Modern drugs can help sooth agitation, anxiety, depression, and sleeplessness, and may also help boost participation in daily activities. Newer medications are also becoming available that can improve or preserve thinking skills, at least temporarily.
Please note: Regular reassessment is required while you are on any of these medications. This helps doctors determine if the medicines are being tolerated without troublesome side effects. These regular visits are also to make sure the patient is responding to the medication appropriately.
It is important to note that consumption of some nutritional supplements or medications can have serious side effects or interfere with other prescribed medications. Please consult with your doctor before using any nutritional supplements or medications.

Vitamin B, E, Folic Acid, and Others

Several studies have investigated whether nutritional supplements and certain medications may reduce the risk of developing dementia. Some of the findings are summarized below:

• It has been suggested that antioxidants, such as vitamins C and E, may reduce the risk of developing dementia. Interestingly, the protective effect of these vitamins was enhanced when they were acquired through food, rather then through supplements.
• Adequate intake of vitamin B and folate can help reduce homocysteine levels, and this may reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

Anti-Inflammatory Agents

As inflammation correlates with brain damage caused by Alzheimer’s disease it has been suggested that some anti-inflammatory agents may help delay dementia. The effectiveness of anti-inflammatory agents in prevention has not been proven, but researchers now know that they are not very effective in treating Alzheimer’s disease.

Alcohol

Some studies have found that moderate alcohol (1-3 drinks per day) and caffeine intake may have a protective influence. However, it is important to emphasize that alcohol and caffeine also have other negative effects that may outweigh their potential benefit in delaying dementia.

Diabetes Medications

Careful management of diabetes with medications that maintain blood glucose levels within a healthy range may also reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

Cholesterol Lowering Medicines

Cholesterol lowering drugs may lower the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

Cholesterol lowering medicines known as statins, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen or aspirin, ginkgo biloba, and Eldepryl - a monoamine oxidase inhibitor - can also help a great deal.

Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitors

Alzheimer’s causes the destruction of neurons (brain cells). It also destroys the important chemical messenger acetylcholine, which is responsible for memory and other cognitive skills. While no drug has yet been shown to completely protect the brain against the effects of Alzheimer’s, drugs that protect acetylcholine from destruction appear to hold the symptoms at bay for a while longer.

These medications are known as acetylcholinesterase inhibitors and include :

• Aricept,
• Exelon, and,
• Reminyl.

For the acetylcholinesterase inhibitor drugs, the dose of medication is started low and gradually increased to the recommended level. Tolerance (the drug no longer provides the same benefit) may occur. It is also important to know that these medications are expensive, averaging in the neighborhood of $130 per month. Your insurance or health cover may or may not cover the costs of this drug.

Reminyl Warning

In April 2005, Reminyl’s label was changed to include information about the deaths of 13 elderly patients who were taking the drug during a study. The deaths were due to various causes, including heart attack and stroke.

Side Effects

The acetylcholinesterase inhibitors are generally well tolerated by the human body, but some troublesome side effects may occur. These side effects include :

• nausea,
• vomiting,
• diarrhea, and,
• weight loss.

Often, changing to a lower dose or switching medications solves the problems.

Cholinesterase Inhibitors

The cholinesterase inhibitor, Cognex, is rarely used anymore due to serious liver side effects and the need for frequent blood testing.

Namenda

Another medicine, called Namenda, has recently been approved for use in the U.S. This medication has a different action than the acetylcholinesterase inhibitors and the two types of drugs may be used together, at the same time. This may increase the effectiveness of therapy.

Flurizan

All of the FDA-approved treatments now available only provide relief of cognitive symptoms; they do not attack underlying disease.

A recent study found that patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease who take a drug called Flurizan were able to slow the disease-related decline in their activities of daily living (such as eating and dressing) by about 67 percent when compared with people on placebo.

Flurizan is the first of a new class of drugs known as selective amyloid beta- lowering agents, which are intended to affect the suspected underlying cause of the disease, a build-up of beta-amyloid protein.

Intravenous Immunoglobulin (IVIg)

In a trial involving eight people with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s, researchers at Weill Medical College of Cornell University are trying to harness the body’s immune system to fight Alzheimer’s.

In this trial, intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) seemed to increase the levels of anti-beta-amyloid antibodies in the blood to a greater degree than seen before resulting in an average 45 percent decrease ofamyloid. Six of the eight patients experienced improvement in cognitive function and none of the patients had declining function.

Previous studies had noted that levels of these antibodies seemed to be lower in people with Alzheimer’s. IVIg is derived from human blood and contains high concentrations of antibodies.

Researches are not yet sure how this occurs. For example, amyloid clearance might be due to a flushing effect (i.e., antibodies in the brain are working to flush out the protein) or a magnet-like effect (the antibodies are drawing or attracting the protein into the bloodstream).

Intranasal Insulin

Other studies have found that insulin delivered intranasally benefited individuals with both early Alzheimer’s and abnormal insulin regulation.

Previous research has indicated that people with high levels of insulin in their blood may be at an increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s. This is because insulin congregates in the blood vessels and fails to reach the brain, where it is needed for various regulatory processes.

Another way to get insulin to the brain is through the nose, and in this study, conducted at the University of Washington School of Medicine and Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Medical Center, insulin delivered intranasally did improve memory recall for Alzheimer’s patients. The participants were able to remember a list of words after taking a higher insulin dose, the researchers report.