Just the other day I saw an article on sciencedaily.com how caffeine reversed memory loss in aged mice induced to develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. The article began with the tease that “Coffee drinkers may have another reason to pour that extra cup.”  It continued by reporting on a sequence of studies published online July 6 in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease that proved that caffeine considerably decreased abnormal levels of the protein linked to Alzheimer’s disease, both in the brains and in the blood of mice that had developed symptoms of the disease.

But, before you opt to add an extra cup of coffee to your morning routine, let me, Dr. Jamie Phillips warn you that also on the website, under “Related Stories,” were a couple of articles about studies that professed to prove 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 viewpoint, from my experience, especially when it comes to health and longevity, can be corroborated, or at least given credence, by other related studies. The “good/bad” studies related to caffeine naturally aren’t, by any means, the only ones. Nonetheless, it did get me to pondering about the probability that there will never be just “one thing” that will incontrovertibly assist we, humans, in living longer, healthier lives. Humans are dynamic, biological creatures. We aren’t raised in unnatural confinement We are free to make choices in life. And, let’s face it, though Alzheimer’s disease may be on the rise, obviously no one has been “artificially induced to develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease,” therefore caffeine isn’t entirely the “one thing” that is going to reverse or prevent it.

The human body is an elegant, involved system that is designed to function homeostasis (balance). It is likely, then, that good health is cultivated by a healthy, balanced way of living, rather than our being blindly convinced by the latest health study and “doing” or “overdoing” one particular thing under the illusion that it will reverse all of the other excessive and harmful things we do to our bodies.

I believe, as a doctor of chiropractic in Santa Barbara, that every single day we have an opportunity to make decisions that will assist us to live longer, healthier lives, healthy choices for our body and mind. When it comes to what is good for us, we know what genuinely “feels” right and what doesn’t. So, I just wanted to pass along some thoughts for you to keep in mind the next time you consider having that extra cup of coffee or second glass of red wine. Neither one of those things is the “one thing” that will do “everything” for your age-related health issues.