Dementia: Could caffeine help lower risk?
Share on Pinterest Caffeine at high concentrations inhibited toxic protein aggregate formation in the laboratory, suggesting that coffee may help lower dementia risk. Image credit: RyanJLane/Getty Images. A recent study from the University of Verona in Italy asks whether espresso could possibly help reduce the risk of dementia. The preliminary research, which was conducted in vitro, in the laboratory, found an association between higher concentrations of caffeine and the inhibition of tau protein aggregates, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. It remains unclear whether drinking coffee could actually keep dementia at bay for longer. A high concentration of caffeine — which some might associate with drinking an espresso — might help reduce the risk of dementia, according to a study published in the ACS Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry . In preliminary in vitro laboratory tests, researchers found that espresso compounds might inhibit tau protein aggre...