Could Smart Drugs Help People With Cognitive Loss?

By Lily McCann

Smart drugs, also known as neuro enhancers, memory enhancers, intelligence enhancers, cognitive enhancers and nootropics, are drugs and supplements that improve functions of the brain, including attention, memory, concentration and intelligence. These mental function enhancers are believed to work by improving the brain’s oxygen supply, stimulating the growth of nerves in the brain and increasing the brain’s supply of enzymes, hormones and neurotransmitters.

Increasingly people are turning to smart drugs as a means of overcoming mental fatigue. Even people with ‘healthy brains’ are relying on smart drugs to improve mental performance. For example, in schools across India children are regularly taking little yellow and green pills as an attempt to do better in exams and get better grades at school. Whilst executives throughout the U.S are insisting their hair is becoming thicker and healthier as a result of their improved memory.

These so-called smart drugs include a plethora of over-the-counter herbal formulas as well as man-made prescription mixtures. For example, there are now many herbal smart drugs available over-the-counter which comprise in some cases of compounds derived from the brahmi plant found in rural India.

Despite the current trend for healthy individuals to pop smart drugs in order to become more mentally alert and subsequently perform better at school, university or work, do smart drugs however really help people with cognitive loss?

Smart drugs and Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease

Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases are neurogenerative disorders whereby the functions of the brain rapidly decline. With Alzheimer’s patients the neuron-toxic beta amyloid protein replaces amyloid precursor protein and in doing so effectively destroys neurons with the result being severe and often irreversible memory loss.

Aricept

Aricept is a smart drug that is currently licensed in Britain to treat Alzheimer’s patients suffering with cognitive loss. In blocking the action of a body chemical in the brain, Aricept works by breaking down a neurotransmitter that, according to the BBC, helps ‘pass messages between brain cells in the parts of the brain key to memory and conscious thought’.

Although Aricept is believed to delay the progression of Alzheimer’s, there are concerns about the side effects of this smart drug. As Dr Richard Harvey, from the Alzheimer’s Society told the BBC:

“In the short term, it causes diarrhoea and vomiting, so it might not be ideal.”

Tacrine

Tacrine is another smart drug that has been associated with treating Alzheimer’s patients suffering from cognitive loss. By blocking an enzyme involved in the breakdown of acetylcholine, Tacrine artificially enhances the number of failing neurotransmitters in the brain and temporarily assuages memory loss in the early stages of Alzheimer’s.

HIV and memory loss

Many HIV patients report cognitive problems such as memory loss, which are often resonant of the early stages of Alzheimer’s. Although whilst the majority of Alzheimer’s sufferers are elderly people in their 70s, 80s and 90s, people living with HIV who are suffering from cognitive loss are often as young as 40 and 50. The similarities between the neurological decline of HIV patients and people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease have been confirmed by a key commonality of an abnormal distribution in the brain of the amyloid beta protein. Whilst the cognitive problems related to Alzheimer’s are often rapid, severe and aggressive, the cognitive problems related to people with HIV are typically much milder. These minor cognitive motor disorders (MCMD) usually consist of the inability to think clearly, perform hand-eye coordinated movements and not remembering things as well as they once did. The more serious HIV-associated dementia (HAD) is much less common, particularly since effective HIV drugs became available.

Smart drugs and HIV

In order to improve the cognitive functions of the brain, namely memory, many HIV sufferers are turning to smart drugs. In 2002 a smart drug called Memantine was licensed in the UK, a cognitive enhancer that was used to improve the cognitive loss in patients suffering with some form of dementia, including Alzheimer’s, Huntington’s disease, HIV/AIDS related dementia and alcohol-related dementias. As will all cognitive enhancers or smart drugs, Memantine could not cure these diseases but were believed to have improved the symptoms of the diseases.

My Journey With AIDS

Kenn Chaplin was diagnosed with HIV in 1989. We would like to congratulate Kenn on his brave battle and winning against a range of AIDS-related illnesses, including bipolar II. You can read Kenn Chaplin’s remarkable and inspirational journey that gives hope and solace to others in Kenn’s situation at http://www.kwikmed.org/16-star-rated-aids-information-sites-blogs/. Kenn’s personal site includes a glossary of HIV/AIDS and information about this inspiring individual and his inspirational battle with HIV.

