Scientists at Harvard Medical School have discovered that a natural deficiency of lithium in the brain might trigger the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease.
Their study, published in the journal Nature, found that lithium is vital for brain health and that losing lithium makes the brain more vulnerable to damage and memory loss.
This 10-year study looked at brain tissue and blood samples from people at various stages of cognitive health, as well as mouse models. Researchers found that lithium levels drop early in the development of Alzheimer’s and that amyloid plaques — one of the disease’s key features — bind to lithium, reducing its effectiveness in the brain.
The team then tested a special type of lithium, called lithium orotate, which avoids getting trapped by amyloid plaques. When given to mice, this compound reversed brain damage and restored memory, even in older animals with advanced symptoms.
Lithium is already used in high doses to treat mental health conditions like bipolar disorder, but such doses can be toxic, especially in older adults. However, lithium orotate worked at a much lower and safer dose — about 1,000 times lower than the clinical dose — with no signs of toxicity in mice.
The researchers suggest that lithium acts like a brain nutrient, much like iron or vitamin C. It occurs naturally in the environment and may help explain why some people with Alzheimer’s-like brain changes don’t develop dementia. High lithium levels in drinking water, for example, have been linked to lower rates of dementia.
Mouse experiments showed that when lithium was removed from the diet, the animals developed inflammation, memory loss, and other Alzheimer’s symptoms. Adding lithium back reversed many of these problems.
While more research is needed, including human clinical trials, this discovery opens new doors for early diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of Alzheimer’s. In the future, routine blood tests could help identify people at risk by checking their lithium levels. Safe and targeted lithium compounds might one day be used to prevent or even reverse the disease.
However, researchers warn that people should not take lithium supplements without medical supervision, as more testing is required to confirm its safety and effectiveness in humans.
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The study is published in Nature.
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