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A commonly used antibiotic could potentially lower the risk of schizophrenia in young people, according to new research. An international team of scientists, including those from the University of Edinburgh , made this discovery by analysing extensive healthcare register data from Finland. The researchers scrutinised data from over 56,000 adolescents who had been prescribed antibiotics while attending mental health services. They discovered that those treated with the antibiotic doxycycline had a 30-35% reduced risk of developing schizophrenia compared to their peers who were given other antibiotics. Doxycycline, a 'broad-spectrum' antibiotic typically used for treating infections and acne, may have this effect due to its impact on inflammation and brain development, the team suggested. Previous studies have shown that doxycycline can reduce inflammation in brain cells and affect synaptic pruning – a natural process by which the brain refines its neural connections. Excessive pruning has been linked with the onset of schizophrenia, a severe mental disorder usually emerging in early adulthood and often characterised by hallucinations and delusional beliefs. The team described these findings as 'exciting', highlighting the potential to repurpose an existing, widely used medication as a preventive measure against severe mental illness. Professor Ian Kelleher, study lead and professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at the University of Edinburgh, said: "As many as half of the people who develop schizophrenia had previously attended child and adolescent mental health services for other mental health problems. "At present, though, we don’t have any interventions that are known to reduce the risk of going on to develop schizophrenia in these young people. That makes these findings exciting. "Because the study was observational in nature and not a randomised controlled trial, it means we can’t draw firm conclusions on causality, but this is an important signal to further investigate the protective effect of doxycycline and other anti-inflammatory treatments in adolescent psychiatry patients as a way to potentially reduce the risk of developing severe mental illness in adulthood." The research was conducted by a team from the University of Edinburgh, the University of Oulu, University College Dublin, and St John of God Hospitaller Services Group, with funding provided by the Health Research Board. The findings have been published in the American Journal of Psychiatry. Get all the hottest shopping deals, cash-saving tips and money news straight to your phone by joining our new WhatsApp Community - The Money Saving Club. Just click this link to join https://crnch.it/eutplxS1 We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice here https://crnch.it/jeQqC872
