Benadryl and numerous other OTC drugs linked to Alzheimer’s

When regulators say “don’t panic,” there’s only one thing you can do: Run.

And in this case, you want to run to your medicine cabinet and toss just about everything in it.

Because what researchers have just revealed about some very popular OTC drugs could mean the difference between developing Alzheimer’s or not.

If you’re like most people, you probably have one or more of these drugs in your medicine cabinet (or purse) right now.

They’re used for allergies, pain, overactive bladder, and even to help you get to sleep at night.

And they’re over-the-counter, so you can grab them off any shelf at the Walgreens, 7-11, or even the Hudson News running through the airport.

But they all share a common – and dangerous – link. And it’s one that might help explain why cognitive decline, dementia, and Alzheimer’s are becoming a full-blown epidemic in this country.

Unsafe at any dose

The brain-destroying ingredient in these meds is called an “anticholinergic” agent. It works by blocking an important chemical messenger in your brain.

And it can affect your mind in ways that even your doctor may not be aware of.

Researchers at the Group Health Research Institute at the University of Washington tracked over 3,500 seniors for seven years. And they found that taking drugs like Benadryl, even at the “minimum effective dose,” for prolonged periods is enough to put you at high risk for dementia.

But it might be even worse…

Another study from the Indiana University Center for Aging Research found that taking these same meds for as little as two months can cause “cognitive impairment.”

So obviously we’ve got a crisis of unknown proportions unfolding here. It doesn’t matter what name it’s given — the bottom line is taking these drugs may cause a loss in your ability to understand and think clearly. And can eventually lead to Alzheimer’s.

The lead researcher for the Washington study said that while her research focused on older people, she plans to “personally avoid taking” any of these drugs.

And that might just be the most telling part of the whole study.

Aside from Benadryl, other common drugs that contain anticholinergics include:

• Chlor-Trimeton, taken for allergies
• Sominex, an OTC sleep aid
• Oxytrol, an OTC drug for overactive bladder
• Tylenol PM, which also contains a whopping dose of the liver-destroying drug acetaminophen
• Advil PM, and
• Dramamine, for nausea and motion sickness

With this brain-damaging agent being in so many different drugs, it easy for those doses to add up. For example, you could take Benadryl for your allergies, a Dramamine for queasiness, and then pop a Sominex to get to sleep.

The researchers found that those who took bigger doses of anticholinergics (either from one drug or a combination of them) for seven years had a 54 percent higher rate of dementia and a 63 percent higher risk of Alzheimer’s.

Yes…you read that right: Taking these meds for prolonged periods (something that a lot of people do) can increase your Alzheimer’s risk by a full 63 percent!

This research tells us one thing that’s certain. There is no need to wait for further studies to be done or the FDA to issue some weak-kneed comment 10 years from now.

I’ve seen all the proof I need to say there’s no reason in the world to take any further risk with any drug containing anticholinergics – at any dose.

Sources:

“Dementia ‘linked’ to common over-the-counter drugs” Michelle Roberts, January 27, 2015, BBC News, bbc.com

“Higher dementia risk linked to more use of common drugs” January 26, 2015, Group Health Research Institute, grouphealthresearch.org