Is the best HIV drug bad for muscle? Isentress increases CPK

CPK is creatine phosphokinase, an enzyme found mainly in the heart, brain, and skeletal muscle. It is tested by taking a blood sample.

High CPK can indicate muscle destruction, heart attacks, central nervous sysmtem issues, and others. Long term exposure of high CPK can load up your kidneys, and may cause muscle loss and weakness.

A CPK blood test is usually not included in the usual lab work unless you ask for it. Sometimes we have no symptoms when CPK is high, but most of the time we have body aches and soreness. CPK can increase with exercise, but if you exercise frequently and you have baseline CPK info, you can tell what may be drug induced after you start a certain medication.

To make sure your high CPK is not induced by heavy exercise, do not exercise for 5 days and have another test done after that.

Some medications can also increase CPK. Among them are amphotericin B, ampicillin, some anesthetics, blood thinners, aspirin, clofibrate, dexamethasone, furosemide, alcohol, and cocaine. HIV medications like Isentressand Selzentry have also been reported to increase CPK in some patients.

Low thyroid function can also be a cause of high CPK, so get it checked.

There is no treatment. If CPK gets really high, doctors try to switch you to another medication, but it is very difficult for some patients to switch since they have no other options.

Some doctors prescribe corticoid steroids to reduce whatever the inflammation may be, but this is not a cure. Corticoid steroids can lower bone density, cause water retention and fat gain, and have been linked with joint bone dealth (necrosis), so they are not a good option to stay on for the long term.

If you are taking statins with or without fibrates, high CPK may indicate muscle related problems that these drugs can cause in some people. Statins (with or without fibrates) can cause rhabdomyolysis which can cause dustruction of muscle tissue in few patients and increase CPK. Some patients have anecdotally reported improvements of this problem by taking Coenzyme Q-10 (statins lower it) and a good antioxidant formula.

In the old days of heavy AZT use, we used to experience muscle myopathy and high CPKs that were sometimes successfully treated with L-Carnitine. I have not seen any data on the use of this supplement for high CPK induced by newer HIV drugs. I use it but my CPK is still higher than normal (If I do not exercise for 2 weeks, my lowest CPK is 400)

In my opinion, high CPK is an under diagnosed issue in aging HIV patients and one that needs to be researched. I am tired of companies denying that their drugs do not cause it. Hopefully, a researcher will read this post and think about innovative ways to manage this side effect.

The HIV-1 integrase inhibitor raltegravir is associated with rare cases of rhabdomyolysis, and pooled safety data from Phase II and III clinical trials show a higher rate of grade 3-4 creatine kinase (CK) elevation in patients receiving raltegravir versus controls (4.2% versus 2.5%). We compared the frequency of skeletal muscle toxicity in HIV-infected adults receiving raltegravir compared to a control group not receiving raltegravir, analysed for associated factors and also assessed for evidence of myocardial toxicity.

This published report shows that raltegravir (Isentress) can increase CPK in some patients:

Is Raltegravir Bad for Muscle?

Investigators from Australia followed up on reports of CK elevation from clinical trials of raltegravir by conducting a prospective study assessing CK elevations, myalgias, and myopathy in HIV-infected persons receiving (n=159) or non receiving (n=159) raltegravir (CW O016).  Skeletal muscle toxicity was defined as either: (1) isolated CK elevation; (2) myalgia without motor weakness; (3) proximal myopathy on physical examination; or (4) rhabdomyolysis. 

More on this study: http://www.natap.org/2012/AdverseReactComor/AdverseReactComor_04.htm

Free Book from PoWeR: Built to Survive

With over 330 scientific references, this book provides a comprehensive guide to the medical use of anabolic steroids, growth hormone, supplementation, optimal nutrition, and exercise to prevent and treat the loss of lean body mass and body alterations experienced by people with HIV.

Keep in mind this book was written 12 years ago, although I have updated a lot of the information this year.  There is also info on facial and buttock wasting.

There is a lot of information here also useful for people not living with HIV.

