(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Kitchen Table Kibitzing: Thursday evening [1] ['Meteor Blades', 'Dr. Ash'] Date: 2026-05-28 I read a New York Times article in my news feed 4 Drugs That May Increase Your Dementia Risk and was quite distraught to find out that I am on three of them! My daily regime includes the use of Antihistamines for sleep, a small dose of an antipsychotic for mood regulation and sleep, and ativan for anxiety. I don’t use the fourth one – Proton Pump Inhibitors. I’ve been on two of these medications for years, although I have successfully tapered down to lower doses. The article does call inlto question the link between benzodiazepines and dementia: “However, sleep issues and anxiety — two of the most common reasons for a benzodiazepine prescription — can both increase the risk of cognitive impairment or be early signs of dementia. Indeed, a few recent studies suggest it may be these underlying health issues, not the medication, that’s behind the association.” On the same day, the Times ran another article 6 Common Medications That May Lower Your Dementia Risk which included heart medications , statins, and flu and shingles vaccinations, especially the high dose flu vaccine. Numerous studies have found that older adults who were vaccinated against the flu had a lower risk of developing dementia in the years that followed than those who had not been vaccinated. In one study, the risk was as much as 40 percent lower. Research published earlier this month has bolstered that evidence, showing that older adults who were given a higher dose of the flu vaccine — commonly recommended for people 65 and over — had an even lower probability of developing Alzheimer’s disease compared with those who received the standard dose. Makes me want to run out and get another flu vaccine right away. For several years now, my pdoc and I have been working to lower doses of my medications but I have a chronic sleep disorder which has led in the past to psychotic breaks. So it’s a balancing act. But with this news, I’m going to have to bring this up and really try to tackle my issues. It’s frightening. Curious after reading this news that my news feed also featured an article Kennedy’s Push to Curb Antidepressants Has Shaken Psychiatry, which offered a long detailed accounting of RFK’s push to address the overprescribing of the popular SSRIs and an emphasis on helping people tapering off the medications. Many attendees at the American Psychiatric Association’s annual meeting in San Francisco were aghast at his movement to interfere in their practices and his lack of medical qualifications. Many physicians in the crowd said they worried that Mr. Kennedy’s statements would prompt people to refuse medications, or to quit them and relapse. The plenary session erupted in applause when Dr. Marketa Wills, the organization’s chief executive, declared, “We will never support governmental interference in the practice of medicine.” “We are standing tall for evidence-based care,” she continued. “We are standing tall against stigma, oversimplification, and anything that would move patients further away from the care that they need.” But there were also signs that the field’s leaders are engaging, albeit cautiously, with Mr. Kennedy’s effort to curb overprescribing. Numerous sessions offered training in helping patients taper off medications. In July, the association’s president will take part in a panel convened by the Department of Health and Human Services to develop clinical guidance on tapering antidepressants. As someone who is always working at tapering off medications and has always had concerns that I am over medicated. I had mixed feelings about the article. I do know that my pdoc has always supported me as I taper down on doses, and even succeed in tapering off meds over the years, but it’s a really under examined process, one that we navigated together. I have often been the one who makes the suggestions about decreasing my med load. One last note, on off topic note about a NYT report today on Europe’s deadly heat ahead of the summer months. Yikes! Parts of France hit more than 100 degrees Fahrenheit this week, according to AccuWeather. London set a record for the month of May, reaching 95 degrees. Oxford, where records date back 211 years, notched the highest temperature ever registered this early in the year. Extreme heat was reported in more than half a dozen countries, from Portugal to Switzerland. The culprit was a “heat dome” caused by warm air that moved up from northern Africa and is now stuck under a high-pressure system that has settled across western Europe. And it comes as global temperatures continue their rapid rise in recent years, fueled by the unrelenting burning of fossil fuels. Scientists have said the anomalous warmth is almost certainly linked to human-caused global warming. Kitchen Table Kibitzing is a community series for those who wish to share a virtual kitchen table with other readers of Daily Kos who aren’t throwing pies at one another. Drop by to talk about music, your weather, your garden, or what you cooked for supper…. Newcomers may notice that many who post in this series already know one another to some degree, but we welcome guests at our kitchen table and hope to make some new friends as well. 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