6 ms·

Considering the very early effects of dementia start to impact people sometimes decades before it becomes bad enough that they are diagnosed, it's certainly pos

Considering the very early effects of dementia start to impact people sometimes decades before it becomes bad enough that they are diagnosed, it's certainly possible that extreme coffee consumption is some kind of self-medication mechanism. Anecdotally, I've seen this a lot with adults with undiagnosed ADHD (including myself until 26). Caffeine can be a (very shitty) alternative to proper stimulant medication that people don't realise they actually need because of a medical issue. So the end up drinking 4-5 coffees a day instead.

doubled112 3y ago
I've been accused of self medicating with coffee before by a guy who was diagnosed with ADHD in his 40s. It was funny at first, but then he started pointing things out. Want to ride bikes? We can get coffee on our travels. I jest, kind of.
whizzter 3y ago
Not far fetched at all, seems there's been studies showing a correlation between ADHD and Dementia between genrations. A big question for me is if the ADHD was always even in the older generations there but was non-diagnosed? https://news.ki.se/link-between-adhd-and-dementia-across-generations https://news.ki.se/link-between-adhd-and-dementia-across-gen...
- jijijijij 3y ago
  > A big question for me is if the ADHD was always even in the older generations there but was non-diagnosed? Also could the absence of treatment be causal? Undiagnosed people suffer immensely trying to cope and adapt to a neurotypical life. Depression and anxiety disorders are commonly found as comorbidities. The above-normal stress default by itself could probably explain all sorts of aging associated disease and symptoms, I presume. Then you typically find issues with sleep, regular food and water intake ... And yeah, in context, people with undiagnosed ADHD are much, much more likely to abuse drugs, or "self-medicate". Especially smoking and coffee.
- JohnBooty 3y ago
  Everything was diagnosed far less often in older generations, right?
  - klyrs 3y ago
    Not so! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Female_hysteria https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Female_hysteria
terramoto 3y ago
Wasnt this study made in the UK where most people lack vitamin D, which is also associated with dementia and depression?
- b800h 3y ago
  It's 20% incidence in general, highest in Asian (Indian etc) communities - not completely correlated with melanin.
  - david_shi 3y ago
    A bit of a sidenote, but I find it fascinating how little vitamin deficiencies are accounted for in allopathic medical contexts. Deficiencies seem like such a frequent occurrence but most patients end up needing to self-medicate.
    - elzbardico 3y ago
      [flagged]
      - CorrectHorseBat 3y ago
        There are billions being made with vitamins
        JohnBooty 3y ago
        The vitamin/supplements industry makes billions while the pharma industry makes trillions. The pharma industry is financially shaped around big "hit" patented medications that rake in megaprofits. They are literally too big to play in the vitamin-selling market. It's kind of like how you and I might be able to spin up a profitable SaaS or other project that pulls in a few hundred grand or even a few million per year. A nice sum! Meanwhile, FAANG companies can't even consider such projects. They are not going to keep the lights on by pursuing 100,000 different niche projects that each make $100,000 profit per year. That would still only be 20% of their current revenue. The big pharma companies shape how things are done. They fund the studies, they have direct access to doctors, etc. In terms of actual influence the supplement industry might as well not even exist, just like our theoretical SaaS would have zero industry influence.
lawlessone 3y ago
>alternative to proper stimulant medication Nicotine will do it too. Nicotine is a lot harder to stop though.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
datavirtue 3y ago
I drink two cups a day, but I must have them. Self medication. I can't imagine five cups, I wouldn't have time to fit them in. Perhaps I'm a lite-weight.
- theGnuMe 3y ago
  Make stronger coffee
philipov 3y ago
extreme coffee consumption is used to self-medicate ADHD symptoms as well.
yaomingite 3y ago
> Anecdotally, I've seen this a lot with adults with undiagnosed ADHD (including myself until 26). Caffeine can be a (very shitty) alternative to proper stimulant medication that people don't realise they actually need because of a medical issue. So the end up drinking 4-5 coffees a day instead. ADHD medication is among the hardest to get in the first place, and to maintain in many places. I was diagnosed as a child, and still couldn't get regular medication until 3 years ago (I'm 37 now). Doctors will try to push off-label treatments, often SSRIs, which do nothing for ADHD. They will push people to try ineffective talk therapy and describe actual medication as "only a last resort". My cousin can't get it because his insurance says you only have ADHD if you were diagnosed as a child, and he spent his childhood in another country where the roads were barely maintained. ADHD meds reduce the chances someone will abuse drugs according to research, but many docs will cancel prescriptions if you are honest about cannabis use. In the wake of the opiate scandal new restrictions also place limits on how much a pharmacy can dispense, even if everyone has a valid prescription. That's part of the reason for the medication shortages in some areas. It's been a miracle medication for me, but if you don't have money and luck it can be next to impossible to find someone to help you. Those that do often require thousands in fees.
- N1H1L 3y ago
  ADHD is also very strongly linked to cigarette smoking, by the way. What I mean is that nicotine is a form of self-medication
- elzbardico 3y ago
  [flagged]
- jijijijij 3y ago
  To add: At least for methylphenidate, there are several studies showing neuronal long term improvements, "brain normalisation", in people with ADHD. That's rare in psychopharmacology... I do understand hesitation about immediate release amphetamine, but the retarded formulations are also quite hard to abuse. If you do more than prescribed, you won't get high, you will have a bad time. "Getting high", requires a sudden onset, rush, and sharp peak, which retarded meds won't induce. Denying people with ADHD to try stims, is really, really unethical considering our knowledge on their effectiveness treating the condition.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]

doubled112 3y ago

I've been accused of self medicating with coffee before by a guy who was diagnosed with ADHD in his 40s. It was funny at first, but then he started pointing things out. Want to ride bikes? We can get coffee on our travels. I jest, kind of.

