Aricept (Donepezil) and Cholinesterase Inhibitors facilitate the progression to dementia quicker than no treatment

 Excerpt from  the book "Increasing IQ, Cognition and COVID-19 Cure Rate with Essential Nutrients .....  Targeted Detox Improves Children’s IQ, ADHD Behavior, and Adult Cognition by Dennis N Crouse    

Chapter 11. Crouse Protocol for Reversing MCI and AD

                                    Efficacy of Cholinesterase Inhibitors and Memantine

Many people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and mild Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are prescribed a cholinesterase inhibitor (ChEI). Those with moderate to severe AD (e.g., Mini-Mental State Examination [MMSE] scores below 15) are prescribed memantine, with in some cases a ChEI. Administration of a ChEI increases the concentration of acetylcholine by inhibiting its breakdown. These drugs treat some of the symptoms of MCI, such as memory loss, agitation, apathy, and psychotic symptoms including delusions, hallucinations, and disordered thought. Examples of ChEIs are: 

·         Galantamine (trade name Razadyne) is approved by the FDA for treatment of vascular dementia and mild to moderate AD. It enhances memory in brain-damaged adults⁵⁴⁴.

·         Rivastigmine (trade name Excelon) is approved to for mild and moderate AD.

·         Donepezil (trade name Aricept) is approved to treat all stages of AD.   

A study was published in 2011 on the efficacy of these three ChEIs and memantine taken by patients diagnosed with MCI or mild AD. Approximately one-half of 392 MCI patients and two-thirds of 188 mild AD patients were APOE-4 carriers. Among the MCI patients 33.4% received only ChEIs, 11.7% received ChEIs and memantine, and 54.9% received neither. Among the 188 AD patients 38.9% received ChEIs, 45.7% ChEIs and memantine, and 15.4% neither⁸¹⁷.

The patients with MCI were divided into three groups, only 22% of the non-treated group progressed to dementia, 43% of the ChEI treated group progressed to dementia, and 56% of the group treated with both memantine and ChEI progressed to dementia. Therefore, there is a greater  risk of dementia among people taking these drugs. The mean time to dementia was 30% quicker in the ChEI treated group than the untreated group and 42% quicker for the memantine and ChEI treated group than the untreated group. Both MCI patients and AD patients who received ChEI treatment had a more severe decline in cognition than untreated patients. Therefore, these drugs may reduce symptomology of MCI and AD but both increase the risk of dementia and hasten the progression to dementia when compared with un-treated people⁸¹⁷.

I have an acquaintance with MCI who was prescribed Aricept to improve her short-term memory but had trouble sleeping once she began taking the drug. The doctor then recommended a sleeping pill with the side effect of memory impairment. This is an example of a doctor being uniformed on the negative side effects of a prescribed drug.

Although these drugs are FDA-approved for those with MCI and AD, they are not efficacious for slowing the progression to dementia. In fact, they significantly increase the risk and speed the progression to dementia. These drugs will facilitate the progression to dementia quicker than no treatment.