Health: Caffeine

By Jonathan On Jul 5, 2017

Caffeine Update

Drinking Coffee Can Lower Alzheimer’s Risk By 20%, All It Takes Is 3 Cups A Day
Nov 26, 2014
By Anthony Rivas
As if you weren’t already drinking a lot of coffee, a review of several studies has found drinking three to five cups a day could reduce risk of Alzheimer’s disease by 20 percent.
The research was presented at the 2014 Alzheimer Europe Annual Congress, and found that people who drank coffee regularly — all you lifers out there — were less likely to develop the debilitating disease. Alzheimer’s, perhaps the worst type of dementia, is a progressive disease that works slowly, first making it difficult to remember newly learned things, and later on making it difficult to remember early memories and family member’s faces, while also causing hallucinations.
The biggest risk factor for the disease is being over 65 years old; an age that many baby boomers, who comprise 26 percent of the American population, began reaching in 2012. Over 10,000 baby boomers will turn 65 each day for the next 17 years, and with the cause, prevention, and treatment of Alzheimer’s being such a mystery, scientists are frantically trying to understand it. Thus, we have coffee, a potential method for preventing it.
“The findings presented in this report are very encouraging and help to develop our understanding of the role nutrition can play in protecting against Alzheimer’s disease,” said Dr. Iva Holmerova, vice chairperson of Alzheimer Europe, in a press release. “Coffee is a very popular beverage enjoyed by millions of people around the world, and I’m pleased to know that moderate, lifelong consumption can have a beneficial effect.”
Roughly 83 percent of American adults drink coffee, according to the National Coffee Association. What many of these Americans don’t know, however, is that inside that cup of Joe is a wealth of polyphenols, which you probably know as antioxidants. These antioxidants — researchers said they’re the same ones found in the Mediterranean diet — prevent the formation of a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease known as amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, the study found. They also reduce inflammation and deterioration of brain cells, particularly in the areas of the brain (the hippocampus and cortex) responsible for memory.
Along with prevention of Alzheimer’s, coffee has been linked to a reduced risk of liver cancer and other liver conditions, a lower risk of type 2 diabetes; it prevents eye damage and Parkinson’s disease; and even boosts endurance. But even then, drinking too much isn’t good, either. As the researchers noted, three to five cups is optimal; anything over that, and you might find yourself with some problems.

Children’s caffeine intake ‘should be controlled’
9 July 2013
Tighter controls are needed to prevent children consuming high-caffeine energy drinks, a BBC investigation has heard.

Professor Mike Lean, an expert in nutrition, said children should be banned from buying highly-caffeinated drinks in the same way as alcohol.

Manufacturers representatives have said youths should not be drinking them.

But research for the European Food Safety Agency suggested more than two-thirds of the UK’s 10 to 18-year-olds have drunk high-caffeine energy drinks.

Caffeine is defined as a drug because it stimulates the central nervous system.

In both children and adults, too much caffeine can cause difficulty concentrating and sleeping and increased heart rate.

There are concerns about the cumulative affects of caffeine, which is a psychoactive drug similar to other stimulants such as nicotine, on brains which are still immature.

Prof Lean, from the University of Glasgow, said: “If we’re serious about recognising the potential hazard of high-caffeine drinks for children, then we should certainly be putting obstacles in the way of children getting them.

“For example, children going into a shop to buy alcohol is forbidden because it’s bad for them and they’re not permitted to drink it. Perhaps the same sort of approach should be used for highly-caffeinated drinks.”

Industry guidelines say under-16s should not consume drinks with a caffeine level of 150mg per litre or more.

Gavin Partington, of the British Soft Drinks Association, the body representing manufacturers, told BBC Scotland Investigates: “Well, our guidelines are very clear. The guidelines relate to products that contain high caffeine content, that is over 150 milligrams per litre of product, and they stipulate that they should not be sold to or consumed by children.

“So it’s a very clear form of guidance, and we hope as many people as possible will bear that in mind when looking at these products.”

The BBC programme, called Caffeine Nation, also looks at whether children are being encouraged to consume energy drinks by marketing surrounding high-profile extreme sports.

