Intakes of caffeine, coffee and tea and risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Results from five cohort studies

Elinor Fondell, Éilis J. Oreilly, Kathryn C. Fitzgerald, Guido J. Falcone, Laurence N. Kolonel, Yikyung Park, Susan M. Gapstur, Alberto Ascherio

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

20 Scopus citations

Abstract

Caffeine is thought to be neuroprotective by antagonizing the adenosine A2A receptors in the brain and thereby protecting motor neurons from excitotoxicity. We examined the association between consumption of caffeine, coffee and tea and risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).Longitudinal analyses based on over 1,010,000 males and females in five large cohort studies (the Nurses Health Study, the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, the Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort, the Multiethnic Cohort Study, and the National Institutes of Health-AARP Diet and Health Study). Cohort-specific multivariable-adjusted risk ratios (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) estimates of ALS incidence or death were estimated by Cox proportional hazards regression and pooled using random-effects models. Results showed that a total of 1279 cases of ALS were documented during a mean of 18 years of follow-up. Caffeine intake was not associated with ALS risk; the pooled multivariable-adjusted RR comparing the highest to the lowest quintile of intake was 0.96 (95% CI 0.81-1.16). Similarly, neither coffee nor tea was associated with ALS risk. In conclusion, the results of this large study do not support associations of caffeine or caffeinated beverages with ALS risk.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)366-371
Number of pages6
JournalAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration
Volume16
Issue number5-6
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 27 2015
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
  • caffeine
  • epidemiology
  • longitudinal cohort studies
  • motor neuron disease

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Neurology
  • Clinical Neurology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Intakes of caffeine, coffee and tea and risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Results from five cohort studies'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this