According to scientists, the drink improves the reaction of the elderly
A team from the University of Bristol concluded that coffee has a beneficial effect on the ability of older people to focus, as well as their speed of reaction. Scientists hope that the results they have obtained will make it possible to more effectively fight various forms of senile dementia.
The study involved 38 people with no significant health problems between the ages of 55 and 91. The researchers asked each of them to pass a series of tests on reaction speed, planning ability and ability to focus attention. The participants were then asked not to consume caffeine-containing foods for a week. When the week passed, the study participants were recruited, after which some of them were given a cup of caffeinated coffee, and some were given decaf. The seniors were then asked again to take the same tests as the week before. The next day, the experts swapped drinks and ran the tests again, livescience.com reports.
The study showed that the effect of coffee (at least in the quantities used for the experiment) was not very significant, but noticeable. Participants' response improved, as well as their attentiveness and ability to plan - this, in particular, was evidenced by the results of the test, during which people had to name the color with which words for other colors are written (for example, the word "red" could be written in green ink).
Experts note that the improvements they recorded did not extend to the motor response - tasks in which, for example, quickly pressing a button, the participants performed approximately the same regardless of coffee.
So far, the work of specialists has not been published in any peer-reviewed scientific publication.
Various studies on the effects of coffee on the human body are carried out by scientists with enviable regularity. Only in the last six months has it become known about this drink, including that it can affect the structure of neural connections in the brain, reduce the risk of dying from a number of diseases or commit suicide, and also protects the liver from cirrhosis, but at the same time, it can negatively affect the size of the female breast. Also, experts have found that all coffee machines contain pathogenic bacteria.
Dmitry Istrov
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