Plant extracts may ease Alzheimer's

Extracts of sage and lemon balm may help to improve memory and behavioural problems in people with Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia, scientists said on Friday.

Professor Elaine Perry, of the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in northern England, told a medical conference that the plant extracts produced promising results in studies.

“In controlled trials in normal volunteers, both extracts improved memory, and lemon balm improved mood. Lemon balm reduced agitation and improved quality of life in people with Alzheimer’s disease,” Perry said in a statement.

Preliminary data showed that sage also had a significant effect on attention and behaviour. The impact of sage on Alzheimer’s are still being investigated but preliminary data indicate significant effects on attention and behaviour, she added.

Potential treatments
Perry, who presented the results to a two-day meeting on the psychiatry of old age, selected and prepared the extracts after studying different plant species used in traditional and herbal remedies and identifying the main chemical components.

The extracts produced minimal or no side effects in the patients and volunteers.

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“Extracts of both sage and lemon balm are clearly worth pursuing as potential treatments,” Perry added.

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Millions of people worldwide suffer from dementia, which is characterised by memory loss and a progressive decline in thinking, comprehension and judgement. Alzheimer’s disease is the leading type of the disorder in the elderly.

Alzheimer’s is caused by the build-up of protein deposits called amyloid plaque and the accumulation of tangles in the brain.  Drugs can alleviate symptoms but there is no cure.