target of caffeine action) has emerged as a leading target for treatment of Parkinson’s disease.
Summary
Considering these findings, it is possible that long-term daily intake of chlorogenic acid may prevent cognitive disorders not only via direct neuroprotective action, but also indirectly by improving metabolic syndrome and sleep quality.
So basicaly drink some ‘clean ‘coffee that has been hand picked for it’s high chlogoenic acid content, i.e choose Exhale Coffee!
References
- Linking Smoking, Coffee, Urate, and Parkinson’s Disease – A Role for Gut Microbiota?: click here
- Coffee, Caffeine, and Health Outcomes: An Umbrella Review: click here.
- Effects of coffee/caffeine on brain health and disease: What should I tell my patients?: click here.
- Coffee and its consumption: benefits and risks: click here.
- Impact of Coffee and Cacao Purine Metabolites on Neuroplasticity and Neurodegenerative Disease: click here.
- Genome-wide meta-analysis identifies six novel loci associated with habitual coffee consumption: click here.
- Linking Smoking, Coffee, Urate, and Parkinson’s Disease – A Role for Gut Microbiota?: click here.
- Nutritional Risk Factors, Microbiota and Parkinson’s Disease: What Is the Current Evidence?: click here.
- An outlook on the role of decaffeinated coffee in neurodegenerative diseases: click here.
- Coffee, Genetic Variants, and Parkinson’s Disease: Gene-Environment Interactions: click here.
- Is coffee a functional food?: click here
- Beneficial Role of Coffee and Caffeine in Neurodegenerative Diseases: A Minireview: click here.
- Neuroprotective and Neurodegenerative Aspects of Coffee and Its Active Ingredients in View of Scientific Literature: click here.
Alex is a certified Functional Medicine Practitioner (IFMCP) and has a MSc in Personalised Nutrition. He is also a breathwork facilitator with a background in personal training and massage therapy. He also runs The Resiliency Program - a 24 week program aimed at building physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual resilience.