On a visit to the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Fort William last month, the documentary team observed several children drinking Monster, an energy drink sponsoring the event.

It contains about 160mg of caffeine per can.

One boy, Ewan Farr, who was seen with a can of the drink, said he had been given it for free by the sponsor’s team at the event. The 11-year-old said it made him “hyper.”

‘Cool factor’

His dad, Gavin, said: “At an event like this they are giving them away free – there’s a very strong association with the brand – you see all the riders going about.

“There’s no doubt they are going for the cool factor. And all you need to do is see the kids queuing up inside and there’s fridges full of free drink. And I think it would be incredibly naive of the brands to suggest that under-16s aren’t drinking these things when you come to an event like this that’s plainly ludicrous.

“I think they’re going for the youth market because that’s where you hook them. So that seems quite na?ve to me.”

In a statement, Monster’s managing director for Europe, Middle East and Africa, Guy Carling, said: “While our company is not a member of the British Soft Drinks Association, certain of our policies mirror theirs in that we do not sample our products to persons under 16 years of age.

“Additionally, all of our cans carry a warning that they are not recommended for children, pregnant or breastfeeding women, or people sensitive to caffeine.

“Since receiving your inquiry, I have asked both our marketing and personnel departments to investigate what happened at the event in Fort William, Scotland, to find out if and why our policy was violated.

“Monster Energy beverages were also being sold at the venue and our teams have no control over who actually purchases the products directly from the venue. If we establish that our policy was violated, we intend to take appropriate action against the individuals.

“Additionally, we are evaluating the introduction of additional procedures to ensure that future violations do not occur.”

Caffeine Withdrawal Is Now a Mental Disorder

May 31, 2013
By Matt Peckham

We’ve all probably had that one coffee drink (or carbonated beverage) too many, at that point in a slog of a day where we’ve gone and imbibed a Red Bull or Grande coffee against our better judgment.

According to a new edition of the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders out last week (DSM, or in this case, DSM-5), that sort of excessive caffeine intake can lead to a condition known as “caffeine intoxication,” except it’s nothing like the sort of blissful stupor we tend to associate with that other sort of intoxication.

If you’ve had more than 250 mg of caffeine (two to three cups of brewed coffee) and experienced five or more of the following symptoms, says the guide, you’ve probably been caffeine-buzzed: restlessness, nervousness, excitement, insomnia, flushed face, diuresis (having to pee a lot), gastrointestinal disturbance, muscle twitching, rambling flow of thought and speech, tachycardia or cardiac arrhythmia, periods of inexhaustibility or psychomotor agitation (unintentional motion, say, rapidly bouncing one leg).

This disorder, as it’s described in both the older DSM-IV and new DSM-5, falls under the heading “Caffeine-Related Disorders,” but in DSM-5, that section includes a new entry: caffeine withdrawal. According to DSM-5, symptoms of caffeine withdrawal include fatigue, headache and difficulty focusing.

“Caffeine is a drug, a mild stimulant, which is used by almost everybody on a daily basis,” said Dr. Charles O’Brien, who chairs the Substance-Related Disorder Work Group for DSM-5 (via New York Post). “But it does have a letdown afterwards. If you drink a lot of coffee, at least two or three [236 ml] cups at a time, there will be a rebound or withdrawal effect.”

Anyone who’s binged on caffeine then stopped, cold turkey, knows the withdrawal symptoms are anything but make-believe — the headaches alone can be excruciating. The question some are asking is whether it belongs in a guide devoted to mental disorders (or, for that matter, whether caffeine intoxication does).

“The symptoms of caffeine withdrawal are transitory, they take care of themselves,” said clinical psychologist Robin Rosenberg (via International Science Times), noting that the effects are temporary. “It’s just a natural response to stopping caffeine, and it clears up on its own in short order.”
DSM-5 work-group member Alan J. Budney attempted to address the controversy back in December 2011, when caffeine withdrawal was announced as being “recommended for inclusion” in the revised guide.

