Popular drugs for bone health linked to significantly lower Alzheimer's risk

Commonly used osteoporosis drugs were linked to a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia in a large study of older adults.

Among a group of 121,492 adults age 60 or older, the use of nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates (NBP) was associated with a 16% lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias compared to those who did not take osteoporosis medications.

The risk was 24% less compared to people taking other types of osteoporosis medications.

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A nitrogen-containing bisphosphonate is a type of medication used to slow bone loss and reduce fracture risk, mainly in people with osteoporosis. Some common types include alendronate, ibandronate, risedronate and zoledronate.

Osteoporosis occurs when the bones become weaker and more likely to break due to a loss of bone mass, according to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS). The condition is especially common among older adults.

All adults in the Hong Kong study had recently been diagnosed with osteoporosis or suffered a serious fracture in the spine, humerus, wrist or hip. None had previously taken medication for osteoporosis.

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"Emerging evidence points to a bone-brain axis, suggesting a close link between bone and brain health," study author Ching-Lung Cheung, associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy at the University of Hong Kong’s Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, told Fox News Digital.

"Our previous studies and those of others have found that people with low bone mass or osteoporosis are more likely to develop dementia later in life. This highlights the importance of maintaining good bone health, which may also help reduce the risk of dementia."

The study, which was published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia, was observational in design.

"Our findings therefore do not prove that bisphosphonate use reduces dementia risk; this needs confirmation in a clinical trial," Cheung said.

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"Generalizability is another consideration, as our study involved only a Chinese population, and it remains uncertain whether the findings apply to other populations."

Another limitation is that baseline cognitive testing was unavailable, which means patients who already developed cognitive impairment may have been less likely to receive osteoporosis treatment.

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The researchers also lacked information about the severity of participants’ osteoporosis and bone fractures, as well as their use of over-the-counter calcium and vitamin D.

Other external factors, such as education level, social isolation, air pollution and vision loss, could also have affected dementia risk, they acknowledged.

Although the study findings suggest that older patients receiving NBPs for osteoporosis or fragility fractures had lower rates of Alzheimer’s and related dementias, they do not yet justify prescribing bisphosphonates specifically to prevent or treat the disease.

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The authors called for more research that will include wider populations, with a focus on whether gender may play a role in the reduced risk.

"The next step is to confirm our observational findings in a clinical trial," Cheung said. "If the benefit is demonstrated, it could have important implications for dementia management."

"We hope these findings encourage patients and healthcare professionals to weigh the overall benefits and risks and use appropriate treatment when indicated."