For reviews from readers, please visit:Amazon.com book page 

Click Here for Free Book

For a print paperback copy : Amazon paperback print version

Fw: News & Views: Present and Future of HIV Treatment; Cost of Drugs; Simply "Being"; and More

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Date: 09 Aug 2012 13:43:57 -0400

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Subject: News & Views: Present and Future of HIV Treatment; Cost of Drugs; Simply "Being"; and More

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August 9, 2012 Top Stories at TheBody.com News & Views Library Change/Update Subscription
Blog Central HIV Treatment & Health Issues HIV News & Policy Opinions & Perspectives HIV/STD Transmission & Education BLOG CENTRAL  River Huston: Being "In the race to get things done before HIV did me in, I wrote books, painted paintings and performed all over the world. ... My life had become so hectic and busy I just did not always have the ability to stop it. In December of 2010, I got off the merry-go-round and moved to an island."  Mark S. King: Bridging the HIV Viral Divide With Friendship "The message is clear: We all share a responsibility for curbing HIV infections and supporting each other, positive and negative. And I knew right away who my 'negative' would be."  Carol Hyman: It IS About the Bike "Being on the bike has changed my life. I'm healthier, more energetic and am part of a supportive, loving community. ... Here I am, a straight, negative, married woman, who spends just about every weekend with a couple dozen mostly gay, mostly HIV-positive men."  B. Osten: Body Image and the Physical Side Effects of Being HIV Positive "While dancing with my partner at this year's West Hollywood Gay Pride, someone behind us, speaking in a loud enough voice for us to hear, commented on our (slight, but evident) buffalo humps. ... Knowing that they themselves were probably HIV positive from the telltale signs of lipodystrophy, we stood our ground." Paul (From Long Island, N.Y.) on "Is the 'Berlin Patient' No Longer Alone? Stem Cell Transplant Appears to Clear HIV in Two Men on Treatment " "I had recently seen a television interview with one of the doctors who had attended this recent AIDS conference. While he said that the research is promising, he alluded to some risks with the stem cell therapy. ... He also mentioned very high costs associated with the procedure and the difficulty of making it available on a large scale, especially in rural or less-populated areas. Yes. It sounds hopeful. But I will feel more assured when my ID doctor recommends it for me." Read the rest of this comment and join the discussion on this article! HIV TREATMENT & HEALTH ISSUES  Myron Cohen: Present and Future Look of HIV Treatment (Video) Myron Cohen, M.D., of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, talks about the benefits of early HIV treatment and treatment as prevention; the potential future of HIV care; and drugs that are easier to take and taken less frequently, which could pave the way for a "virtual cure."  New Research Explores Wisdom of HPV Vaccination for HIV-Infected Women Despite the greater risks that human papillomavirus (HPV) poses for women with HIV, we're only just beginning to get a sense of how safe and effective HPV vaccination is for these women. But recent research offers encouraging data.  Cancer Drug Flushes Out Lurking AIDS Virus: Study In a small pilot study, U.S. researchers have used the cancer drug vorinostat to revive and unmask latent HIV in volunteers' immune cells. The ability of HIV to lay dormant and "hidden" has posed a major obstacle to a cure; this approach aims to expose the virus in those hiding places.  Why U.S. Health Care Law Is a Victory for Women With HIV On Aug. 1, a provision of the Affordable Care Act kicked in that provides 47 million U.S. women with free access to eight new prevention-related benefits. HIV advocate Candace Y.A. Montague explains what makes these new benefits so special. More Headlines on HIV Treatment & Health Issues: French Cohort Treated During Primary HIV Infection Appears to Control HIV Without ART (From HIVandHepatitis.com) Depression and Wider Waist Linked to Sleeping Problem in People With HIV (From The Center for AIDS) Length of Treatment Interruption May Pose Greater Risk of Lost HIV Control Than Missed "Covered Time" (From the International AIDS Society) Long-Acting Integrase Inhibitor S/GSK1265744 May Allow Monthly Dosing (From HIVandHepatitis.com) Preventing Malaria and Diarrhea Delays Need for Antiretroviral Therapy (From Aidsmap) No Evidence of an Interaction Between Abacavir and Ribavirin (From Aidsmap) Detail from: "Band-AIDS Series," 1999 Albert J. Winn Visit the August 2012 Visual AIDS Web Gallery to view our latest collection of art by HIV-positive artists! This month's gallery, "Bloodbrothers," is curated by David Serotte. HIV NEWS & POLICY  Milton Hershey School Reverses Decision to Deny Admission to HIV-Positive Student The president of the Milton Hershey School, a private grade school in Pennsylvania, has apologized to a student who last year was denied admission because he has HIV. The school announced it would now welcome the student's attendance beginning this fall.  