Intranasal insulin, the nasal spray treatment used for the management of Type 1 diabetes, could be useful for enhancing cognition in individuals with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s, a recent study has found.
The researchers conducted a meta-analysis of 29 studies involving 1,726 participants to look at the effect of intranasal insulin on cognitive function. There have been participants with different disorders–including mental health conditions like schizophrenia, bipolar disorders, and major depressive disorders–Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, and metabolic disorders, comparable to diabetes.
The study didn’t find any significant difference within the cognitive function of individuals with mental health disorders, metabolic disorders, and other disorders, after they used intranasal insulin. Nevertheless, Alzheimer’s patients and folks with mild cognitive impairment showed significant improvement with the nasal spray treatment.
How is insulin connected to cognitive ability?
Researchers imagine that certain memory centers within the brain when faulty cannot process sugar, resulting in insulin resistance and cognitive deficits. When insulin therapy is used, they assist get well the faulty memory centers within the brain which might be also involved in learning and memory.
“Patients with Alzheimer’s could have impaired glucose processing within the hippocampus (an area of the brain involved in human learning and memory). Intranasal insulin may help with this and improve cognition,” Dr. Gayatri Devi, a neurologist at Northwell Lenox Hill Hospital in Latest York who was not involved within the study, told Medical News Today.
Possible uncomfortable side effects of the nasal spray
- Hypoglycemia, which could lead on to serious conditions comparable to heart attacks and stroke
- Nasal irritation or rhinitis
- Dizziness and nausea
- Nose bleeds
Although the repurposing of intranasal spray has been appreciated, some experts raised their concerns in regards to the safety of using the medication in people without diabetes.
“I find it scary to provide insulin to someone without a sign of diabetes. There’s a risk of hypoglycemia if you give insulin to someone who doesn’t have diabetes. This may increase their risk of heart attack or stroke,” Dr. Clifford Segil, a neurologist at Windfall Saint John’s Health Center in California who was not involved within the study, told Medical News Today.
Published by Medicaldaily.com