Coffee and dementia - ok, or best avoided?

[Chrystle]

Hi to everyone who gets the chance to read this post, and thanks in anticipation of your help
My husband was diagnosed Alz 2 years ago. He has avoided caffeine for many years, even in tea.
Recently, he seems to have gone downhill. I think he would say his worst symptoms are mega-tiredness (he seems to sleep well, is on memantine which he takes at night), lack of drive, and of course lack of memory which he finds quite draining.
Anyway, I suggested recently he try caffeinated coffee (max 2 cups per day) to give him a lift and sharpen his brain. He seems to have benefitted, but this may also have coincided with a worsening of his symptoms.
Some websites seem to suggest caffeine is best avoided, but frustratingly, so few say why it's a bad idea.

I would love to hear what members knowledge and experiences are - very many thanks

 

[LynneMcV]

Hi @Chrystle,

I don't have a particularly helpful insight into this unfortunately.

All I can say is that my husband battled dementia for 6 years and we had regular contact with medical professionals. Not once in that time were we advised against caffeine - and even during his stays in hospital or secure units, coffee, tea and other drinks containing caffeine were on regular offer.

Hope that helps alleviate any worry, even if it's just a little bit

 

[Chalkie]

I have mixed dementia and have read that caffeine is best avoided, but I have no idea why. My attitude is - if I enjoy it, I have it, and that applies to moderate consumption of alcohol too. No-one can tell me how much more quickly my dementia will deteriorate if I deny myself, so I enjoy what i eat and drink very day. For everyone of a certain age I think we should concentrate on enjoying life and not get too hung up on probably vain hopes that deprivation of things we enjoy increases longevity or a few extra months of lucidity. Live for today.

 

[Canadian Joanne]

@Chalkie I agree that moderation is the key. There are too many changes in what is good or bad in dietary matters. A healthy diet and common sense are what is needed.

 

[jenniferpa]

Here here.

I’m expect most of us here are old enough to have gone through the “x is good for you, x is bad for you, x is good for you” cycle. Eggs for example. When I was young they were good, then they became bad and now they are back to being good again. At least I haven’t heard that they’ve gone back to being bad.

 

[LadyA]

My husband, in the earlier stages of his illness, read everything he could (secretly. I only found his books of notes after he went to a nursing home, years later) about the latest research and thoughts about what may/may not help alzheimer's disease. All I knew at the time was that he would suddenly insist on having lots of x, y, or z. He had never in his life drank coffee. He thought caffeine was one of the worst things you could have. But, suddenly, he was insisting on having three cups of coffee a day! And he wouldn't say why he had changed his mind. It was only later, when he was in the nursing home, that I found his notes, and articles which claimed that limited amounts of coffee could help to alleviate some of the symptoms of alzheimer's disease, or, indeed, can help prevent the onset of the illness. If you google the subject, you will find oodles of articles on it.

 

[Chrystle]

Thank you everybody, that's very helpful