Recently, a study published in the journal Sleep shows that people who drink coffee have a 20 smaller pineal gland than those who don't, and more sleep problems.
For many of us, a cup of espresso is just what makes us act in the morning.
Recently, a study published in the journal Sleep shows that people who drink coffee have a 20 smaller pineal gland than those who don't, and more sleep problems.
A brain scan by researchers at Seoul University, South Korea, found that the pineal gland, a heavy consumer in coffee (30 or longer), was smaller than a few people who drank less coffee. The pineal gland is the size of a pea organ in the middle of the brain that releases a hormone called melatonin when the body rests and sleeps.
The smaller the glands, the less melatonin they produce.
Although caffeine is known as a short-term stimulant, it is one of the first studies to show that it may have a long-term effect on the brain. The researchers tracked 162 elderly healthy men and women and asked them how much coffee they drank and how long they slept. They then performed MRI brain scans to measure the volume of the pineal gland.
The study found that people who drank coffee were 20 less than those who did not drink coffee and had more sleep problems. In a report published in the journal Sleep, the scientists warned: ' Given the huge global coffee consumption over the past 30 years and the rapid increase in the use of caffeine by children and adolescents, attention should be paid to the potential adverse effects of lifelong coffee consumption. '
' However, Dr. Neil Stanley told, an independent sleep expert, said the study did not show that caffeine in coffee could impair the quality of sleep in older people. He added: ' Different coffees contain different levels of caffeine.
But the study does not take this into account, nor does it take into account other sources of caffeine that they may have consumed over the years. Two cups of coffee per day | You may not sleep well when you are old
