Is A Fitness Supplement A Potential Ally Against Alzheimer’s?

Researchers have found that the muscle-building supplement HMB (beta-hydroxy beta-methylbutyrate), commonly used by bodybuilders, could help protect memory and slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

Mouse studies showed HMB reduced Alzheimer’s plaques and enhanced factors for neuronal growth, safeguarding learning and memory. HMB enters the brain after oral consumption, increasing beneficial proteins and restoring neuronal connections.

If these findings replicate in humans, HMB could offer a promising new treatment for Alzheimer’s.

HMB, an over-the-counter supplement used by bodybuilders, may protect memory and slow Alzheimer’s progression.

In mice with Alzheimer’s disease, HMB has been shown to reduce plaques, enhance factors for neuronal growth, and protect learning and memory.

HMB stimulates a nuclear hormone receptor in the brain that is crucial to its neuroprotective role.

RUSH researchers recently discovered that a muscle-building supplement called beta-hydroxy beta-methylbutyrate, also called HMB, may help protect memory, reduce plaques and ultimately help prevent the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

Results from the study were published in Cell Reports.

HMB is not a prescription drug or a steroid, but an over-the-counter supplement that is available in sports and fitness stores. Bodybuilders regularly use HMB to increase exercise-induced gains in muscle size and strength while improving exercise performance. HMB is considered safe even after long-term use, with no known side effects.

“This may be one of the safest and the easiest approaches to halt disease progression and protect memory in Alzheimer’s disease patients,” said Kalipada Pahan, Ph.D., the Floyd A. Davis, MD, Professor of Neurology and professor of neurological sciences, biochemistry and pharmacology at RUSH Medical College.

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