whizzter 3y ago

Not far fetched at all, seems there's been studies showing a correlation between ADHD and Dementia between genrations. A big question for me is if the ADHD was always even in the older generations there but was non-diagnosed? https://news.ki.se/link-between-adhd-and-dementia-across-generations https://news.ki.se/link-between-adhd-and-dementia-across-gen...

jijijijij 3y ago
> A big question for me is if the ADHD was always even in the older generations there but was non-diagnosed? Also could the absence of treatment be causal? Undiagnosed people suffer immensely trying to cope and adapt to a neurotypical life. Depression and anxiety disorders are commonly found as comorbidities. The above-normal stress default by itself could probably explain all sorts of aging associated disease and symptoms, I presume. Then you typically find issues with sleep, regular food and water intake ... And yeah, in context, people with undiagnosed ADHD are much, much more likely to abuse drugs, or "self-medicate". Especially smoking and coffee.
JohnBooty 3y ago
Everything was diagnosed far less often in older generations, right?
- klyrs 3y ago
  Not so! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Female_hysteria https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Female_hysteria

terramoto 3y ago

Wasnt this study made in the UK where most people lack vitamin D, which is also associated with dementia and depression?

b800h 3y ago
It's 20% incidence in general, highest in Asian (Indian etc) communities - not completely correlated with melanin.
- david_shi 3y ago
  A bit of a sidenote, but I find it fascinating how little vitamin deficiencies are accounted for in allopathic medical contexts. Deficiencies seem like such a frequent occurrence but most patients end up needing to self-medicate.
  - elzbardico 3y ago
    [flagged]
    - CorrectHorseBat 3y ago
      There are billions being made with vitamins
      - JohnBooty 3y ago
        The vitamin/supplements industry makes billions while the pharma industry makes trillions. The pharma industry is financially shaped around big "hit" patented medications that rake in megaprofits. They are literally too big to play in the vitamin-selling market. It's kind of like how you and I might be able to spin up a profitable SaaS or other project that pulls in a few hundred grand or even a few million per year. A nice sum! Meanwhile, FAANG companies can't even consider such projects. They are not going to keep the lights on by pursuing 100,000 different niche projects that each make $100,000 profit per year. That would still only be 20% of their current revenue. The big pharma companies shape how things are done. They fund the studies, they have direct access to doctors, etc. In terms of actual influence the supplement industry might as well not even exist, just like our theoretical SaaS would have zero industry influence.

lawlessone 3y ago

>alternative to proper stimulant medication Nicotine will do it too. Nicotine is a lot harder to stop though.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

datavirtue 3y ago

I drink two cups a day, but I must have them. Self medication. I can't imagine five cups, I wouldn't have time to fit them in. Perhaps I'm a lite-weight.

theGnuMe 3y ago
Make stronger coffee

philipov 3y ago

extreme coffee consumption is used to self-medicate ADHD symptoms as well.

yaomingite 3y ago

> Anecdotally, I've seen this a lot with adults with undiagnosed ADHD (including myself until 26). Caffeine can be a (very shitty) alternative to proper stimulant medication that people don't realise they actually need because of a medical issue. So the end up drinking 4-5 coffees a day instead. ADHD medication is among the hardest to get in the first place, and to maintain in many places. I was diagnosed as a child, and still couldn't get regular medication until 3 years ago (I'm 37 now). Doctors will try to push off-label treatments, often SSRIs, which do nothing for ADHD. They will push people to try ineffective talk therapy and describe actual medication as "only a last resort". My cousin can't get it because his insurance says you only have ADHD if you were diagnosed as a child, and he spent his childhood in another country where the roads were barely maintained. ADHD meds reduce the chances someone will abuse drugs according to research, but many docs will cancel prescriptions if you are honest about cannabis use. In the wake of the opiate scandal new restrictions also place limits on how much a pharmacy can dispense, even if everyone has a valid prescription. That's part of the reason for the medication shortages in some areas. It's been a miracle medication for me, but if you don't have money and luck it can be next to impossible to find someone to help you. Those that do often require thousands in fees.

N1H1L 3y ago
ADHD is also very strongly linked to cigarette smoking, by the way. What I mean is that nicotine is a form of self-medication
elzbardico 3y ago
[flagged]
jijijijij 3y ago
To add: At least for methylphenidate, there are several studies showing neuronal long term improvements, "brain normalisation", in people with ADHD. That's rare in psychopharmacology... I do understand hesitation about immediate release amphetamine, but the retarded formulations are also quite hard to abuse. If you do more than prescribed, you won't get high, you will have a bad time. "Getting high", requires a sudden onset, rush, and sharp peak, which retarded meds won't induce. Denying people with ADHD to try stims, is really, really unethical considering our knowledge on their effectiveness treating the condition.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]