Can statins really cause memory loss?

Many people worry that cholesterol-lowering statins might harm memory. It’s easy to see why. Nobody wants to protect the heart at the expense of the brain. However, research tells a very different story.

Large, long-term studies, meta-analyses, and clinical trials have repeatedly found that statins do not cause memory loss. In fact, some evidence suggests they may even help protect against dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

Do statins actually cause memory problems?

No. Across decades of research, statins have not been shown to cause memory loss or serious cognitive decline. Randomized controlled trials and large reviews all tell the same story: statins are safe for the brain.

Take the ASPREE trial, for example. It included 18,846 adults aged 65 and older. Over an average follow-up of 4.7 years, researchers found no difference in memory, language, or executive function between statin users and non-users. They even looked at both hydrophilic statins (which don’t easily enter the brain) and lipophilic statins (which do). Neither group showed any decline in thinking or memory.

A meta-analysis of 25 randomized trials involving 46,836 participants confirmed the same result. Reported cognitive side effects were extremely rare, and the conclusion was simple: statins were not linked to cognitive impairment of any kind.

Another review analyzed 24 studies that included more than 1.4 million people, followed for 3 to 5 years. Ten of those studies found that statins lowered dementia risk, seven found no effect, three found no difference in cognitive decline, and one suggested slower decline.

Taken together, these results are consistent. There’s no scientific evidence that statins harm memory or overall brain function.

Do statins affect dementia or alzheimer’s risk?

Not at all, in fact, most studies show the opposite. Statins may help reduce the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

In a meta-analysis of 36 studies, statin users had a 20% lower risk of dementia compared to people who didn’t take them. The same research found an even stronger reduction for Alzheimer’s disease. Men and women benefited equally. High-potency statins appeared to work slightly better than lower-potency ones, with risk reductions of 20% versus 16%.

A newer review from 2025 analyzed 55 observational studies covering more than 7 million people. It found that statin users had a hazard ratio of 0.86, meaning a 14% lower risk of dementia overall. For Alzheimer’s disease, the ratio was 0.82, showing a strong protective effect.

Interestingly, the benefit was even greater in some groups.

• People with type 2 diabetes had a hazard ratio of 0.87.
• Those who used statins for more than three years had a hazard ratio of 0.37, meaning a 63% lower risk.
• Asian populations experienced the largest benefit.

Among individual drugs, rosuvastatin stood out with the lowest dementia risk (hazard ratio 0.72).

Another study looked at 15,586 patients already diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or mixed dementia. Over three years, those taking statins declined more slowly on the Mini-Mental State Examination. Simvastatin users scored 1.01 points higher than atorvastatin users and outperformed rosuvastatin users by 1.03 points. These small but consistent improvements suggest some statins may even protect cognitive function.

So instead of harming memory, statins may actually help preserve it—especially with long-term use.

Are extremely low LDL levels dangerous for the brain?

This question comes up often, but the answer is reassuring: very low LDL levels are safe for the brain.

Researchers have studied thousands of patients who reached LDL levels as low as 20 mg/dL through statins and additional cholesterol-lowering treatments. Across short-term and long-term follow-ups, cognitive performance stayed steady.

One large study followed 473 patients for over five years while using evolocumab with statins. The median LDL was 35 mg/dL, and some patients dropped even lower. Despite this, no decline in memory or executive function appeared.

The FOURIER trial added further proof. More than 22,000 participants completed cognitive surveys over 2.2 years. The rate of reported memory decline was nearly identical between placebo (3.6%) and evolocumab users (3.7%). Even among 2,338 people with LDL below 20 mg/dL, the rate was 3.8%, the same as those with LDL above 100 mg/dL.

The EBBINGHAUS substudy, involving 1,204 patients, confirmed these findings through formal neuropsychological testing. Participants showed no differences in executive function, working memory, or psychomotor speed, regardless of LDL level.

These results clearly show that even extremely low cholesterol does not harm brain function. Instead, it may help lower stroke risk without affecting cognition.

Why do some people still report memory problems?

Despite strong evidence to the contrary, some people notice changes in memory after starting statins. Most of these reports come from spontaneous submissions to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Adverse Event Reporting System.

Commonly mentioned symptoms include:

• Forgetfulness or short-term amnesia
• Difficulty concentrating
• Feeling mentally “foggy” or confused

These reports led the FDA to update statin labels. However, the data are voluntary, meaning they don’t prove that statins were the cause.

A massive study involving more than 482,000 statin users found that people reported memory loss most often within the first 30 days of starting treatment. The odds ratio for reported memory loss was 4.40 compared to those not on statins.

But here’s the important part: when researchers looked at people starting nonstatin cholesterol drugs, they found nearly the same pattern, an odds ratio of 3.60. That means patients who begin any new cholesterol medication are more likely to notice or report changes in memory, even if the medicine isn’t responsible.

This pattern suggests that awareness plays a big role. People often pay closer attention to their health after starting a new drug, so normal forgetfulness may suddenly seem more alarming.

Wrap up

• Research shows no evidence that statins cause memory loss or serious cognitive decline.
• Large randomized trials and meta-analyses consistently confirm their safety for the brain.
• Many studies suggest statins actually reduce the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
• Very low LDL levels from statins are not harmful to thinking or memory.
• Reported memory issues are usually temporary, mild, and often unrelated to statin use.

Doctors should take patient concerns seriously, check for other causes, and personalize care when needed.