The aim of this study was to examine the association of coffee, caffeinated coffee, decaffeinated coffee and caffeine intake from coffee with cognitive performance in older adults. we used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2011-2014. Coffee and caffeine intake were obtained through two 24-hour dietary recalls. Cognitive performance was evaluated by the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD) test, Animal Fluency test and Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST). Binary logistic regression and restricted cubic spline models were applied to evaluate the association of coffee and caffeine intake with cognitive performance. A total of 2513 participants aged 60 years or older were included. In the fully adjusted model, compared to those reporting no coffee consumption, those who reported 266.4-495 (g/day) had a multivariate adjusted odd ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) of 0.56(0.35-0.89) for DSST test score, compared to those reporting no caffeinated coffee consumption, those who reported ≥384.8 (g/day) had a multivariate-adjusted OR (95% CI) of 0.68(0.48-0.97) for DSST test score, compared to the lowest quartile of caffeine intake from coffee, the multivariate adjusted OR (95% CI) of the quartile (Q) three was 0.62(0.38-0.98) for the CERAD test score. L-shaped associations were apparent for coffee, caffeinated coffee and caffeine from coffee with the DSST test score and CERAD test score. No significant association was observed between decaffeinated coffee and different dimensions of cognitive performance. Our study suggests that coffee, caffeinated coffee and caffeine from coffee were associated with cognitive performance, while decaffeinated coffee was not associated with cognitive performance.
Keywords: caffeine intake from coffee; cognitive performance; decaffeinated coffee; dose–response.