In our daily lives, “I can’t wake up without drinking coffee.” We encounter many people who say or “Let me drink coffee to clear my mind.” According to scientists, this situation does not reflect reality. At least the data they have gives an impression in this direction.
Drinking coffee all the time doesn’t help.
Researchers from the Butler Hospital Neuromodulation Research Facility in the USA conducted a study with 20 participants. In this study, the brain activities of people with different levels of coffee consumption were examined. The results were surprising.
Scientists analyzed brain mechanisms called long-term potentiation (LTP). LTP is not a single mechanism, but rather a group of mechanisms. Through different types of LTP, they play a role in most of the changes related to the long-term shaping of neural circuits in the brain, such as memory, chronic pain, and substance addiction.
Our nerve cells become stronger as we do certain things over and over again. As these structures become stronger, our brain becomes more ready to learn. This is actually why we do the things we repeat better and better. This strengthening capacity is called plasticity.
According to research, caffeine consumption reduces the brain’s learning capacity after a while. The reason for this view is the substance called adenosine. Caffeine suppresses adenosine to make us sleepy. As adenosine accumulates, it reduces the plasticity of the brain. Less plasticity means less learning capacity. There may be a decrease in brain plasticity of people whose coffee consumption increases.
However, this research should not be viewed as too definitive. Because two points of the research attract attention. The first of these is that only 20 people took part in the study. The second point is to monitor people’s coffee consumption through their own statements. Nevertheless, this study will be a precursor for future studies.
The research was published in Frontiers in Psychiatry.
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