Nicotine Patch May Help Improve Mild Memory Loss in Older Adults
Using a nicotine patch may help improve mild memory loss in older adults, according to a recent study published in Neurology.
The study involved 74 people with an average age of 76 who had mild cognitive impairment and were not smokers. Half of the participants received a nicotine patch for six months and half received a placebo. The participants took several tests of memory and thinking skills at the start of the study and again after three and six months.
After six months of treatment, the nicotine-treated group regained 46 percent of normal performance for age on long-term memory, whereas the placebo group worsened by 26 percent.
Study authors cautioned against unsupervised use of the substance.
äóìPeople with mild memory loss should not start smoking or using nicotine patches by themselves, because there are harmful effects of smoking and a medication such as nicotine should only be used with a doctor’s supervision,äó said study author Paul Newhouse, MD, of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Really he said that! Kind of interesting statement.
The study was supported by the National Institute on Aging and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences. Pfizer Inc., provided the transdermal nicotine patches.
Good information but don’t be rushing to your doctor just yet.
Statins May Lead to Diabetes in Older Women
Just on the heels of our beloved aspirin being linked to macular degeneration, now a new study suggests that statins, you know Crestor, Lipitor and the like, could lead to diabetes in older women.
In a study of more than 150,000 diabetes-free women in their 50s, 60s and 70s, about 10,200 developed diabetes six or seven years after the investigation began. Forty-eight percent of the women taking statins were more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes than those not taking statins.
Researchers are not sure why this is so. Statins’ effects on the muscles and liver could cause the body to make slightly more sugar than it normally would, or the drugs could cause users to exercise less, they suggested.
Still researchers agree that the benefits of these drugs to lower cholesterol and reduce heart attack risk outweighs their potential side effects.
