New Alzheimer’s Drug Approved

by Mark Connor

The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has recently approved a new drug for treatment of Alzheimer's Disease. According to the Alzheimer's Association, “Families should consult physicians about potential benefits, risks and costs” of the new drug for their relatives suffering from the disease.
According to a press release from the Alzheimer's Association, the newly approved drug, galantamine hydrobromide, could increase the options families have in deciding which treatment may be best for their afflicted relatives. Executive Director of the Minnesota/Dakotas Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, John Kemp, is quoted in the press release. “Each of the approved drugs for Alzheimer's Disease may have different side effects on individual people taking the medication,” he says. “Having more approved drugs offers doctors, people with the disease and their families a greater opportunity to find one that will have some benefit with the fewest unwanted effects.”
The Alzheimer's Association explains that there are currently four million Americans diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease, and at current rates the number could rise to 14 million in the next 25 years. The Association is concerned with finding new treatments for the disease, and advocates the allocation of more research money from the federal government to deal with it. The Association made no mention of environmental causes of Alzheimer's Disease in its press release.
Environmentalists argue that Alzheimer's is caused by environmental conditions, and exposure to aluminum is now commonly suspected of being related to the disease. Although no direct cause of the disease has ever been officially established, the general population should be aware that aluminum is found in many personal care products, such as antiperspirant and toothpaste that contains fluoride. Aluminum is not found in regular deodorants, however, or in organic deodorants and organic toothpaste that does not contain fluoride.