ADAP Waiting Lists Drop Sharply: 1,223 People in 6 States as of Aug. 2 A new influx of emergency AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) funding has gotten us as close as we've been in a long time to eliminating ADAP waiting lists entirely, but we're not quite there yet, according to the latest weekly update.  David Munar: The Affordable Care Act and Improving HIV Services (Video) David Munar, president and CEO of AIDS Foundation of Chicago, talks about the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and how it affects the U.S. HIV community, including what needs to be done on the local level. He also talks about HIV in Illinois and the multiple strategies being employed to keep new infections down.  Donna Christensen: HIV Issues in the U.S. Virgin Islands (Video) Congresswoman Donna Christensen of the U.S. Virgin Islands talks about the ongoing legislative struggles involving health care for women, as well as HIV treatment and prevention issues in the U.S. Virgin Islands. More HIV News & Policy Headlines: Depending on How It's Defined, Between 13% and 46% of American Gay Men Report Intimate Partner Violence (From Aidsmap) Imprisoned Over HIV: One Man's Story (From CNN) Uganda and Malawi Offer Opposite Lessons for AIDS (From the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) South Africa to Become First PEPFAR Country to "Nationalize" AIDS Program (From the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation) Negative Male Dating Positive Guy; Nervous About Anal Sex (A recent post from the "Gay Men With HIV" board) "For the past couple of months I have been dating this guy who is HIV positive. He is undetectable and has been able to stay that way for a while. He has been on medication for years. He is an amazing guy. He is sweet, funny, down to earth, intelligent, independent, and just really good to me. ... For a while now he's been talking about us taking things to the next level and having anal sex. I have no problem taking things to the next level because I do love him, but I am a little scared in having anal sex with him. I am worried about things like the condom ripping, breaking, or tearing and we not notice or something. "I am not a very sexual person. I don't have to have anal sex to be in a relationship with someone. He feels differently. He feels that he can't be in a relationship with someone without having anal sex because I'm just giving him part of me and not all of me. ... I have never been in this situation and I don't know what to do. I don't have anyone to turn to personally for advice."  -- mhd8912 Click here to join this discussion, or to start your own! To do this, you'll need to register with TheBody.com's bulletin boards if you're a new user. Registration is quick and anonymous (all you need is an email address) -- click here to get started! OPINIONS & PERSPECTIVES  Holding Lives Hostage: The Cost of Drugs and Pharmaceutical Sponsorship "One of the great moral issues of our day is that people are suffering or dying because they can't afford medicines that are produced for pennies," U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders said at the International AIDS Conference last month. "To me, this is the equivalent of seeing a child drowning in a pool and refusing to save that life."  A Twin Legacy of Hope Sarah and Sophia Denison-Johnston are the twin daughters of Rebecca Denison, who founded WORLD, the groundbreaking HIV support organization for women. At a recent anniversary bash for WORLD, they were overwhelmed: "Women came up to us crying, telling us we were their hope in life, we were their inspiration to continue living."  A Moment With Ms. Michelle the Quilter at AIDS 2012 "When I found out that only a half a mile out of 54 to 55 miles of the [AIDS Memorial Quilt] are for African Americans, we thought it was ridiculous," says Quilt volunteer "Ms. Michelle" in an interview with Candace Y.A. Montague. "I had a cousin that died at the beginning of the epidemic. ... He went into the hospital under an assumed name. He didn't want anyone to know he was dying from this."  