Drinking 2-3 cups of coffee a day tied to lower dementia risk - Harvard Gazette

"A new study found that drinking two to three cups of coffee a day, or one to two cups of tea, reduced dementia risk, slowed cognitive decline, and preserved brain function. The research - published in JAMA and led by investigators from Mass General Brigham, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard - analyzed 131,821 participants from the Nurses' Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-Up Study."

""When searching for possible dementia prevention tools, we thought something as prevalent as coffee may be a promising dietary intervention - and our unique access to high-quality data through studies that have been going on for more than 40 years allowed us to follow through on that idea," said senior author Daniel Wang, associate scientist with the Channing Division of Network Medicine in the Mass General Brigham Department of Medicine and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School."

Drinking two to three cups of coffee daily or one to two cups of caffeinated tea was associated with lower dementia risk, slower cognitive decline, and preserved brain function. Analysis included 131,821 participants from long-running cohorts with decades of high-quality data. The observed effect sizes were small but consistent. Early prevention is crucial because current dementia treatments are limited and typically offer modest benefit after symptom onset. Coffee and tea contain bioactive compounds that may influence brain health. Caffeinated coffee or tea consumption can be one component of multifaceted lifestyle approaches to support cognitive aging.

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