Risk for Stroke, Dementia Down With Coffee, Tea Consumption

Coffee and tea consumption separately and in combination are associated with a reduced risk for developing stroke and dementia, according to a study published online Nov. 16 in PLOS Medicine.

Yuan Zhang, from Tianjin Medical University in China, and colleagues examined the correlations of coffee and tea consumption with the risk for developing stroke and dementia in a study involving 365,682 participants aged 50 to 74 years from the U.K. Biobank.

The researchers found that 5,079 participants developed dementia and 10,053 developed stroke during a median follow-up of 11.4 years. There were nonlinear associations for coffee and tea with stroke and dementia; the lowest hazard ratio for incident stroke and dementia was seen for coffee intake of two to three cups/day, tea intake of three to five cups/day, or a combined intake of four to six cups/day. Drinking two to three cups of coffee and two to three cups of tea per day was associated with a significantly lower risk for stroke and dementia compared with not drinking tea and coffee (hazard ratios, 0.68 and 0.72, respectively). A lower risk for ischemic stroke and vascular dementia was seen for the combination of tea and coffee consumption. The combination also correlated with a lower risk for poststroke dementia, with the lowest risk seen for daily consumption of three to six cups of coffee and tea (hazard ratio, 0.52).

"Whether the provision of such information can improve stroke and dementia outcomes remains to be determined," the authors write.