3p dementia pill
Study suggests widely used diabetes pill helps mental health in the ageing
A DRUG being taken by more than three million diabetic Britons may also help prevent dementia.
Research found type diabetes patients taking metformin pills had better brain function.
The 3p pill, which is sold as Glucophage, is first-line treatment to control glucose levels.
Previous research suggests it can also reduce the risk of cancer, heart disease, polycystic ovary 2 syndrome and obesity. Professor Katherine Samaras, of the Garvan Institute, Sydney, said: “We’ve revealed the promising new potential for a safe and widely used medication.
“It could be lifechanging for patients at risk of dementia. “For those with type 2 diabetes, metformin may add something extra to standard glucose lowering.” The findings are based on 1,037 Australians aged 70 to 90 – 123 of whom had type 2 diabetes.
The 67 receiving metformin to lower blood sugar levels had much better brain function and a lower dementia risk compared with those not taking it.
Their mental health remained just as good as peers who did not have diabetes.
However the research could not prove that the superior cognitive function was not due to other lifestyle factors in those taking metformin.
Prof Samaras said: “As they age, people living with type 2 diabetes have a 60% risk of developing dementia.
“The devastating condition impacts thinking, behaviour, the ability to perform everyday tasks.”
Senior author of the study, Prof Perminder Sachdev, of the University of New South Wales, said: “An observational study does not provide conclusive ‘proof ’ that metformin is protective against dementia.”
But he added: “It does encourage us to study this and other anti- diabetic treatments for dementia prevention.”