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Alzheimer's Drugs Disappoint as Eggs Show Promise

healthApr 28, 2026·363 words·3 min read

Two contrasting studies have emerged this month on Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia. The Cochrane Collaboration, an independent body that scrutinises medical evidence, reviewed 17 trials involving 20,342 volunteers of so-called breakthrough drugs that strip a sticky protein called beta amyloid from the brain. Its researchers concluded the medicines slow cognitive decline by an amount well below what would meaningfully help patients.

The drugs are called donanemab and lecanemab. They were once seen as a big step forward. But the Cochrane team says the help is too small. The drugs can cause brain swelling and bleeding. They cost about £90,000 in the United Kingdom. Some experts disagree with this view. Eggs are useful because they have choline — a substance that the body uses to make a memory chemical called acetylcholine. Eggs also have vitamin B12.

Reactions are mixed. Doctor Edo Richard says he tells patients they will probably not benefit. But Cheryl Essam, whose husband joined a drug trial, says the drug gave them more time together. The UK's National Health Service (NHS) does not pay for the drugs. About one million people in Britain have dementia today.

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