Decaffeinated coffee 'may improve memory function'
People with type-2 diabetes may be able to improve their memory by drinking decaffeinated coffee as part of their daily diet, a study suggests.Diabetes causes glucose utilisation in the brain to decrease, often leading to cognitive decline.
But scientists at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in the US believe a regular cup of decaffeinated coffee could be beneficial for this group of patients.
The researchers studied a group of mice with diabetes, giving them regular supplements made from decaffeinated coffee for five months.
They found that the animals were able to break down and use glucose more effectively in the brain.
Lead researcher Dr Giulio Maria Pasinetti, professor of neurology and psychiatry at Mount Sinai, said: "Impaired energy metabolism in the brain is known to be tightly correlated with cognitive decline during ageing and in subjects at high risk for developing neurodegenerative disorders.
"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, ageing, and/or neurodegenerative disorders."
The researcher, whose findings are published in the journal Nutritional Neuroscience, also suggested that decaffeinated coffee may be beneficial for those people who are unable to drink regular coffee.
Type-2 accounts for up to 95 per cent of people with diabetes, according to the charity Diabetes UK.
Lead: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-02/tmsh-dcp013112.php
http://www.diabetes.org.uk/Guide-to-diabetes/Introduction-to-diabetes/What_is_diabetes/What-is-Type-2-diabetes/
