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When you’re concerned about developing Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, you’ll likely want to know if there’s anything you can do to reduce your risk. Semaglutide has been popularized as a drug for type 2 diabetes (under the brand name Ozempic) and for weight loss (under the brand name Wegovy). It’s also being researched for other health needs, including cognitive decline.
Because Alzheimer’s disease is likely influenced by a mix of genetic, lifestyle, and environmental factors, researchers are exploring many avenues to treat it. If you have a genetic predisposition to Alzheimer’s or dementia, you care for a relative with these conditions, or you just want to keep tabs on your cognitive abilities, you may be interested in learning more about ways to keep your brain healthy.
You’ve probably heard the buzz about using semaglutide as a potential way to reduce your risk of cognitive decline. Here’s what you need to know about where the research stands so you can make informed decisions about your medical future. As you delve into the information presented here, please keep in mind that this is an evolving area of research. Definitive conclusions about semaglutide's role in reducing dementia risk have not yet been reached.
Semaglutide is what doctors and researchers call a glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist. GLP-1 drugs were originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes. They help people with this condition keep their blood glucose (blood sugar) levels under control.
Some GLP-1 agonists are also approved to treat people with obesity. For instance, Wegovy was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2021 to help people diagnosed with obesity with weight loss.
Both type 2 diabetes and obesity are recognized risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. This might be because both conditions are associated with insulin resistance and inflammation, which affect brain health.
GLP-1 is a hormone that your body makes naturally in your small intestine. Semaglutide works by acting the same way this hormone does in the body. Specifically, it binds to cells where GLP-1 would usually attach. This causes the cell to act as if a GLP-1 molecule had attached instead.
Since GLP-1 is involved in managing insulin and blood sugar, as well as affecting how hungry or full you feel, these medications can help with both diabetes and obesity. However, GLP-1s are relatively new, and researchers are still figuring out all of the potential benefits. There is ongoing research on how these medications can benefit people with other health conditions, like Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Semaglutide may reduce a person’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, but there’s not enough evidence yet to know for sure. There are some promising early studies on animals, but there’s also a lot more work to do to figure out if and how this might work. So far, there are no published studies specifically on the effects of Ozempic on Alzheimer’s disease in humans.
Semaglutide seems to affect the brain as well as the digestive system. In studies with mice and rats, GLP-1 medications improved learning and memory. In studies on cultured cells, GLP-1 seemed to protect brain cells and even cause new neurons to grow. This could point to GLP-1 medications’ ability to maintain cognitive function, but these studies on brain health need to be reproduced in humans before researchers can be sure.
When it comes to Alzheimer’s disease specifically, animal trials have shown that semaglutide helps the brain’s metabolism. This means that it helps the brain process and convert glucose and other substances into energy and other essential compounds. Alzheimer’s disease can affect these processes in the brain.
In mice, semaglutide also appears to reverse certain signs of brain aging that are often associated with Alzheimer’s. Again, this research needs to be replicated in people.
Another study from 2024 evaluated medical records of people with type 2 diabetes who had and had not taken semaglutide. The people who had used semaglutide seemed less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.
It’s important to note that studies analyzing existing medical records can suggest associations but cannot prove cause and effect. There might be other factors in the group taking semaglutide that contributed to the lower Alzheimer’s risk, which were not fully accounted for in the analysis. The researchers noted that this study mostly serves to encourage people to continue looking at these topics.
Clinical trials are currently testing the effects of taking oral semaglutide on people living with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers want to see if the medication slows the progression of the disease or even reverses it. The research is ongoing, so we don’t yet know the results.
If you are interested in participating in a clinical trial to investigate potential new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, talk with your healthcare provider.
One myALZteam member who’s a caregiver noted that their spouse, who’s living with cognitive decline, participated in a study like this. “My hubby had his second neurological test (his first was two years ago), and his cognitive abilities remain intact,” they said. “He has been on a drug trial on semaglutide … for a year and has about another year to go. … I have no illusion that he will be cured of memory loss but am hopeful of slowing down the progression.”
This research is promising, but it doesn’t offer any conclusions yet. Researchers need to answer a lot more questions before we know if semaglutide might give someone a lower risk of dementia.
Some of the questions driving further research are:
The kinds of studies that need to be done to answer these questions take time. It’s understandable to want answers right now and to feel impatient. However, it might help to remember that good-quality data takes time. We don’t want researchers to rush, so we can receive reliable data to help reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s.
If you’re worried about developing Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, talk to your healthcare provider. They can help you evaluate your risk so you have a better understanding of what’s going on with your body. They may even offer to do blood tests that can help diagnose the condition or even predict your risk.
Your provider may also give you advice about other things you can do to reduce your Alzheimer’s risk. They may recommend:
None of these will reduce your risk of developing Alzheimer's or dementia entirely, but they can help. As people continue to research these conditions and understand what causes them, your doctor may be able to make updated recommendations.
At myALZteam, you’ll find the social network for people with Alzheimer’s and their loved ones. Here, members come together to ask questions, give advice, and share their stories with others who understand life with Alzheimer’s.
Have you discussed the effects of semaglutide on Alzheimer’s risk with your healthcare provider? How do you try to reduce your risk of developing Alzheimer’s? Share your experience in the comments below, or start a conversation by posting on your Activities page.
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