日志
咖啡或可延缓重度精神疾病患者的生物衰老
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每日饮用咖啡或可延缓重度精神疾病患者的生物衰老
每日饮用咖啡或可延缓重度精神疾病患者的生物衰老
重度精神疾病与端粒缩短相关，端粒缩短是细胞衰老的标志
研究人员称，每日饮用 3-4 杯咖啡与端粒延长相关，相当于延长 5 年的“生物”寿命
但超过此每日摄入量则未观察到类似效果
发表在开放获取期刊 BMJ 精神健康上的研究发现，每日饮用最多 3-4 杯咖啡可能通过延长端粒（细胞衰老的标志）来延缓重度精神疾病患者的“生物”衰老，与不饮用咖啡的人相比，相当于延长 5 年的“生物”寿命。
但超过此摄入量则未观察到类似效果。该摄入量是包括英国国家医疗服务体系 (NHS) 和美国食品药品监督管理局 (FDA) 在内的多个国际卫生机构推荐的每日最大摄入量。
端粒位于染色体末端，其作用类似于鞋带末端的塑料头。研究人员指出，虽然端粒缩短是衰老过程中的自然现象，但在患有严重精神疾病（例如精神病、精神分裂症和双相情感障碍）的人群中，端粒缩短的速度似乎会加快。
端粒对环境因素很敏感，包括饮食（可能）。适量饮用咖啡与多种健康益处相关，这促使研究人员探索咖啡是否会影响严重精神疾病患者的端粒缩短速度。
他们纳入了来自挪威主题组织精神病（TOP）研究的436名成年参与者，这些参与者于2007年至2018年间招募：其中259人患有精神分裂症；其余177人患有情感障碍，包括双相情感障碍和伴有精神病症状的重度抑郁症。
参与者被问及每天喝多少咖啡，并被分为四类：不喝咖啡（44人）；1-2杯；3-4杯（110人）；以及5杯或以上。他们还被问及是否吸烟，如果吸烟，吸烟时长是多少。
每天喝5杯或以上咖啡的参与者年龄显著高于不喝咖啡或每天喝1-2杯咖啡的参与者。患有精神分裂症的参与者比患有情感障碍的参与者喝更多的咖啡。
吸烟与咖啡因代谢加快有关。约四分之三的参与者（77%；337人）吸烟，平均吸烟时长为9年。每天喝5杯或以上咖啡的参与者吸烟时长显著长于其他任何组。
研究人员从血液样本中提取白细胞（白血球）并测量端粒长度，结果显示4个组之间存在显著差异，呈J形曲线。
与不喝咖啡的人相比，每天喝3-4杯咖啡的人端粒更长，但每天喝5杯或更多咖啡的人则没有这种现象。
在调整了年龄、性别、种族、吸烟、精神疾病类型和药物治疗等因素后，每天摄入4杯咖啡的参与者的端粒长度相当于比不喝咖啡的人年轻5岁的生理年龄。
这是一项观察性研究，因此无法得出关于因果关系的明确结论。研究人员也承认，他们没有关于潜在影响因素的信息，例如咖啡的种类和饮用时间、实际咖啡因含量或其他含咖啡因饮料的来源。
但他们认为，他们的发现存在合理的生物学解释。这些成分包括咖啡中富含的强效抗氧化剂和抗炎化合物。
“端粒对氧化应激和炎症都非常敏感，这进一步凸显了咖啡摄入如何有助于延缓细胞衰老，尤其对于那些病理生理因素可能导致加速衰老的人群而言，”他们解释道。
他们指出，咖啡在全球范围内广受欢迎，仅在2021-2022年，全球咖啡消费量就估计达到了105.6亿公斤。
但尽管咖啡具有潜在益处，他们也提醒道：“过量饮用咖啡可能会通过活性氧的生成造成细胞损伤和端粒缩短。”他们强调，国际卫生机构建议将咖啡因摄入量限制在每天最多400毫克（相当于4杯咖啡）。
编者注
研究：咖啡摄入量与严重精神障碍患者的端粒长度相关 DOI：10.1136/bmjment-2025-301700
Daily coffee drinking may slow biological ageing of people with major mental illness
BMJ Mental Health
https://bmjgroup.com/daily-coffee-drinking-may-slow-biological-ageing-of-people-with-major-mental-illness/
Daily coffee drinking may slow biological ageing of people with major mental illness
Major psychiatric disorders associated with shorter telomeres, indicative of cellular ageing
3-4 cups linked to longer telomeres, equal to 5 extra ‘biological’ years, say researchers
But no such effects observed beyond this daily amount
Drinking a maximum of 3-4 cups of coffee a day may slow the ‘biological’ ageing of people with severe mental illness, by lengthening their telomeres—indicators of cellular ageing—and giving them the equivalent of 5 extra biological years, compared with non-coffee drinkers, finds research published in the open access journal BMJ Mental Health.
