Study: Cholesterol-lowering drug Zocor may also help ward off Alzheimer's and Parkinson's

Readers of the post "Brain Health Is Really Whole Body Health" won't be too surprised to read of the results of the Boston University study that found that the cholesterol-lowering drug Zocor (simvastatin) reduced the incidence of both Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's. All of the normal qualifiers apply to the study's conclusions, namely the results are preliminary and require more research; however the new findings support previous observational studies which indicated that statins might play a beneficial role in the diseases.

The role of inflammation in both Alzheimer's and Parkinson's was also highlighted in the study indicating the importance of addressing inflammation as part of one's personal health program. One reason Zocor delayed Alzheimer's is that it reduces inflammation.

Newsweek has a story and interview on the study with this critical information:

The upshot is, look at your family history. If you're already taking a statin anyway for reduction of cholesterol and your parents have Alzheimer's, talk to your physician about taking Zocor. On the other hand, if your parents don't have Alzheimer's, but they do have heart disease, you're probably better off on Lipitor, because it's somewhat stronger than Zocor at cholesterol reduction and better at reducing the morbidity of heart disease.