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Coffee and Tea Intake, Dementia Risk, and Cognitive Function
Zhang Y, Liu Y, Li Y, Li Y, Gu X, Kang JH, et al.. JAMA, 2026-03-17
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Results Among 131 821 participants (mean age at baseline, 46.2 [SD, 7.2] years in the NHS cohort and 53.8 [SD, 9.7] years in the HPFS cohort; 65.7% were female) during up to 43 years of follow-up (median, 36.8 years; IQR, 28-42 years), there were 11 033 cases of incident dementia. After adjusting for potential confounders and pooling results across cohorts, higher caffeinated coffee intake was significantly associated with lower dementia risk (141 vs 330 cases per 100 000 person-years comparing the fourth [highest] quartile of consumption with the first [lowest] quartile; hazard ratio, 0.82 [95% CI, 0.76 to 0.89]) and lower prevalence of subjective cognitive decline (7.8% vs 9.5%, respectively; prevalence ratio, 0.85 [95% CI, 0.78 to 0.93]). In the NHS cohort, higher caffeinated coffee intake was also associated with better objective cognitive performance. Compared with participants in the lowest quartile, those in the highest quartile had a higher mean TICS score (mean difference, 0.11 [95% CI, 0.01 to 0.21]) and a higher mean global cognition score (mean difference, 0.02 [95% CI, -0.01 to 0.04]); however, the association with global cognition was not statistically significant (P = .06). Higher intake of tea showed similar associations with these cognitive outcomes, whereas decaffeinated coffee intake was not associated with lower dementia risk or better cognitive performance. Conclusions and relevance Greater consumption of caffeinated coffee and tea was associated with lower risk of dementia and modestly better cognitive function, with the most pronounced association at moderate intake levels.
Key findings
- Results Among 131 821 participants (mean age at baseline, 46.2 [SD, 7.2] years in the NHS cohort and 53.8 [SD, 9.7] years in the HPFS cohort; 65.7% were female) during up to 43 years of follow-up (median, 36.8 years; IQR, 28-42 years), there were 11 033 cases of incident dementia.
- After adjusting for potential confounders and pooling results across cohorts, higher caffeinated coffee intake was significantly associated with lower dementia risk (141 vs 330 cases per 100 000 person-years comparing the fourth [highest] quartile of consumption with the first [lowest] quartile; hazard ratio, 0.82 [95% CI, 0.76 to 0.89]) and lower prevalence of subjective cognitive decline (7.8% vs 9.5%, respectively; prevalence ratio, 0.85 [95% CI, 0.78 to 0.93]).
- In the NHS cohort, higher caffeinated coffee intake was also associated with better objective cognitive performance.
- Compared with participants in the lowest quartile, those in the highest quartile had a higher mean TICS score (mean difference, 0.11 [95% CI, 0.01 to 0.21]) and a higher mean global cognition score (mean difference, 0.02 [95% CI, -0.01 to 0.04]); however, the association with global cognition was not statistically significant (P = .06).
- Higher intake of tea showed similar associations with these cognitive outcomes, whereas decaffeinated coffee intake was not associated with lower dementia risk or better cognitive performance.
Why it matters
This cohort found that higher caffeinated coffee and tea intake was linked to lower dementia risk, while decaffeinated coffee was not. It is observational, so it cannot prove that coffee or tea prevents dementia.
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Study details
- Study designcohort
- Participants131,821
- Effect sizeHR 0.82 (95% CI 0.76-0.89) for highest vs lowest quartile of caffeinated coffee
- Evidence strengthModerate
Limitations
Observational; predominantly white health professionals; dementia partly identified from death records and self-reported physician diagnosis.
How this study scored 73/100
Published in a top-tier journal, and it is a cohort study following people over time. Scored zero for randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on senior author's track record and free to read, so those were left out: it earned 69 of the 94 points we could judge it on, which is 73 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 10 / 10 | Tier 1 — top-tier general journal (JAMA) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | JAMA: journal h-index 1,011 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 7 / 12 | A cohort study following people over time |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 4 / 4 | 131,821 participants |
| Effect reported | 3 / 3 | Effect reported with a statistic (interval, p-value, ratio or similar) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 3 / 7 | Cited 29 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 14.5 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | 6 / 6 | Cited 117.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 29 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | OpenAlex's profile for last-listed author Dong D Wang holds only 2 work(s), too few to judge a track record — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Harvard University: institution h-index 3,235 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 41661604) |
| Free to read | — / 2 | Access not recorded — left out of this score |
| Points | 69 / 94 | Scored on 18 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 69 of the 94 points we could judge it on is 73 out of 100. |
| Total | 73 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — PubMed Central lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 10 Oct 2026).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Zhang, Y., Liu, Y., Li, Y., Gu, X., Kang, J. H., et al. (2026). Coffee and Tea Intake, Dementia Risk, and Cognitive Function. JAMA. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2025.27259
Vancouver
Zhang Y, Liu Y, Li Y, Gu X, Kang JH, et al. Coffee and Tea Intake, Dementia Risk, and Cognitive Function. JAMA. 2026. doi:10.1001/jama.2025.27259. PMID: 41661604.
BibTeX
@article{zhang2026-41661604,
author = {Zhang, Y. and Liu, Y. and Li, Y. and Gu, X. and Kang, J. H. and others},
title = {{Coffee and Tea Intake, Dementia Risk, and Cognitive Function}},
journal = {JAMA},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.1001/jama.2025.27259},
pmid = {41661604},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2025.27259}
}
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