Diabetes drugs ‘slow dementia symptoms’

TAKING diabetes drugs may help ward off memory loss in Alzheimer’s patients.

US scientists wanted to find out why Alzheimer’s sufferers with Type 2 diabetes had fewer protein clumps which cause forgetfulness in the brain.

Examining tiny blood vessels in the brains of people with both conditions, they found those of patients treated for diabetes were in a better state.

They believe insulin and Metformin, the drugs which help regulate blood sugar levels, also help maintain blood vessels in the brain.

Researchers examined the brains of 34 Alzheimer’s patients who were treated for Type 2 diabetes, 30 non-diabet- ics with Alzheimer’s, and 19 with neither condition.

The evidence from the brain capillaries suggests insulin and Metformin helped reduce blood vessel abnormalities seen in Alzheimer’s, which may help to keep out toxins and bring in important nutrients.

Senior author Vahram Haroutunian, a professor at the Icahn School of Medicine in New York, said the findings could lead to a ‘more targeted treatment’ for Alzheimer’s patients.

Dr James Pickett, of the Alzheimer’s Society, said it was funding more research into the effects of diabetes drugs on Alzheimer’s symptoms.

He added that the study, published in the journal PLOS One, had ‘brought us closer to a cure for dementia’.

‘More targeted treatment’