New research that has been carried out has revealed that cold sores could possibly increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
The study was carried out by researchers in Sweden, and found that an infection from the herpes simplex virus 1 (which causes cold sores) can actually double the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
“Our results clearly show that there is a link between infections of herpes simplex virus and the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease,” said Professor Hugo Lövheim of the Swedish university. He added that their research shows an increased risk because of the weakening of elderly people's immune systems. As a result, the virus could spread to the brain and initiate the process that causes Alzheimer's.
“This also means that we have new opportunities to develop treatment forms to stop the disease," Professor Lövheim continued. “Within a few years we hope to be able to start treating patients to prevent the development of Alzheimer’s disease.”
Two studies were carried out in order to produce these results. The first study saw 3,432 participants who were studied for just over 11 years, while in a second study, 360 people who had Alzheimer’s disease were compared to 360 people without the disease. Before this study was carried out, research had shown that there was a ‘possible’ connection between the two.
