coffee and Alzheimer's

A recent study commented on by NPR today indicates that mice who ingest large amounts of caffeine (equivalent to 5 cups of coffee a day for humans) develop a lot fewer of the characteristic brain changes of Alzheimer's disease, suggesting that caffeine may be protective against the disease. There are also some studies of humans which suggest that caffeine may be protective against Alzheimer's disease. However, before you decide to drink 4-5 cups of coffee a day, you may wish to consider the negative effects of caffeine, including increased anxiety and nervousness, tremor, faster bowel movement, and diuretic action. Nonetheless, these studies should make heavy caffeine drinkers feel better about the fact that they never really get to sleep very well....