Anti-cholesterol statins could halve risk of Alzheimer's

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The cholesterol-lowering drugs halved the risk of Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia in the patients in as little as five years.

American researchers also found that people with type 2 diabetes were found to be up to three times more likely than average to develop Alzheimer's, according to Neurology magazine.

The study set out to look at the effect of conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure on dementia risk. Of the 1,674 patients who were not suffering from dementia at the start of the study, 27 per cent took statins at some point.

Over five years, 130 participants developed dementia or mental impairment. The researchers found that those who took statins before any mental decline were far less likely to acquire a dementia illness.

Professor Mary Haan, from the University of Michigan School of Public Health, led the study. She said: "If a person takes statins over about five to seven years, it reduces the risk of dementia by half, and that's a really big change."

She said it was likely that many people routinely taking statins had unknowingly reduced their chances of suffering dementia. "We aren't suggesting that people should take statins for purposes other than what they are indicated for, but hopefully this study and others will open the door to statin testing," she added.

Professor Haan said one theory was that statins help to reduce insulin levels in the brain that are associated with Alzheimer's symptoms.