Alzheimer’s disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, affecting more than 6 million Americans, and its incidence is expected to rise in the coming decades.
In a study from Tufts University, scientists found that green tea and resveratrol reduce Alzheimer’s plaques.
The cause of Alzheimer’s disease in its most common form, which is not genetically based, is not well understood. This makes treatment difficult, but progress is being made.
In the study, the team tested 21 different compounds in Alzheimer’s-afflicted neural cells in the lab, measuring the compounds’ effect on the growth of sticky beta-amyloid plaques.
These plaques develop in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s.
The researchers found that two common compounds—green tea catechins and resveratrol, found in red wine and other foods—reduced the formation of plaques in those neural cells. And they did so with few or no side effects.
Some of the 21 compounds tested reduced the disease progression by acting as anti-viral agents—slowing Alzheimer’s induced by the herpes virus.
In addition to the green tea compounds and resveratrol, the team found curcumin from turmeric, the diabetic medication Metformin, and a compound called citicoline that prevented plaques from forming and did not have anti-viral effects.
Green tea catechins—molecules in the tea leaves that have an antioxidant effect—have been explored as a potential treatment for cancers, and resveratrol has been tested for anti-aging properties.
The team cautioned that seeing effects in the lab doesn’t always necessarily translate to what you might see in a patient.
Some compounds do not cross the blood-brain barrier, which would be essential in the case of Alzheimer’s, and some have low bioavailability, meaning they are not readily absorbed into the body or bloodstream.
Still, the discovery is important because there is no cure for Alzheimer’s or a way to prevent its progression, aside from several potential drugs developed by pharmaceutical companies that are still in trials.
Compounds like these two that show some efficacy and are known to be safe and easily accessible could be taken as a supplement or consumed as part of one’s diet.
If you care about Alzheimer’s, please read studies about how the Mediterranean diet could protect your brain health, and 5 steps to protect against Alzheimer’s and Dementia.
For more information about brain health, please see recent studies that herb rosemary could help fight COVID-19 and Alzheimer’s disease, and results showing these antioxidants could help reduce the risk of dementia.
The study was conducted by Dana Cairns et al and published in Free Radical Biology and Medicine.
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