Alternative Approaches for the Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer's Disease is the most common dementia worldwide and the number of incident cases will continue to rise as the population ages. Despite the boom in drug development during the "Decade of the Brain", there has been a lull in newly approved medications to treat this devastating disease. Cholinesterase inhibitors and the N-methyl D-aspartate antagonist, memantine provide some benefit, however their effects are modest and they do no exhibit disease modifying activity. In part due to the lack of new agents, and the desire for better treatments, patients, families and healthcare providers are searching for alternative options. These potential options include herbal supplements, vitamin replacement, and medical foods. This review will focus on the putative action of some of these compounds, the existing data to support their use, and the cost of therapy.