Roles of Nutraceuticals in Regulating Neurotransmitters in Dementia

Abstract

Dementia has become one of the most significant public health and economic burdens. Due to the absence of a cure for dementia, the public health priority has focused more recently on the intervention that may help to improve cognitive performance in older age or at least delay the onset of dementia. Recently, nutraceuticals have displayed the ability and strong potential to act as neuroprotectants and/or delay cognitive impairment through various neuroprotective mechanisms. The present study aimed to review scientifically the potential of nutraceuticals in preventing and/or restoring cognitive function and highlights their possible mechanisms and evidence mainly through the modulation of neurotransmitters. Online literature databases such as PubMed and Science Direct were used to search related articles. Current evidence revealed that nutraceuticals like choline, iron, galantamine, omega-3, luteolin, theanine, some vitamins, and probiotics showed better neuroprotective activity against cognitive impairment and dementia. The neuroprotective activity of these nutraceuticals is associated with their ability in regulating neurotransmitters, including inhibiting the reuptake enzymes of neurotransmitters, up-regulating the receptor level, and becoming the precursors of neurotransmitters, thus enabling neurotransmission to occur. Hence, this review would aid the researcher and common people in better understanding the mechanisms and choosing better nutraceuticals to combat cognitive decline and dementia.