Study: Decaffeinated Coffee Improves Brain Metabolism
Do you drink decaffeinated coffee? If so, it may be strengthening your brain and preserving your memory.
A new study from Mount Sinai School of Medicine suggests that decaffeinated coffee improves brain energy metabolism associated with type 2 diabetes.
Dr. Giulio Maria Pasinetti, lead researcher of the study, examined if adding decaffeinated coffee to ones diet, before the onset of diabetes, will improve insulin resistance and glucose utilization. The experiment was conducted on mice injected with type 2 diabetes.
Researchers used the decaffeinated coffee supplement for a five month period, and analyzed the brain’s genetic response in the mice. It was learned that the brain was able to better metabolize glucose, and use it for cellular energy in the brain.
“Impaired energy metabolism in the brain is known to be tightly correlated with cognitive decline during aging and in subject at high risk for developing neurodegenerative disorders,” said Dr. Pasinetti, in a statement. “This is the first evidence showing the potential benefits of decaffeinated coffee preparations for both preventing and treating cognitive decline caused by type 2 diabetes, aging, and/or neurodegenerative disorders.”
Pasinetti also said that the high amounts of caffeine in regular coffee has historically been associated with high cholesterol, and cardiovascular problems, which leads to an increased risk of heart disease, or stroke. Study results also suggests that the non-caffeine element in the coffee was healthful for the mice.
“In light of recent evidence suggesting that cognitive impairment associated with Alzheimer’s disease and other age-related neurodegenerative disorders may be traced back to neuropathological conditions initiated several decades before disease onset, developing preventive treatments for such disorders is critical,” said Pasinetti.
The study was published in the recent online edition of Nutritional Neuroscience.