“We feel that there is enough data to support a caffeine-withdrawal syndrome,” said Budney. “There are enough people who go into withdrawal — that if they don’t get caffeine, it becomes a real syndrome and can affect work, sleep, or whatever they need to do. So we’re suggesting that it ‘make the big leagues’ and become part of the DSM to make sure everyone is aware of it.”

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Normal behaviour defined as mental illness
05/20/2013
Reporter: Emma Alberici
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Dr Allen Frances who supervised the fourth edition of the American Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of mental disorders (DSM 4), nineteen years ago, discusses the latest edition which he says turns normal behaviour into mental illness.
Read More.

Coffee Lowers Liver Disease Risk, Plus Five Other Benefits
May 20, 2013
By Deborah Mitchell
That cup of coffee you enjoy every morning could do more than help you wake up; it could reduce your risk of liver disease. Results of a new study note that that drinking coffee on a regular basis is associated with a lower risk of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). But stick around: there are five other benefits from drinking coffee as well.
Coffee may be good for your liver
At the recent Digestive Disease Week 2013 conference in Orlando, Florida, researchers reported on their findings after examining two groups of patients with liver disease: those with PSC and another group with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). A group of health individuals was used as the control.
The investigators found that coffee consumption was associated with a lower risk of developing PSC, but not PBC. This finding held true even though patients with PSC were less likely to drink coffee than were healthy individuals. The study’s findings are of particular interest because they reveal information about these two forms of liver disease.
A translation of primary sclerosing cholangitis reveals that “sclerosing” means scarring or hardening of the bile ducts in the liver that is the result of chronic inflammation, while “cholangitis” refers to inflammation of the bile ducts. PSC is chronic, progressive, and its cause is unknown. The end result is liver damage and liver failure, and although there is no cure, a liver transplant can be performed in individuals who have severe liver damage.
Primary biliary cirrhosis also is a chronic condition in which the bile ducts are gradually destroyed. The bile ducts are essential for digestion and eliminating certain toxins from the body, and their destruction can lead to irreversible liver damage. PBC is believed to be an autoimmune disease (one in which the body attacks its own cells and tissues), and the cause is unknown.
According to one of the study’s authors, Craig Lammert, MD, a gastroenterologist at the Mayo Clinic, “our first-time finding points to a novel environmental factor that also might help us to determine the cause of this and other devastating autoimmune diseases.” The study’s senior author, Konstantinos Lazaridis, MD, a hepatologist at Mayo Clinic, commented that their findings “might tell us about the causes of these diseases and how to better treat them.”
Other health benefits of coffee
Although you probably don’t need a reason to enjoy your coffee every day, here are five more health benefits that cup of java can offer you and your family.
•?Alzheimer’s disease. A 2012 study published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease explained how a moderate amount of coffee consumption (3 cups daily, caffeinated) appears to help older adults with mild cognitive impairment not progress to Alzheimer’s disease or at least cause a significant delay in development of the disease. The study’s lead author, Dr. Chuanhai Cao, a neuroscientist at the University of South Florida College of Pharmacy, noted that the findings suggest “that moderate daily caffeine/coffee intake throughout adulthood should appreciably protect against Alzheimer’s disease later in life.”
•?Breast cancer. A Swedish study found that women who drank more than 5 cups of coffee daily could reduce their risk of developing anti-estrogen-resistant, estrogen-receptor (ER-negative) breast cancer by 57 percent. Although researchers are not sure why coffee has a significant effect on ER-negative breast cancer, one idea is that coffee may contain substances that have a different effect on different ER subtypes, of which there are four.
•?Endometrial cancer. A Harvard School of Public Health study found that women who drank more than 4 cups of coffee per day had a 25 percent reduced risk of developing endometrial cancer. In the study, which followed women for 26 years, women who consumed less than 4 cups daily had a 7 percent lower risk of developing this type of cancer.
•?Stroke. A study published in a 2011 issue of Stroke reported that women who drink more than 1 cups of coffee per day have a 25 percent lower risk of having a stroke than women who don’t drink their java. Authors of the large-scale study, which involved nearly 35,000 women who were followed for a decade, noted that the high levels of antioxidants in coffee are likely the reason for the benefit.
•?Type 2 diabetes. Several studies have indicated that coffee can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, and one group of researchers in particular believe they know a reason why. The Chinese investigators noted that coffee contains compounds (i.e., caffeine, caffeic acid, and chlorogenic acid) that inhibit an activity that plays a key role in causing the disease; namely, the misfolding of a substance called human islet amyloid polypeptide, a process that can cause type 2 diabetes. Four or more cups of coffee daily may provide this benefit, according to researchers.
Coffee consumption has been associated with a number of health benefits, which is good news for the many coffee drinkers around the world. This latest study indicates that coffee can help lower the risk of liver disease, which is one more health advantage associated with the consumption of coffee.
SOURCES:
Cao C et al. High blood caffeine levels in MCI linked to lack of progression to dementia. Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease 2012; 30(3): 559-72
Cheng B et al. Coffee components inhibit amyloid formation of human islet amyloid polypeptide in vitro: possible link between coffee consumption and diabetes mellitus. Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry 2011; 59(24): 13147-55
Li J et al. Coffee consumption modifies risk of estrogen receptor negative breast cancer. Breast Cancer Research 2011; 13:R49.? Mayo Clinic

