How coffee can help your brain

Coffee is good for you, then it’s bad for you. This opinion will always fluctuate in the media. In general, we discovered that drinking coffee has numerous health benefits. So what about when it comes to your brain?

As a stimulant, the immediate effects of drinking coffee include increased alertness, energy and mood. It can also help with your mood, memory and concentration. Studies surrounding the health benefits of drinking coffee will more often than not focus on the caffeine and how that influences your health. A new lab study shows, however, that the actual coffee itself has positive affects on your brain, caffeine or no caffeine.

Previous studies have made claims that drinking coffee can reduce the risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. The new study aimed to take a look into why exactly this is. Which compounds of coffee contribute to brain health?

The new lab study examined several different compounds during the roasting process across different types of coffee. These include dark roast, light roast and decaf. They analysed how the compounds found in these coffees interact with the toxins linked to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. They found that phenylindanes, a compound formed during the roasting process, hinder those toxins under laboratory conditions.

The results aren’t completely conclusive as the study was conducted under laboratory conditions. The next stage will be testing it with humans. It’s still likely that a combination of compounds provide the biggest benefits. Whilst they’re not suggesting that coffee will help to prevent brain illnesses, it’s certainly an interesting discovery towards helping to prevent disease.