新奇事件簿 非處方藥或導致大腦萎縮
Over-the-counter (OTC) medicine is a common part of our lives. Many of us pop into the local pharmacy for cold and headache tablets, cough syrups or allergy treatments. Over-the-counter drugs save the need to go to the doctor's. However, we may be causing ourselves more harm than good with these convenient cures. A new study published in the journal JAMA Neurology suggests that many of these handy medicines have unwanted, and sometimes serious, side effects. Researchers say that such side effects in older adults who often take widely available OTC medicines for asthma, aches and pains, insomnia and allergies, etc. include cognitive impairment, dementia and even brain shrinkage.
非處方藥早已成為生活的一部分。發(fā)燒感冒，頭疼腦熱，咳嗽過敏，我們會選擇當?shù)厮幍曩I藥。有了非處方藥，省去了人們的看病需求。然而，這些藥物卻對身體造成了極大傷害。據(jù)《JAMA 神經病學》雜志最新研究表明，許多非處方藥本不需要，且副作用大。對于經常服用哮喘，止疼藥的老年病患者而言，其副作用包括認知功能障礙，癡呆甚至大腦萎縮。
The study was conducted by the Indiana University School of Medicine. Researchers examined the link between OTC medications and cognition in "cognitively normal" older people who did not have Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. The scientists found that OTC drugs led to a lower glucose metabolism, which is crucial for the brain to be healthy and function properly. Dr. Shannon Risacher said: "These findings provide us with a much better understanding of how this class of drugs may act upon the brain in ways that might raise the risk of cognitive impairment and dementia." She added: "I certainly wouldn't advise my grandparents or even my parents to take these medications unless they have to."
這是印第安納大學醫(yī)學院進行的研究。研究人員對非處方藥，以及認知功能正常的老年人（無阿爾茨海默病或癡呆癥）進行了比對。據(jù)科學家發(fā)現(xiàn)，非處方藥導致葡萄糖代謝減慢，而葡萄糖代謝對于大腦健康極為重要。莎倫·費舍爾博士認為：“通過這一發(fā)現(xiàn)，我們對非處方藥以及大腦之間的關系有了更加深入的認識，患認知功能障礙以及患癡呆癥風險增加。”她補充道：“除非吃不可，我一定不建議祖父母，甚至是父母服用這些藥物。”