NIH study finds that coffee drinkers have lower risk of death
May 16, 2012
Older adults who drank coffee — caffeinated or decaffeinated — had a lower risk of death overall than others who did not drink coffee, according a study by researchers from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, and AARP.
Coffee drinkers were less likely to die from heart disease, respiratory disease, stroke, injuries and accidents, diabetes, and infections, although the association was not seen for cancer. These results from a large study of older adults were observed after adjustment for the effects of other risk factors on mortality, such as smoking and alcohol consumption. Researchers caution, however, that they can’t be sure whether these associations mean that drinking coffee actually makes people live longer. The results of the study were published in the May 17, 2012 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Neal Freedman, Ph.D., Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, NCI, and his colleagues examined the association between coffee drinking and risk of death in 400,000 U.S. men and women ages 50 to 71 who participated in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study. Information about coffee intake was collected once by questionnaire at study entry in 1995-1996. The participants were followed until the date they died or Dec. 31, 2008, whichever came first.
The researchers found that the association between coffee and reduction in risk of death increased with the amount of coffee consumed. Relative to men and women who did not drink coffee, those who consumed three or more cups of coffee per day had approximately a 10 percent lower risk of death. Coffee drinking was not associated with cancer mortality among women, but there was a slight and only marginally statistically significant association of heavier coffee intake with increased risk of cancer death among men.
“Coffee is one of the most widely consumed beverages in America, but the association between coffee consumption and risk of death has been unclear. We found coffee consumption to be associated with lower risk of death overall, and of death from a number of different causes,” said Freedman. “Although we cannot infer a causal relationship between coffee drinking and lower risk of death, we believe these results do provide some reassurance that coffee drinking does not adversely affect health.”
The investigators caution that coffee intake was assessed by self-report at a single time point and therefore might not reflect long-term patterns of intake. Also, information was not available on how the coffee was prepared (espresso, boiled, filtered, etc.); the researchers consider it possible that preparation methods may affect the levels of any protective components in coffee.
“The mechanism by which coffee protects against risk of death — if indeed the finding reflects a causal relationship — is not clear, because coffee contains more than 1,000 compounds that might potentially affect health,” said Freedman. “The most studied compound is caffeine, although our findings were similar in those who reported the majority of their coffee intake to be caffeinated or decaffeinated.”
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) leads the National Cancer Program and the NIH effort to dramatically reduce the burden of cancer and improve the lives of cancer patients and their families, through research into prevention and cancer biology, the development of new interventions, and the training and mentoring of new researchers. For more information about cancer, please visit the NCI Web site at http://www.cancer.gov or call NCI’s Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).

