Caffeine Helps Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Patients

Can there be anything finer? A cup of coffee enjoyed out on the patio at 
dawn as the sun filters through the trees to the east. Even better if 
enjoyed around an early morning campfire, with the scent of pine lingering 
in the air above the fire pit. I could go on and on for hours.

They've been studying caffeine (again!), and this time, the news is all 
good. Once maligned as all-around bad for you, the lively substance has now 
been given a clean bill of health by ... well, everyone

The most effective caffeine, though, is in tablet form, not in coffee, 
because the 100-plus other compounds in coffee probably block some of the 
effect of caffeine.  Megadoses, however, are not the right answer.

Caffeine, which speeds metabolism, is the most-active ingredient in many 
"diet pills.Caffeine breaks down fat, freeing fatty acids which are 
immediately burned. Conversion of fat to energy is about 30 percent more 
efficient when caffeine is consumed prior to exercise."

Many studies have shown that coffee can help in the prevention and treatment 
of diseases and illnesses as varied as Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, liver 
disease, skin cancer, Parkinson's disease and more. Although, I don't 
believe coffee would be the cure all to any of these diseases, many ancient 
cultures did rely on the coffee bean to cure a long list of ailments. Not to 
mention, small doses of caffeine can increase performance and mental focus.

People should stop looking at caffeine as a bad drug and realize caffeine's 
benefits outweigh its downfalls. Ninety percent of people across the world 
have drank caffeine for its stimulating effects. Caffeine is used in many 
medications and even has many benefits for just daily consumption as well. 
Caffeine isn't a terrible thing that we should quit taking, and start buying 
all caffeine free pop for our children. Caffeine by itself has many 
advantages for people and also for the medical field too.

The physical and mental advantages of caffeine outweigh the disadvantages. 
If a person consumes a moderate consumption of caffeine then they will 
actually benefit from that.

Caffeine has been proven to increase work capacity, stimulate respiration, 
and perform Intellectual tasks more easily. Caffeine greatly increases the 
metabolic processes used in everyday activity, resulting in an increase in 
breathing rates. Caffeine can also raise some persons body temperature due 
to the increase in blood flow and muscle activity

On May 24, 2000, the Journal of the American Medical Association revealed 
that men who do NOT drink regular coffee are FIVE TIMES more likely to 
develop Parkinson's Disease than those who drink 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 cups a 
day!The researchers said the benefits are probably due to caffeine. 
Apparently the more the better.  Outside experts said the findings, if 
confirmed, could lead to ways to treat Parkinson's more effectively or even 
prevent the disease, which afflicts 1 million Americans.

Right now, adeno-sine is coursing through your veins, and its job is to put 
the brakes on your central nervous system. You might call it nature's chill 
pill. That's because as your day progresses, adenosine builds up naturally 
in your bloodstream, causing you to slow down and become sleepier. Adenosine 
accomplishes this total-body shutdown by plugging into adenosine 
receptors--like electrical cords into outlets. "These connections inhibit 
the release of neurotransmitters, which are chemical messengers that control 
both brain and muscle function. But as it turns out, caffeine is an 
excellent adenosine impersonator. In fact, when the two rivals jockey for 
the same parking space, caffeine wins.  What's more, blocking adenosine may 
slow the buildup of amyloid-beta, a toxic brain plaque that's associated 
with Alzheimer's disease

Back-to-back studies published online today in the Journal of Alzheimer's 
Disease, show caffeine significantly decreased abnormal levels of the 
protein linked to Alzheimer's disease, both in the brains and in the blood 
of mice exhibiting symptoms of the disease.  Based on these promising 
findings in mice, researchers at the Florida ADRC and Byrd Alzheimer's 
Center at USF hope to begin human trials to evaluate whether caffeine can 
benefit people with mild cognitive impairment or early Alzheimer's disease.

While a number of advanced Alzheimer's drugs and treatments have been 
developed in recent years, University of Florida researchers are actually 
treating symptoms that might appear.  Human subjects were not used in the 
study, only mice that were bred to develop Alzheimer's. They fed half of the 
laboratory animals a heavy diet of caffeine once they saw signs of the 
disease.  The research team was surprised at the results. The mice fed the 
caffeine performed much better on memory tests than those that didn't 
receive the caffeine.

Researchers say they are eager to launch clinical trials with human 
subjects, believing they are close to ending a scourge of aging. They say 
caffeine is safe for most people and easily absorbed by the brain, and 
appears to directly attack the disease.

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Rayilyn Brown
Director AZNPF
Arizona Chapter National Parkinson Foundation
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