A large study of older adults in Hong Kong has found that a widely used class of osteoporosis drugs is associated with a significantly lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
Among 121,492 adults age 60 or older, researchers found that people taking nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates (NBP) had a 16% lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias compared with those who took no osteoporosis medication at all. Compared with people taking other types of osteoporosis drugs, the risk was 24% lower.
Nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates are used to slow bone loss and reduce fracture risk, primarily in people with osteoporosis. Common examples include alendronate, ibandronate, risedronate and zoledronate. Osteoporosis, a condition marked by weakened bones prone to fracture, is especially common among older adults, according to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.
Everyone in the study had either been recently diagnosed with osteoporosis or had suffered a serious fracture of the spine, humerus, wrist or hip, and none had previously taken osteoporosis medication.
A Possible ‘Bone-Brain’ Connection
Study author Ching-Lung Cheung, an 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 that the findings point to a broader relationship between skeletal and cognitive health.
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