Read more at Dangers of Coffee

Is Coffee Next?
August 7, 2007
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Say goodbye to steaming coffee as steam goes into the air.? It has harmful chemicals and not everyone likes that smell.
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Say good-bye to all coffee shops, coffee to go, coffee breaks, coffee with dinner and even holiday road side coffee give-a-ways on holidays.? It can NOT be brewed in public!
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Businesses big, small and at home: Get ready for no warrant searches!? If you have anyone other than family working for you, coffee is NOT allowed.
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If you have children and coffee in your car or in your home, you will be arrested for child abuse!
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Enjoy that next cup of coffee: it may be your last.?
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article738667.ece
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Chemicals in: Coffea arabica L. (Rubiaceae) — Coffee
http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/duke/farmacy2.pl?289
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Coffee, America’s Favorite Drug
Two pages: http://www.healthy.net/scr/Article.asp?Id=800
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Filtering coffee does not remove a chemical linked to heart disease and stroke, researchers claim.?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/654018.stm
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Coffee makes us speedy, irritable, sleepless, and often causes heartburn or ulcers. The removal of caffeine is supposed to reduce some of these undesirable effects. Coffee is an addicting beverage. If you consume more than 2 cups per day, you are likely to experience unpleasant withdrawal if you stop. The minimal suffering includes a headache, irritability, and fatigue. The popular idea that the bad effects of coffee are caused by one chemical, caffeine, is misleading. The 500 or so other chemicals in coffee include aromatic or phenolic chemicals and many are probably neurotoxic; other chemicals are allergenic. Coffee is also a crop with high pesticide residues. Coffee is definitely allergenic and makes some people obviously sick. Chlorogenic acid is one of the allergens which coffee shares with oranges.?
http://www.nutramed.com/eatingdisorders/addictivefoods.htm
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Coffee good or bad for you? It depends on your genes!? Dr. Ahmed El-Sohemy of the University of Toronto, one of the authors of the study, says they found in individuals who had the slow version of this gene, two to three cups of coffee a day increased their odds of a heart attack by 36 percent, and four or more cups a day increased the risk by 64 percent.
http://www.news-medical.net/?id=16444

– A Newsletter Reader

CAFFEINE CRUTCH
Young people’s growing need for ‘fix’ a concern among medical experts

January 20, 2007
Dennis Fiely

Generation Y needs a “W,” for wired.

“We drink caffeine a lot,” said Maggie McLoughlin, 17, of Westerville. “With our hectic schedules, we need something to give us a kick and keep us awake.”

The senior at St. Francis DeSales High School is among a rising number of adolescents, teenagers and young adults — the so-called Generation Y — for whom caffeine has become a dietary staple.

“Some students just can’t get by without it,” said Dan Reed, 21, an Ohio State University junior from Dublin. “If they don’t have a Rockstar (energy drink) with them, they don’t feel like they can function.”

Such thinking worries health professionals, who are seeing a notable increase in caffeine dependence among the younger set.

“It’s a cheap, legal way for kids to get a buzz,” said Dr. Salvatore DiCarlo, a pediatrician at Big Run Family Health on the West Side. “They use it for the buzz.”

Northwestern University fired a warning shot in November with a study that researchers said “may reveal an emerging problem with caffeine abuse among the young.”

The three-year examination of calls to a Chicago poison-control center found 267 cases of medical complications — including 30 hospitalizations — among people who swallowed caffeine pills, such as NoDoz.

The average age of patients: 21.

“This is a concern that is showing up on the radars of substance-abuse professionals around the country,” said Stephanie Beougher, of the Drug Free Action Alliance, a statewide, nonprofit drug-prevention and drug-education organization.

“People don’t think of it as a drug, but it is a drug. And we need to treat it as such.”

The problem isn’t limited to young people — many of whom, in fact, likely developed caffeine habits from parents.

Yet the proliferation and popularity of high-octane energy drinks and designer coffees — which accounted for a combined $15 billion in retail sales in the United States last year — have heightened concerns about excessive consumption at increasingly earlier ages.

Caffeine is the most potent legal stimulant available without a prescription, and younger people, medical professionals say, are less likely to recognize when enough is enough for their bodies.

“Youths may be more sensitive to the effects … and grown-ups are more likely to decrease their usage (before medical attention is needed),” said Dr. Marcel J. Casavant, director of the Central Ohio Poison Center at Children’s Hospital.

