Alzheimer’s disease is a type of dementia that affects millions of people around the world. It slowly damages memory and thinking skills, leaving families heartbroken.
While scientists have been working hard to find a cure, a surprising new hope has come from an old vaccine.
The BCG vaccine, known for protecting people from tuberculosis (a serious lung disease), may also help protect the brain. This vaccine has been around for many years. It’s not only used to fight tuberculosis but also to treat a kind of bladder cancer. Now, it’s showing promise in reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s.
A team of scientists from Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital recently studied this idea. Dr. Marc Weinberg and his team followed 6,467 people who had bladder cancer. About half of these patients were treated with the BCG vaccine, while the others were not.
The results were exciting. Among those who got the vaccine, 202 people developed Alzheimer’s or similar brain diseases. In the group that didn’t get the vaccine, 262 people developed these conditions. This means the people who received the BCG vaccine had about a 20% lower risk of getting Alzheimer’s.
The effect was even stronger in people aged 70 and older. Even better, people who got the vaccine also had a 25% lower chance of dying during the study.
This is big news. Imagine if a simple shot could lower your chance of getting a disease as serious as Alzheimer’s. It could be life-changing for both patients and their loved ones.
Dr. Weinberg said that if the vaccine really does protect against Alzheimer’s, it could be an affordable and effective way to help people all over the world. Because of this exciting discovery, the team is planning new studies where they will give the BCG vaccine to older adults to see if it truly helps prevent Alzheimer’s.
But how can a vaccine made for the lungs protect the brain? The researchers think it may have to do with the immune system. The BCG vaccine might train the body’s defense system in a way that also protects the brain.
While there’s still a lot to learn, this study opens up a new and hopeful path. If more research confirms these findings, the BCG vaccine—once known only for fighting tuberculosis—might become an important tool in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease.
If you care about Alzheimer’s, you may want to read studies about the root cause of memory loss and five simple steps to protect against Alzheimer’s and dementia. Also, recent studies have linked tooth disease to dementia and shown that a special eating plan called the MIND diet may help protect brain health and prevent memory loss.
If you care about Alzheimer’s disease, please read studies that bad lifestyle habits can cause Alzheimer’s disease, and strawberries can be good defence against Alzheimer’s.
For more information about brain health, please see recent studies that oral cannabis extract may help reduce Alzheimer’s symptoms, and Vitamin E may help prevent Parkinson’s disease.
The study was published in JAMA Network Open.
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