Coffee can help lower Parkinson’s risk

ISLAMABAD : More than 10 million people around the world have Parkinson’s disease a neurological disorder affecting the body s central nervous system.

There is currently no cure for Parkinson s disease. While it is still not clear exactly what causes the condition the general consensus among researchers is that it occurs through a combination Trusted Source of both genetic and environmental factors.

Between 10% and 15% of all Parkinson s cases are caused by genetic factors.

Now a new study from the National Neuroscience Institute in Singapore says that drinking tea and coffee containing caffeine can significantly reduce the risk of Parkinson s disease in Asian individuals who are genetically at higher risk.

This study was recently published in the journal The Lancet Trusted Source.

Caffeine consumption tied to lower Parkinson’s s risk. For this study researchers recruited 4 488 participants who all of whom had one of two variants of the LRRK2 gene.

All study participants were asked to complete a validated caffeine intake questionnaire.

The average caffeine intake of the study participants was 448.3 milligrams (mg) among those with Parkinson s disease and 473.0 mg in the healthy control group.

Upon analysis researchers found that participants with the gene variant linked to Parkinson s disease who regularly consume caffeine have a four to eight times lower risk of developing the disease compared to those who do not imbibe caffeine.

We were not surprised by the risk reduction as caffeine has been previously shown to be able to reduce Parkinson s risk but [were] surprised by the magnitude of risk reduction in the carriers of the Asian gene variants since these variants are associated with two times increased risk of Parkinson’s, Dr King said.

Genetically derived Parkinson s disease occurs either through a mutation of a certain gene or a gene that is passed down through generations.

Mutations of the leucine rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2Trusted Source) gene are the most common cause of familial Parkinson s disease.

The LRRK2 (leucine rich repeat kinase 2) gene plays a significant role in the development of Parkinson s disease especially in familial and some sporadic cases of the disease.