But no such effects were observed beyond this quota, which is the maximum daily intake recommended by several international health authorities, including the NHS and the US Food and Drug Administration.
Telomeres sit on the end of chromosomes and perform a role similar to the plastic tips on the end of shoelaces. While telomere shortening is a natural part of the ageing process, it seems to be accelerated in those with major psychiatric disorders, such as psychosis, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder, note the researchers.
Telomeres are sensitive to environmental factors, including, possibly, diet. And coffee, when drunk in moderation, has been associated with various health benefits, prompting the researchers to explore whether it might influence the rate at which telomeres shorten in people with major mental ill health.
They included 436 adult participants from the Norwegian Thematically Organised Psychosis (TOP) study, recruited between 2007 and 2018: 259 had schizophrenia; the rest (177) had affective disorders, including bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder with psychosis.
Participants were asked how much coffee they drank every day and were grouped into 4 categories: zero (44); 1–2 cups; 3–4 cups (110); and 5 or more cups. And they were asked whether they smoked, and if so, for how long they had done so.
Participants who drank 5+ cups a day were significantly older than those who drank none or 1–2 cups a day. And those with schizophrenia drank significantly more coffee than those with an affective disorder.
Smoking is associated with faster caffeine metabolism. And around three quarters of participants (77%; 337) smoked, and had done so, on average, for 9 years. And those drinking 5+ cups a day had smoked for significantly longer than any of the other groups.
Telomere length was measured from white blood cells (leucocytes) extracted from blood samples, and this revealed a significant difference among the 4 groups, forming a J shaped curve.
Compared with those drinking no coffee, drinking up to 3–4 cups a day was associated with longer telomeres, but not in those participants drinking 5 or more every day.
Those participants getting a daily 4-cup caffeine hit had telomere lengths comparable to a biological age 5 years younger than that of non-coffee drinkers after adjusting for age, sex, ethnicity, tobacco use, type of mental ill health, and drug treatment.
This is an observational study, and, as such, no firm conclusions can be drawn about cause and effect. And the researchers acknowledge that they had no information on potentially influential factors, including the type and timing of the coffee consumed, actual caffeine levels, or other sources of caffeinated drinks.
But there are plausible biological explanations for their findings, they suggest. These include the powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds found in coffee.
“Telomeres are highly sensitive to both oxidative stress and inflammation, further highlighting how coffee intake could help preserve cellular ageing in a population whose pathophysiology may be predisposing them to an accelerated rate of ageing,” they explain.
Coffee is popular worldwide, with an estimated 10.56 billion kilos consumed around the globe in 2021-2 alone, they point out.
But despite its potential benefits, “consuming more than the daily recommended amount of coffee may also cause cellular damage and [telomere] shortening through the formation of reactive oxygen species,” they caution, emphasising that international health authorities recommend limiting caffeine intake to a maximum of 400 mg/day (4 cups of coffee).