The center has fielded 223 caffeinerelated calls since 2000, with 70 percent involving people age 19 or younger.

Sixty-five of the 86 cases referred to hospitals involved patients in that age range, with seven of them admitted.

“Those numbers may be the small tip of the proverbial iceberg,” said Casavant, because the center typically hears about 20 percent to 50 percent of central Ohio poisoning cases.

Insomnia, heart palpitations, tremors, anxiety and dehydration are among the effects reported by patients.

“Caffeine forces the kidneys to make more urine and usually potassium is lost in that urine,” Casavant said. “So people can experience dehydration and low potassium levels that can cause nausea, vomiting, muscle cramps and irregular heartbeats.”

The United States has no guidelines for caffeine intake, but the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., defines “moderate” consumption for adults as 200 to 300 millligrams a day — equal to the amount in three small cups of coffee.

More than 500 milligrams daily can cause irritability, headaches and diarrhea.

In rare cases, overdoses that exacerbate pre-existing conditions, such as heart disease, may be fatal.

“Anything is possible,” said Dr. Richard Nelson, medical director of the Ohio State University emergency department.

Although data on caffeine consumption among the young is limited, an OSU study published in 2003 in the journal Pediatrics found intakes as high as 800 milligrams a day — the average was 63 — among 191 Columbus seventh-, eighth- and ninth-graders.

In 26 years of practice, pediatrician DiCarlo has observed a dramatic increase in caffeine use among his patients.

“These coffee bars are booming with kids,” she said. “Caffeine is a legal drug, but I think we are sitting on a time bomb. This is something we should start asking our patients about.

“We talk to them about sex, alcohol and illegal drugs. We need to talk to them about caffeine.”

DiCarlo noted that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders lists four coffee-induced psychiatric disorders recognized by the American Psychiatric Association.

Dr. James Fulop has identified caffeine consumption as the sole reason for a suspected sleep disorder in some of his college-age patients.

“They come in here wanting a sleeping pill, and we very quickly find out what’s wrong,” said the director of the sleep laboratory at Riverside Methodist Hospital.

“We’re just shocked to find out how much caffeine they are taking.”

Reed, the OSU junior, works at a coffee shop on the Northwest Side that regularly attracts Dublin high-school students.

“We’re always more crowded during exam time,” he said, “and the students stay until we kick them out at closing time (10 p.m.).”

Some of his customers, he said, stop in two or three times a day.

“They can’t go by without their fix.”

McLoughlin and her friends at De-Sales are health-conscious athletes who “watch what we put in our bodies,” she said.

They wouldn’t take caffeine pills, she said, but do rely on three or four caffeinated drinks a day — including energy drinks and specialty coffees.

“We need the energy to keep up with the demands of our parents, teachers and social lives.”
dfiely@dispatch.com
Read

Study finds caffeine abuse among young Americans

Oct 16, 2006

CHICAGO Young Americans searching for a legal high or just trying to stay alert may be abusing caffeine pills, sending some to the hospital, a study said on Monday.

The American College of Emergency Physicians said a review of records at the Illinois Poison Center in Chicago found more than 250 cases of medical complications from ingesting caffeine supplements, 12 percent of them requiring hospitalization, including treatment in intensive-care units.

The average age of those who had abused caffeine supplements over the course of the three years studied was 21. The research did not involve caffeine drinks such as coffee or cola.

“Part of the problem is that people do not think of caffeine as a drug but rather as a food product,” said Dr. Danielle McCarthy, who led the Northwestern University study.

“We want people ingesting caffeine pills and supplements to know that caffeine is a drug and overuse is potentially harmful, especially when mixed with other pharmaceuticals for euphoria. There is a trend in the pro-drug culture toward promoting legal alternatives to illegal drugs and it can be very harmful,” McCarthy said.

“Young people taking caffeine either to stay awake or for a feeling of euphoria, may actually end up in the emergency department more often than we think,” she said, because young adults taken to a hospital for chest pains and heart palpitations are rarely asked if they’ve taken caffeine supplements.

Conquering Caffeine. If you can answer “yes” to these questions, it’s likely that you’re addicted to caffeine.