September 29, 2020

Diabetes Drug Metformin May Protect the Aging Brain

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 23, 2020 -- A common type 2 diabetes drug called metformin may have an unexpected, but positive, side effect: New research suggests that people taking the drug appear to have significantly slower declines in thinking and memory as they age.

"Our six-year study of older Australians with type 2 diabetes has uncovered a link between metformin use and slower cognitive [mental] decline and lower dementia rates," said study author Dr. Katherine Samaras. She's the leader of the healthy aging research theme at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in New South Wales, Australia.

September 8, 2020

Each Day Sober Slowly Helps Alcoholics' Brains Recover

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 2, 2020 -- A new brain scan study shows why the "one day at a time" approach works for recovering alcoholics.

"For people with AUD [alcohol use disorder], the brain takes a long time to normalize, and each day is going to be a struggle," explained senior study author Rajita Sinha, a professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at Yale University's Child Study Center. "For these people, it really is 'one day at a time.'"