Coffee influences our auditory capacity. This time, the discovery comes from Italy, thanks to a recent study carried out by Giorgia Girotto and Dragana Vuckovic of the Burlo Garofalo/Trieste University, after some samples of isolated communities hailing from Italy and Central Asia (the latter collected during the scientific expedition “Marco Polo”). Two young researchers, both Italian, we have interviewed, so that they could better explain how coffee can, once again, be an excellent ally of health.

Where did the idea to carry out the study come from?

Having studied genetics of taste and genetics of hearing impairment for years and having thousands of data of persons coming from Italy, Caucasus and Central Asia on our disposal, we tried to combine different variables (specifically coffee, smoke, chocolate, tea, wine, beer, strong alcoholic beverages, milk and its derivates), discovering only an association with coffee.

The tests have been carried out by taking in consideration groups of people belonging to different communities, from Apulia to Central Asia regions. Why?

Our group has been studying isolated communities for years; in other words, it’s inhabitants that have been isolated from the rest of the population for geographical, historical and/or linguistic-cultural reasons. Therefore, the study of genetic and environmental factors influencing complex features, such as for example hearing, should be eased by the study of isolated genetics, since both the genetic and environmental component, such as for examples climate and diet, are much more homogeneous and have been like that for centuries. The interesting data is that we found a connection between hearing and coffee in populations, which are culturally and genetically very different. In fact, we found a positive connection in communities coming from Apulia, Sardinia, Azerbaijan and Tajikistan, even though they are characterized by a different lifestyle and consume different coffee blends (e.g. espresso in Italy and Turkish coffee along the Silk Road).

 

How can coffee improve auditing functions?

Actually, many molecules and mechanisms can be involved. Literature data showed that coffee contains a higher concentration of antioxidant molecules, that is substances protecting from cellular damage (caused for example by free radicals). Moreover, it’s well-known that one of the main components of coffee is trigonelline, a substance having a protective effect in presence of auditing pathology in animals.

How many cups per day affect its healthy effect?

Two or three cups of coffee per day show a significant connection with a better auditing function compared to a consumption of only one cup or more than three. This result is referred to the four communities we observed the healthy effect of coffee and relates to subjects drinking it regularly.

Can decaffeinated protect from auditing pathologies as well?

Unfortunately, we didn’t use to collect data regarding decaffeinated. However, recent studies show that the healthy effect of coffee comes from the presence of antioxidant molecules contained in coffee, and since caffeine is not a molecule with antioxidant features, in principle even decaffeinated could have a healthy effect.

For further information: giorgia.girotto@burlo.trieste.it