Recently I read an article on sciencedaily.com detailing a study carried out on aged mice raised to develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and the boost that caffeine gave to improving memory loss. The article started with the angle that “Coffee drinkers may have another reason to pour that extra cup.” It went on to discuss a sequence of studies published online July 6 in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease that proved that caffeine significantly decreased abnormal levels of the protein linked to Alzheimer’s disease, both in the brains and in the blood of mice exhibiting symptoms of the disease.
But, before you decide to add an extra cup of coffee to your daily intake, let me, Dr. Jamie Phillips warn you that under “Related Stories” on the website were at least two articles reporting on studies that demonstrated the not-so-healthy effects of caffeine, “Morning Jolt of Caffeine May Mask Serious Sleep Problems,” and “Coffee Consumption Linked To Increased Risk Of Heart Attack For Persons With Certain Gene Variation.”
It seems to me that there are conceivably many studies that will affirm, or at least support, nearly any view point, especially when it has to do with health and longevity. The “good/bad” studies related to caffeine naturally aren’t, by any means, the only ones. Even so, it did get me to pondering about the probability that there will not ever be any “one thing” that will irrefutably help we, humans, to live longer, healthier lives. We are dynamic, biological creatures. We are free to make choices in life. We’re not bred in a cage! And, let’s face it, though Alzheimer’s disease may be on the rise, obviously none of us has been “bred to develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease,” therefore caffeine isn’t going to be the “one thing” that is going to prevent or reverse it.
The human body is a splendid, intricate system that is based on homeostasis or balance. It makes sense, then, that good health has more to do with a healthy, balanced attitude towards living, instead of our jumping on the bandwagon of the latest health study and “doing” or “overdoing” one specific thing in the hope that it will reverse all of the other immoderate and harmful things we have done to our bodies.
As a Santa Barbara chiropractor, I believe that every single day we have an opportunity to make healthy choices for our body, to decide what will assist us to live longer, healthier lives. We know what actually “feels” life enriching and what doesn’t when it comes to what is good for us. So, the next time you reach for that extra cup of coffee or that second glass of red wine, I hope that you’ll think about this. There is no “one thing” that will do “everything” for your age-related health issues.
Dr. Jamie Phillips
601 E. Arrellaga St. #201
Santa Barbara, CA, 93103
http://www.santabarbarachiropractic.org