Prominent Drug CAUSES Alzheimer’s

Alzheimer’s rates continue to soar. But don’t expect drug companies to swoop in and save the day anytime soon.

Because no matter how much money Big Pharma dumps into developing drugs for Alzheimer’s, they all end up as big, fat failures.

But it gets worse… so MUCH worse.

Incredibly, some of Big Pharma’s most popular (and over-prescribed) drugs could actually be CAUSING Alzheimer’s disease.

Benzodiazepines (benzos) are a broad class of drugs used to treat anxiety, seizures, and insomnia.

Two of the most common benzos are Xanax and Valium. They “work” by altering your brain neurons—and that’s where the problem comes in.

Microglia are immune cells in the brain. When taken, benzos bind to a protein on the surface of microglia.

This causes the synapses in your brain — that nerve cells use to communicate with each other – to degrade over time.

Synapse loss is responsible for sensory, motor, and cognitive impairments. Plus, it’s a key driver in diseases like Alzheimer’s, ALS, major depressive disorder, and aging in general.

To add insult to injury, benzo users also tend to develop a tolerance to these drugs over time. So you need to take more of them to achieve the same effect.

This not only increases the chances of addiction but ALSO exposes your brain to more risk.

You see, taking benzodiazepines for a short time doesn’t seem to impact Alzheimer’s risk. But research has found taking them for three to six months increased dementia risk by 32 percent.

And taking them for more than six months caused the risk to skyrocket to 84 percent.

Unfortunately, I don’t know many folks who have been on these drugs for LESS than six months.

Of course, your best bet is to never get Alzheimer’s to begin with. And there are many steps you can take to protect your brain as you age.

Including…

• raising your vitamin D level (deficiencies are common)
• socializing MORE (loneliness and social isolation send risk soaring)
• taking a daily walk (research shows the more you walk, the lower your risk)

In the meantime, consider talking to your doctor about safer alternatives to benzodiazepines.

P.S. One nutrient deficiency, in particular, could explain vague symptoms like fatigue, muscle weakness, and confusion. And as a recent study revealed, it can ALSO increase your risk of dementia.

SOURCE:

“Long-term diazepam treatment enhances microglial spine engulfment and impairs cognitive performance via the mitochondrial 18 kDa translocator protein (TSPO).” Nat Neurosci 25, 317–329 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-022-01013-9