Connection between low lithium levels and Alzheimer's disease established
In a groundbreaking study, researchers from Harvard Medical School have discovered a promising role for lithium in the fight against Alzheimer's disease. The research, published in Nature in early August 2025, suggests that lithium could potentially stall or reverse the progression of Alzheimer's.
Led by neuroscientist Bruce Yankner, the team measured levels of various metals in post-mortem brains of participants in the Religious Orders Study. Their findings revealed a significant reduction in lithium levels in those with mild-cognitive impairment, a forerunner of Alzheimer's disease.
Lithium, a naturally occurring element in the brain, plays an essential role in maintaining brain function and protecting against neurodegeneration. In Alzheimer's, lithium levels drop due to its binding to toxic amyloid plaques, hallmarks of the disease.
Experimental lithium depletion in mice worsened Alzheimer's pathology, causing an increase in amyloid-β and phospho-tau deposits, neuroinflammation, synapse loss, and accelerated cognitive decline. On the contrary, a novel lithium compound that avoids binding to amyloid plaques was able to reverse memory loss and brain aging in Alzheimer's mouse models without toxicity.
These discoveries provide a new therapeutic avenue, suggesting lithium or lithium-based compounds could be a benign and inexpensive treatment for Alzheimer's, pending clinical trials in humans. However, it's important to note that no human clinical trials have yet confirmed lithium’s efficacy for Alzheimer's; current evidence is limited to mice and human tissue samples.
Ashley Bush, a neuroscientist at the University of Melbourne, Australia, notes that the study suggests that lithium is a physiological signalling ion, rather than an irrelevant trace metal. The research is investigating the potential of lithium as a treatment for Alzheimer's disease, with Lithium orotate showing particular promise due to its low affinity for amyloid plaques.
Intriguingly, a 2017 nationwide study in Denmark reported a link between higher levels of Lithium in drinking water and a lower incidence of dementia. The findings of this new research have not yet been shown in patients, but they have sparked hope for new early-diagnosis methods and lithium-based therapeutics.
In conclusion, the study offers a new theory of Alzheimer's onset and progression, suggesting that administering Lithium could potentially treat or prevent the disease. However, human clinical trials are needed to establish safety and efficacy before any definitive conclusions can be drawn.
- The groundbreaking study at Harvard Medical School indicates a potential use of lithium therapies and treatments in the health-and-wellness sector, specifically targeting neurological disorders like Alzheimer's disease.
- The research published in Nature suggests that maintaining appropriate levels of lithium could possibly slow down or reverse the progression of Alzheimer's, due to its role in fighting against neurodegeneration and its ability to disassociate from amyloid plaques, common in Alzheimer's.
- The discovery of lithium's influential role in science, particularly in the context of medical-conditions such as Alzheimer's disease and other neurological disorders, opens up exciting prospects for inexpensive and beneficial treatments, but further human clinical trials are essential to verify its effectiveness.
