Coffee and Caffeine Intake Associated with Cognitive Performance in Older Adults

by | May 28, 2020 | 2020, Aging, Brain Health, Caffeine, Cognitive Health

Written by Angeline A. De Leon, Staff Writer. This study suggests that coffee, caffeinated coffee and caffeine intake from coffee, but not decaffeinated coffee, were associated with cognitive performance for participants aged 60 years or older in the United States.

caffeine - coffeeExcluding water, coffee is the leading beverage worldwide, constituting a multi-billion-dollar market that extends into other areas of the food and beverage industry, including candy bars and cocoa beverages, for example 1. Due to its anti-inflammatory properties, coffee possesses a number of health benefits, including protective effects against cancer and neurodegenerative diseases 2. Epidemiological work also suggests that coffee can influence molecular mechanisms such as DNA repair, enzymatic activity, and apoptosis 3. Newer studies in aging research have uncovered a significant relationship between coffee consumption and cognitive performance 4,5, suggesting that caffeine may exert positive effects on attention, arousal, and vigilance 6. Caffeine intake from coffee has also been seen to offset cognitive decline in older adults 7, and in one 30-year follow-up study, was found to protect against Parkinson’s disease 8. Some evidence suggests that decaffeinated coffee may also enhance aspects of cognitive performance, but findings in relation to decaffeinated coffee still remain limited and inconclusive 9,10. To elucidate these discrepancies in the literature, a 2020 study 11 in Nutrients looked at total coffee, decaffeinated coffee, caffeinated coffee, and caffeine intake from coffee in relation to cognitive performance in older adults.

A total of 2513 participants (1214 men, 1299 women) (aged 60 years and older) were enrolled as part of a cross-sectional study. Consumption data for coffee and caffeine intake from coffee were obtained from two 24-hour dietary recall interviews using a food frequency questionnaire. Caffeine consumption (mg/day) was divided into quartiles; caffeinated coffee consumption (g/day) was divided into three groups; decaffeinated coffee consumption (g/day) was divided into two groups; and total coffee consumption (g/day) was divided into four groups. The Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer’s disease (CERAD) Word Learning sub-test, the Animal Fluency test, and the Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST) were administered to evaluate working memory, language, processing speed, and executive function.

Compared to those reporting no coffee consumption, subjects reporting 266.4-495 (g/day) of total coffee intake had a multivariate-adjusted Odds Ratio (OR) of 0.56 (95% Confidence Interval: 0.35 to 0.89) for DSST score (p < 0.05). Compared to those reporting no caffeinated coffee consumption, subjects reporting 384.8 (g/day) or more had an OR of 0.68 (95% CI: 0.48 to 0.97) for DSST score (p < 0.05). Compared to the lowest quartile of caffeine intake from coffee, OR for subjects in the third quartile (124.5-208 g/day) was 0.62 (95% CI: 0.38 to 0.98) for CERAD test score (p < 0.05). No significant association was observed for decaffeinated coffee intake and cognitive performance. Nonlinear dose-response associations were also evident for total coffee intake and DSST score (p for nonlinearity= 0.039); caffeinated coffee intake and DSST score (p = 0.023); and caffeine intake from coffee and CERAD test score (p = 0.032).

The current investigation demonstrates a significant association between total coffee, caffeinated coffee, and caffeine intake from coffee and cognitive performance, specifically relating to verbal learning ability, processing speed, and working memory in older adults. While significant dose-response associations were also apparent for these variables, evidence did not support a significant relationship between decaffeinated coffee and cognitive performance, warranting further study in future investigations. The current study benefited from a large, representative cohort of older adults, however, the cross-sectional nature of the design prevents the establishment of causality. The use of 24-hour recall interviews to confirm subjects’ daily dietary intake may also be considered a potential study weakness. Overall, data suggest that coffee and caffeine intake may be of significant benefit to older adults’ cognitive functioning.

Source: Dong X, Li S, Sun J, et al. Association of coffee, decaffeinated coffee and caffeine intake from coffee with cognitive performance in older adults: National health and nutrition examination survey (NHANES) 2011-2014. Nutrients. 2020; 12: 840. DOI: 10.3390/nu12030840.

© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Posted May 28, 2020.

Angeline A. De Leon, MA, graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2010, completing a bachelor’s degree in psychology, with a concentration in neuroscience. She received her master’s degree from The Ohio State University in 2013, where she studied clinical neuroscience within an integrative health program. Her specialized area of research involves the complementary use of neuroimaging and neuropsychology-based methodologies to examine how lifestyle factors, such as physical activity and meditation, can influence brain plasticity and enhance overall connectivity.

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