Xanax and Dementia
Interestingly, emerging evidence suggests that the use of benzodiazepines (drugs prescribed for psychiatric diseases), including Xanax, may be associated with an increased risk of dementia.
Benzodiazepine users appear to have a 78% chance of having dementia in comparison to non-users [1]. In addition, other studies found that the increased duration of benzodiazepine treatment, or higher doses of benzodiazepine led to an increased risk of dementia [1, 2].
However, more research needs to be done as the nature of the connection between Xanax and dementia is not fully understood [1, 2, 3].
Interestingly, some studies also suggest that benzodiazepines may cause Parkinson's.
Dementia is an umbrella term for various neurodegenerative diseases caused by a loss of neurons in the brain. It is characterized by a progressive worsening of the cognitive abilities of the affected individual.
There are different types of dementia including Alzheimer’s disease, sporadic frontotemporal dementia and familial frontotemporal dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies and vascular dementia.