Drinking coffee can be used as a treatment for Parkinson's disease

Drinking more coffee may help reduce the risk of Parkinson's disease, a new study suggests.

A study by scientists at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, found that non-coffee drinkers were five times more likely to develop Parkinson's disease than those who drank more than five cups of coffee a day. The researchers followed more than 8000 men for 30 years. Their findings are published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Parkinson's disease is a geriatric disease characterized by nervous system changes. Typical symptoms include tremor, stiffness, and decreased autonomic activity. Researchers don't yet know why coffee may reduce the risk of Parkinson's disease. But they speculate that caffeine in coffee may prevent damage to nerve cells that cause Parkinson's disease.

The scientists point out that their results are preliminary and require further research. They stressed that it was too early to recommend coffee as a treatment for Parkinson's disease.