Research Finds Caffeine May Be Good for Memory

Like most adults, you probably enjoy a cup of coffee or two every day. Many of us can’t even imagine what our morning would be like without the beautiful brown liquid steaming in a pot nearby. But while this leads to a number of concerns, new research has shown the caffeine inside may not be all bad. Keep reading to learn about how it could actually boost some of our cognitive skills.

Strictly speaking, the research was focused on caffeine as a cognitive enhancer. This means it wasn’t used to illicit memory. Rather the caffeine was administered as a means of assisting it.

To that end, 160 participants between the ages of 18 and 30 years old were tested. On the first day, they were shown a number of pictures and asked to label them as either belonging indoors or outdoors. Soon after the testing was done, one group was given 200 mg of caffeine while the other was given a placebo. Both were in tablet form.

The next day, the group was congregated once again. This time, the group of pictures had some new ones added in. On the second day, participants were asked to label them as old, new or similar to the ones from before.

While both groups could accurately label the ones that were either old or new, the participants who were given real caffeine had an easier time telling which pictures were simply similar to the ones before.

Although this shouldn’t be seen as a license to drink whole pots of coffee at a time, it should spur further research into the benefits of caffeine.