To drink or not to drink coffee

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You probably have already read about a recent study of Swedish and Finnish participants that purports to have found a correlation between coffee drinking and a reduced risk of late-life Alzheimer disease. Depending upon the amount of coffee consumed, the risk was reduced by as much as 65%. Wow! Go coffee... go coffee... go coffee.

Many folks in this corner of the blogosphere have understandably sworn off drinking coffee altogether because of the deleterious affects of caffeine. But the study did not call out caffeine as the beneficial agent per se. It was not designed to do so. That is left for further studies to determine. However, if the positive effect is found not to be caffeine-related, then one could assume that naturally decaffeinated coffee would have the same effect and become an option for some who currently abstain. Furthermore, once the efficacious substance is identified, it might also be found to exist in other foods as well, and at the very least could be separated or manufactured and consumed in an extracted form.

As for me, I am sitting here with my steaming hot cup of Java, and there are about 3 more cups left in the carafe that sits next to my SAD light. And I will probably wind up consuming my regular daily dose of between 3 to 5 cups, before I stop some time around 2:30pm. I have set this no-coffee deadline because 6 or 7 hours is, according to my psychiatrist, about the amount of time it takes for most people's bodies to fully metabolize caffeine. My goal is to largely have it out of my system by bedtime or else sleep disruption is likely to occur, in addition to a few nocturnal trips to the bathroom. Even if you do not find it difficult to fall asleep after consuming caffeine, it is almost certain that it is shortening the amount of time your brain spends in the very crucial REM sleep cycle.

But I digress, as usual. The coffee/Alzheimer's study received my attention because my 83 year old mother suffers from dementia. It started to become noticeable about 7 years ago. Though it is steadily progressing, she is still able to move around in her apartment with her walker, and still gets to and from the bathroom, but her short term memory is shot and there are other noticeable deficits. She requires a person to be with her at all times, though she tells us thats not necessary. Fortunately she has a very patient, loving and healthy husband. My dad just turned 84 in January and is a wonderful caretaker. If it were not for him my mother would have required placement in the health care unit quite some time ago.

I visit them almost every weekend, often with my daughter, who is learning how to be a good companion to her gramma. I believe it has been an excellent experience for her. She is learning the value and wisdom of the aged population. Often she pushes my mom in her wheelchair, and goes for walk to the in-house library, gift shop, or cafe. I always give her my cell phone in case there is a problem. There never has been.

I in turn cook the meals and frequently do some grocery shopping. And because I am there with my mom, my dad is freed up to go out and do something he enjoys for several hours. Fortunately, he has never really suffered from depression as have his wife and 5 children. But that's a story for another time.

I will be listening closely for more news on what it is in coffee that has kept so many of the Swedes and Finns from aquiring Alzheimer Disease. Let me know if you hear something too! Hopefully I won't have already forgotten about this post.

My coffee mug is filled with steaming hot java and the rest is in the carafe sitting on the tray with my SAD light. One thing no one will convince me of, is to stop drinking coffee. Wonderful stuff. My liver likes it, my kidneys like it, my brain likes it. Every part of me likes it. So just stop right now if you are going to try to convince me to taper off caffeine. Ritalin yes, Wellbutrin probably, Paxil most likely. Caffeine no.


A Danish study this past month said that those who drink 4 to 5 cups of coffee have a significantly reduced risk of developing Alzheimers. (Figures it was a danish study since they go so well with coffee. Probably the danish companies funded the study, because if people start drinking more coffee obviously they are going to want a danish with each extra cup.) So since I'd rather not end up like my mom I will keep drinking my pot of java a day, thank you very much. Besides, I'd rather die of almost anything else than Alzheimers. My dads extremely healthy and a loving caretaker of my mom. I help out on most weekends. And so far she can still use her walker and the bathroom.


Anyway, what I was trying to do was to write about how its the little things in life now that bring me momentary pleasure. And before I digressed I was trying to paint a picture in words of my little setup that makes me feel snug as a bug in a rug and content for an hour or so each day.

So lets see, lets try again, I am sitting on an ugly beige couch, next to the arm on the right side, next to the SAD light which rests upon an oak TV tray my woodworker dad made for me. My all important coffee supply and various other doodads share the same tray. I am sitting Indian... I mean Native American style with my lap covered in a green mexican blanket. On my lap is my lapdesk and top of that is my laptop (a 9 year old Toshiba TECRA 8200 - I use my geek skills with pride to keep my decade old computers going forever, like the 1950s automobiles in Cuba.) Damn! I cannot stay focused no matter how hard I try... My cat is licking himself everywhere (because he can) and is snuggly pressed up against my left thigh.

Regarding my SAD light, I also have its high density ionizers activated so that the air circling my head smells fresh like after a summer thunderstorm. I've had this thing for a while, but like everything in my life that I should be doing (should is a bad word) I have never done it religiously. But lately I've been trying to keep it next to my couch where I spend 90 percent of my time.

So where was I... My coffee, my light... Oh yes, my laptop.