In Search of the AIDS Boson "Scientists hope the Higgs Boson will help explain the essential characteristics of all matter and energy in the universe," writes David Munar for AIDS Foundation of Chicago. "AIDS researchers and activists from around the world are on the hunt for their own Higgs Boson. ... How and why does the HIV/AIDS epidemic expand?" More Opinions & Perspectives: Greg Louganis on Living With HIV: "I Didn't Think That I'd See 30" (From Huffington Post) Yes, an AIDS-Free Generation: A Response to Lawrence Altman of The New York Times (From Housing Works) Naina Khanna: Where Is the Progress for Women in the Recently Released 2 Year Progress Report on the National HIV/AIDS Strategy? (From U.S. Positive Women's Network) Debbie McMillan, 42-Year-Old Transgender Woman, Talks About Her Community (From Black AIDS Institute) HIV Criminalization Discourages HIV Testing, Creates Disabling and Uncertain Legal Environment for People With HIV in U.S. (From Sero Project) Simply Rob: Advocate and Artist, a Man of Words Uses Them to Spread Truth (From Positively Aware) Sleep? Who needs sleep? Mark S. King video blogged every day of the XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012). Check out these reports from his unique, moving, often hilarious perspective. July 27: AIDS 2012 Farewell -- The Voices of the World As "summer camp for global AIDS advocates" draws to a close, Mark pays tribute to the people who are on the frontlines of the epidemic, and who are the very essence of AIDS 2012. July 26: The Global Village As the conference hits its stride, Mark critiques fashion with designer Jack Mackenroth, starts a YouTube rivalry with singer Jamar Rogers and has an interesting experience in the D.C. subway. July 25: The March on Washington It's difficult sometimes, writing about an event that so easily lends itself to images and sound. Such is the case with the AIDS 2012 March on Washington, the subject of this day's episode. That's not all, folks; click here to watch more of Mark's videos from AIDS 2012. HIV/STD TRANSMISSION & EDUCATION  The Sobering Truth of HIV Among Men Who Sleep With Men The idea of "turning the tide" against the AIDS epidemic will prove to be no more than a slogan if more is not done to address the growing number of gay and bisexual men infected with HIV worldwide, experts said last month at the International AIDS Conference.  New HIV Test Helps Researchers Pinpoint Recent Infections The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has developed a new HIV test, called the Limiting Antigen Avidity Enzyme Immunoassay, that can reportedly tell whether a person contracted the virus within the last 141 days.  HIV Diagnosis Rate Falling Among Hispanics Living in U.S. and Puerto Rico Among Hispanics living in 40 U.S. states and Puerto Rico, the HIV diagnosis rate fell among both men and women between 2006 and 2009, according to results of a study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More HIV/STD Transmission & Education Headlines: Regular Testing and Counseling Lower Sexual Infection Rate in Gay Men With HIV (From The Center for AIDS) The Word on Women: Putting the Sexy Into Safe Sex Is Key to Tackling HIV (From TrustLaw) Will MSM Use Over-the-Counter Rapid HIV Tests to Screen Sexual Partners? (From Aidsmap) U.S. South Faces HIV/AIDS Crisis (From the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Female Sex Workers Have 14 Times the Risk of Having HIV as Other Women, Data Show (From Aidsmap) Worried Your Spam Filter Might Trash Our Mailings? TheBody.com's e-mail updates are especially prone to being caught up in spam filters, since our newsletters tend to refer frequently to sex, drugs, the human anatomy and so forth. To make sure you never miss one of our mailings because anti-spam software labeled it as junk mail, add update@news.thebody.com to your address book, talk to the person who manages your e-mail security or check your anti-spam program's instructions for more information. About This E-mail This e-mail update has been sent to nelsonvergel@yahoo.com. Want to change your subscription? Click here or send us a message at updates@thebody.com. Missed an update? Our archive of past updates will keep you in the loop. Have any other questions or comments, and don't want to send an e-mail? Feel free to snail-mail us at: TheBody.com's E-Mail Updates Remedy Health Media, LLC 250 West 57th Street New York, NY 10107	Advertisement  Tell Your Representative to Support Cure for AIDS Act!  HIV Accusations and Prosecutions: What Do You Think?  Train and Triumph With Team to End AIDS!  Under Attack: Your Health Care Rights