Association of Caffeine and Theobromine Intakes With Cognitive Function Performance in Older Adults

Objectives: The objective of this study was to explore the association of simultaneous caffeine and theobromine intake with cognitive function performance in older adults. Methods: We used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2011 to 2014. Caffeine and theobromine intake, derived from two 24-hour dietary recalls, were categorized by quartiles and median values. Cognitive function performance was assessed using the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD) test, the Animal Fluency test, and the Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST), and the median score was used as the cutoff point for low cognitive function performance. Logistic regression was used to examine whether there was a significant difference of caffeine and theobromine intake and cognitive function performance. All models were adjusted for potential confounding factors including gender, age, ethnicity, education level, marital status, family poverty income ratio, body mass index, self-reported hypertension, diabetes, depression, smoking status, drinking status, physical activity and total energy intake. Results: A total of 2,524 people (women 51.8%) aged ≥60 were included in this study. After adjusting for confounding factors, the highest quartile of caffeine intake (OR:0.692; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.532-0.901) or simultaneous intake of caffeine and theobromine (OR:0.621 ; 95% CI: 0.482-0.798) showed a protective effect on CERAD test; of as did theobromine intake (OR:0.758; 95% CI: 0.584-0.983) or simultaneous intake of caffeine and theobromine (OR: 0.735; 95% CI: 0.558-0.969) on DDST. Conclusions: Higher intake of caffeine and theobromine is associated with better cognitive function performance and has a protective effect. Moreover, simultaneous intake of both substances demonstrates a synergistic effect in preventing cognitive impairment compared to the intake of caffeine or theobromine alone. Funding Sources: Ming-Chieh Li was supported by the National Science and Technology Council, Taiwan (NSTC 112-2410-H-003-031). AI Disclosures: The authors used ChatGPT to revise and check the grammar. The authors have reviewed and edited the content as needed and take full responsibility for the publication's content.