Scientists have discovered that a group of diabetes medicines may do more than help control blood sugar.
A new study suggests these medicines could also lower the risk of dementia in older adults who have serious mental health conditions.
The findings offer hope because dementia is becoming more common as people live longer, and there are still very few treatments that can prevent it.
Dementia is not a single disease. It is a group of conditions that slowly damage memory, thinking, reasoning, and the ability to carry out daily activities.
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form, but there are several other types. Age is the biggest risk factor, but researchers now believe that problems affecting blood sugar, blood vessels, inflammation, and metabolism may also increase the risk of dementia.
The new research focused on medicines called sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors, usually shortened to SGLT2 inhibitors. These medicines were originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes.
They lower blood sugar by helping the kidneys remove extra glucose through urine. In recent years, scientists have also found that these medicines can protect the heart and kidneys. Researchers are now exploring whether they may also protect the brain.
The study was led by Dr. David T. Liebers from the New York University Grossman School of Medicine.
It was published in JAMA Network Open. The research included 112,725 adults aged 65 years and older from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs health system. The participants had major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia spectrum disorder.
These psychiatric illnesses have been linked to a higher risk of developing dementia later in life.
The researchers compared people who were treated with SGLT2 inhibitors with similar patients who did not receive these medicines. About 6.8 percent of participants used an SGLT2 inhibitor.
The scientists used an advanced study design that closely imitates a clinical trial while analyzing real-world medical records.
The results were encouraging. People taking SGLT2 inhibitors had a lower risk of developing dementia than those who were not taking these medicines. The researchers also found fewer psychiatric emergency department visits in one analysis and fewer psychiatric hospital admissions in another analysis.
Although not every outcome was reduced in every analysis, the overall findings suggested that SGLT2 inhibitors may provide important brain health benefits.
Scientists believe there may be several reasons for these results. Better blood sugar control may reduce damage to blood vessels in the brain.
These medicines also lower inflammation, improve heart health, and may help protect brain cells from injury. Researchers think many psychiatric disorders and dementia may share common biological pathways involving metabolism and inflammation.
However, the study has important limitations. It was an observational study, which means it can show a strong association but cannot prove that SGLT2 inhibitors directly prevented dementia.
Most participants were older men, so more research is needed to determine whether the same benefits occur in women and younger adults. Randomized clinical trials will be needed before doctors can recommend these medicines specifically for dementia prevention.
Overall, this large study adds to growing evidence that diabetes medicines may have benefits far beyond blood sugar control. If future research confirms these findings, SGLT2 inhibitors could become an important tool for protecting brain health in older adults with serious psychiatric disorders.
The study is impressive because it included more than 112,000 participants and used high-quality medical records from a large health system. However, because it was not a randomized clinical trial, the findings should be viewed as promising rather than conclusive. More studies are needed before treatment guidelines change.
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Source: New York University Grossman School of Medicine.
