Regular Caffeine Consumption – From Coffee, Cola, or Energy Drinks – Affects Brain Structure

[Thal]

Coffee, cola or an energy drink: caffeine is the world’s most widely consumed psychoactive substance. Researchers from the University of Basel have now shown in a study that regular caffeine intake can change the gray matter of the brain. However, the effect appears to be temporary.

scitechdaily.com/regular-ca...

[MarionP]

This is so lame. We knew this much in 1980 when I was in training myself. Back then we already knew clinically that coffee ( not necessarily caffeine, and I noticed this little summary here makes the interpretive leap that caffeine equals coffee ) tended to increase one's IQ, and intelligence globally some amount. We are saying we have come no farther in 40 years? By the way, the decreased volume could well be because of increased blood pressure, from the effect of caffeine on arterial blood vessel walls, which shed water, thus decreasing blood vessel volume while increasing blood pressure (it's exactly how nasal decongestants work by the way), and this is only one of several effects specialists already know about and so do many physicians. It's hard to believe we have come no farther and make interpretive leaps that a single feature, volume, which may be secondary rather than significant, and treating the word caffeine as if it is coffee, with all the expense and education and time wasted on stupid little studies like this. I don't see the use except to waste money time and talent. Maybe it's just bad writing to titillate a largely uncritical audience. Some of these summarizing blurb type magazines are really bothersome and misleading. And while we're on at about the study, 20 students? Wow, what demonstrably, valid generalizable results (not). The knowledge of the field has definitely been advanced (sarcasm).