A common cold on the lips can interfere with memory and thinking

Colds are not as trivial as they seem. A study by American doctors linked high levels of infectious agents in the blood with changes in cognitive function.

The long and chronic coexistence of a person with viruses and bacteria is reflected in the level of corresponding antibodies in his blood. It was by using antibodies that scientists determined in experimental subjects the presence of herpes simplex type 1, a virus that can lead to severe symptoms, although in most cases everything is limited to a common “cold” on the lips. It turned out that the level of antibodies is directly related to various cognitive disorders - decreased memory, mental performance, and so on.

Irina Alimbarova, candidate of medical sciences. Sciences, senior researcher at the Laboratory of Comparative Virology, Research Institute of Virology named after. Ivanovsky:

“According to the latest epidemiological data, more than 90% of our population is infected with herpes, and in some groups it is approaching 100%. However, there is still no means of radically curing the virus; its complete eradication from the body is simply impossible. Even the “gold standard” is acyclovir and its more modern derivatives, unfortunately, are incapable of this. They will cope with the symptoms of acute manifestations, but when the virus is in a latent state, they are simply powerless.”

The new study looked at 1,625 elderly Manhattan residents, with an average age of 69 years. Blood samples were analyzed for the presence of three common viral infections (herpes types 1 and 2 and the related cytomegalovirus) and two bacterial infections ( Chlamydia pneumonia , which affects the respiratory system and Helicobacter pylori , which infects the digestive tract). Participants' cognitive function was assessed using standard Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) questionnaires.

On average, carriers of infections showed a 25% reduction in cognitive performance. However, the annual repetition of the assessment (the study lasted a total of eight years) did not show that these violations somehow accumulated and increased over time.

Irina Alimbarova:

“In recent decades, it has been found that both herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2, and cytomegalovirus are all etiological agents of neurological disorders.

When a virus enters the body, it causes various changes not only in the immune system, but also in the endocrine and neuroendocrine systems. Under certain conditions, it is able to penetrate the blood-brain barrier (which protects the brain from the penetration of dangerous agents from the blood - PublicPost).

Large amounts of antibodies to the herpes simplex virus can be found in schizophrenia. For the most common such disorder in older people, Alzheimer's disease, a correlation of neurological symptoms and detection of traces of the presence of the herpes virus is also suspected.

However, this issue is being debated, and a clear relationship that would allow us to say 100% that it was the virus that caused the neurological changes has not yet been traced."