Chiropractic Laveen is concerned about all aspects of wellness: Recently I saw an article on sciencedaily.com about a study performed on aged mice bred to develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and the boost that caffeine gave to improving memory loss. The article began with the angle that “Coffee drinkers may have another reason to pour that extra cup.” It went on to discuss a sequence of studies published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease that proved that caffeine significantly decreased abnormal levels of the protein linked to Alzheimer’s disease, both in the brains and in the blood of mice displaying symptoms of the disease.
But, before you decide to add an extra cuppa to your daily routine, let me elaborate by saying that also on the website, under “Related Stories,” were at least two articles regarding studies that demonstrated the non-beneficial effects of caffeine, “Morning Jolt of Caffeine May Mask Serious Sleep Problems,” and “Coffee Consumption Linked To Increased Risk Of Heart Attack For Persons With Certain Gene Variation.”
Almost any angle of thought, it seems to me, particularly when it comes to health and longevity, can be corroborated, or at least supported, by other related studies. The “good/bad” studies related to caffeine certainly aren’t, of course, the only ones. Nonetheless, it did get me to thinking about the reasonableness that there will not ever be any “one thing” that will irrefutably help we, humans, to live longer, healthier lives. Humans are dynamic, biological beings. We are actively engaged in life. We’re not bred in a cage! And, let’s face it, though Alzheimer’s disease may be on the rise, obviously no one has been “bred to develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease,” therefore caffeine isn’t absolutely the “one thing” that will prevent or reverse it.
The human body is a splendid, intricate system that is based on homeostasis, that is to say, balance. It makes sense, then, that good health has more to do with a healthy, balanced way of living, as opposed to our jumping on the bandwagon of the latest health study and “doing” or “overdoing” one particular thing under the illusion that it will reverse all of the other over-indulgent and harmful things we have done to our bodies.
I believe, as a doctor of chiropractic, that every single day we have an opportunity to make healthy choices for our body, decisions that will help us to live longer, healthier lives. When it comes to what is good for us, we know what truly “feels” right and what doesn’t. So, the if you reach for that extra cup of coffee or that second glass of red wine, I hope that you’ll think about this. There is no “one thing” that will do “everything” for your good health.
