9 hours Ago By Hanna Geissler
Dementia is one of the most feared conditions of old age with few effective treatments and no cure. Almost 950,000 people live with dementia — and that number is projected to hit 1.4 million by 2040.
Some common medications have been found to have protective effects for brain health and linked to a lower risk of developing it. These include: Around eight million people are prescribed statins in the UK to reduce their risk of heart and circulatory problems . The cheap pills work by lowering levels of “bad” LDL-cholesterol in the blood.
This can help to prevent the hardening and narrowing of arteries. High cholesterol levels can lead to health conditions such as high blood pressure , diabetes and obesity, which are also risk factors for dementia. A major 2022 analysis of 36 studies found that people who took statins were up to a fifth less likely to develop dementia.
Caused but he same virus as chicken pox, shingles is a viral infection that produces a painful rash. The virus can remain dormant for years and reactivate in older people with weakened immune systems . A recent study in Wales found that people who received the shingles vaccine were 20% less likely to develop dementia over the next seven years than those who did not have the jab.
Researchers, led by Stanford Medicine, looked at the health records of more than 280,000 older adults aged 71 to 88. The study’s authors described their findings as “really striking” with a “huge protective signal” associated with the jab. A 2024 study suggested that viagra improves blood flow to the brain and could help to prevent dementia.
The widely-available drug increased blood flow in large and small blood vessels and enhanced the response to carbon dioxide in patients who had experienced a minor stroke and showed signs of mild to moderate small vessel disease. Oxford University experts said further research would be needed to explore viagra’s potential to prevent vascular dementia, for which more therapies are urgently needed. Revolutionary jabs that aid weight loss have been found to reduce risk of a raft of health conditions, including dementia.
A recent study of almost 400,000 adults published in JAMA Neurology found such GLP-1 medications were linked to a 33% lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Obesity and related conditions such as type 2 diabetes are known to increase risk of dementia. Experts said more research was needed to understand how weight loss jabs might be affecting the brain.
The BCG vaccine protects against tuberculosis, an infection that affects the lungs causing symptoms such as persistent coughing, tiredness, a high temperature and loss of appetite. Multiple studies have found that people who receive the vaccine may be significantly less likely to develop dementia. The jab is not routinely given as part of the NHS vaccination schedule and is mainly given to babies and young children, travellers or people who are at higher risk of infection due to their work.
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