Drink Coffee, Stay Happy?
Drink Coffee, Stay Happy?
4 Cups Daily Linked With 20% Lower Risk of Depression in Women, but Mental Health Expert Urges Caution
Sept. 26, 2011 -- Some coffee drinkers may have a reason to smile -- or keep smiling.
Drinking several cups a day is linked with a lower risk of depression, according to a new study that looked only at women. The benefit seems to start at two cups a day.
The study is published in the Archives of Internal Medicine .
"We found that women with the highest coffee intake -- those in the top 20% -- had a 20% lower risk of developing depression," says researcher Alberto Ascherio, MD, DrPH. "The top 20% drank about the equivalent of four cups of coffee per day." Ascherio is professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.
The link was not found for decaffeinated coffee.
Ascherio emphasizes that he found an association, not cause and effect. Depression affects twice as many women as men, he notes. About 20% of U.S. women will be affected during their lifetime.
A mental health expert cautions that the research finding should be viewed cautiously. "I wouldn't tell my patients to drink more caffeine based on this study," says Michelle Riba, MD, associate director of the University of Michigan Depression Center. She reviewed the study but was not involved in it.
Ascherio and colleagues evaluated more than 50,000 women, average age 63. They were participating in the long-running Nurses' Health Study.
None had any depression at the start of the investigation in 1996. All answered questions about their caffeine habits through June 2006. "Women reported their consumption of coffee and other caffeine drinks, more or less every four years," Ascherio says. They noted their usual intake over the past 12 months.
The women also reported if they had clinical depression or if they began using antidepressantmedication.
During the follow-up, 2,607 women developed depression.
Overall, the more coffee they drank, the less likely they were to become depressed. "We see a dose response," Ascherio tells WebMD.
Compared with women who drank one cup or less a week, those who had two to three cups a day had a 15% lower risk of depression. Those who drank four or more had a 20% lower risk.
Drink Coffee, Stay Happy?
4 Cups Daily Linked With 20% Lower Risk of Depression in Women, but Mental Health Expert Urges Caution
Sept. 26, 2011 -- Some coffee drinkers may have a reason to smile -- or keep smiling.
Drinking several cups a day is linked with a lower risk of depression, according to a new study that looked only at women. The benefit seems to start at two cups a day.
The study is published in the Archives of Internal Medicine .
"We found that women with the highest coffee intake -- those in the top 20% -- had a 20% lower risk of developing depression," says researcher Alberto Ascherio, MD, DrPH. "The top 20% drank about the equivalent of four cups of coffee per day." Ascherio is professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.
The link was not found for decaffeinated coffee.
Ascherio emphasizes that he found an association, not cause and effect. Depression affects twice as many women as men, he notes. About 20% of U.S. women will be affected during their lifetime.
A mental health expert cautions that the research finding should be viewed cautiously. "I wouldn't tell my patients to drink more caffeine based on this study," says Michelle Riba, MD, associate director of the University of Michigan Depression Center. She reviewed the study but was not involved in it.
Caffeine and Depression Risk
Ascherio and colleagues evaluated more than 50,000 women, average age 63. They were participating in the long-running Nurses' Health Study.
None had any depression at the start of the investigation in 1996. All answered questions about their caffeine habits through June 2006. "Women reported their consumption of coffee and other caffeine drinks, more or less every four years," Ascherio says. They noted their usual intake over the past 12 months.
The women also reported if they had clinical depression or if they began using antidepressantmedication.
During the follow-up, 2,607 women developed depression.
Overall, the more coffee they drank, the less likely they were to become depressed. "We see a dose response," Ascherio tells WebMD.
Compared with women who drank one cup or less a week, those who had two to three cups a day had a 15% lower risk of depression. Those who drank four or more had a 20% lower risk.
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