New Study Investigates: Can HMB Help Combat Alzheimer’s?

August 08, 2023
Posted by Sam Fink

Can HMB help combat Alzheimer's? Long story short: More research is required. But here's what we do know...

Hydroxymethylbutyrate, or HMB, known in the fitness community for it’s muscle building capacity, is trending once again due to a new study [1] examining HMB and Alzheimer's.

So, what does the research show?

New Research Sparks Renewed Interest in HMB as Supplement

Rush University Medical Center just released a new study in mice that examines the potential for HMB to help preserve memory and even prevent the progression of Alzheimer's disease.

Findings suggest the idea that supplementing with HMB [2] can potentially help combat Alzheimer’s Disease by protecting our ability to learn, reducing plaques, and also helping protect memory at a neurological level.

While research and studies are still ongoing, these findings do seem promising and exciting.

HMB is a safe supplement [3] and can be taken over long periods of time without any drawbacks.

According to Kalipada Pahan [4], PhD, the Floyd A. Davis, MD, Professor of Neurology and neurological sciences, biochemistry and pharmacology at RUSH Medical college, "This may be one of the safest and easiest approaches to halt disease progression and protect memory in Alzheimer’s disease patients.”

Tried and True Performance Benefits

HMB is an amino acid found organically in the human body. HMB is produced when our bodies metabolize the amino acid leucine.

Usually, we get leucine in foods like brown rice, salmon, or chickpeas, but we can also get leucine in supplements like EAAs and BCAAs.

HMB has generally been used by weightlifters and athletic performance due to the research showing its ability to not only help prevent muscle loss [5], but also help support muscle growth [6] as well.

Wrapping Up

This new study is very interesting [7] – in addition to supporting physical goals, it may support our neurological health! That said, more research is needed, as well as human studies.

We are all excited about the future possibilities for what this could mean for the benefits of supplementation. Stay tuned, eat your veggies, and take your vitamins!