Research Finds This Trace Mineral May Stop a Disorder — And Reverse Brain Aging

And Reverse Brain Aging

If Alzheimer’s is one of your greatest fears, you’re not alone. My patients tell me they fear this dreaded mind-erasing condition more than cancer, heart attacks, and strokes.

Unfortunately for most patients, their doctors’ knowledge starts and stops with Big Pharma’s drug failures.

But there’s a simple mineral that can change everything.

I’m talking about lithium.

For hundreds of years, people have been “taking the waters” at Warm Springs, Georgia – and similar springs around the world – to improve their health. These waters are rich in naturally occurring lithium, and soaking in them provides the benefits of lithium orotate.

These waters were so revered they were visited by the likes of Thomas Jefferson, Mark Twain, and at least five American presidents including Grover Cleveland, William McKinley, William Howard Taft, Theodore Roosevelt, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

In addition to water, naturally occurring lithium orotate is found in rocks, dirt, and plants. The concentrations vary by area, but it’s found almost everywhere. And that includes a lot of drinking water.

Decades of research shows that natural trace levels of lithium in drinking water contribute to better health, particularly mental health.

Not only does lithium in drinking water reduce suicide rates and help stabilize mood disorders, it also protects against dementia.¹

Building on the benefits of naturally occurring lithium, scientists started looking into how micro doses of lithium orotate specifically affected human health.

Doses as low as 300 mcg (mcg) daily can make a difference, especially when it comes to brain health. That’s partly because your brain needs lithium to function properly, just like it needs other minerals.

A 2025 study found that lithium deficiencies can trigger the slide into dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.2 Lithium delivers several solid brain protecting benefits including: ^3,4,5,6,7

In a clinical trial of Alzheimer’s patients, microdoses of just 300 mcg per day significantly reduced their cognitive decline.⁸

Another trial found that long-term low-dose lithium supplements led to better performance on cognitive tests for patients with cognitive impairment.⁹

And that’s just the beginning of what tiny doses of lithium orotate can do for you.

Your body produces enzymes GSK-3 (glycogen synthesis kinase-3) known as “aging accelerators.” These enzymes have key roles in many cellular processes including metabolism, communication, and cell death.

When GSK-3 increases, it can trigger many age-related and chronic diseases including:

·      Alzheimer’s

·      Parkinson’s

·      Cardiovascular disease

·      Rheumatoid arthritis

·      Cancer

·      Dementia

·      Depression

Lithium orotate can help prevent all that by inhibiting GSK-3 enzymes. The mineral blocks GSK-3 activation and activity, stopping it from speeding up the aging process and causing deadly damage.

Lithium Orotate Increases Longevity And Brings Whole Body Benefits

Lithium does so much more than protect your brain. It plays key roles in many body processes, like other essential minerals — it just hasn’t been recognized as one by mainstream medicine.

But I’ve known about what happens when you don’t get enough lithium in your diet or drinking water. I’ve seen it derail overall health. And as soon as that micro amount of lithium gets restored, it sparks positive effects for your life and longevity.¹⁰

Here are even more ways that microdoses of lithium orotate can keep you well:

• Promotes Longevity. People who have lithium in their drinking water live longer. One study found that low-dose exposure to lithium through drinking water extended their lives and reduced premature death from all causes.¹¹ Another study found that trace levels of lithium in the tap water was linked to prolonged lifespans.¹²

• Protects Telomeres. Telomeres — the “caps” on the ends of DNA strands that shield them from damage — are fundamental to youthful aging. Lithium stops telomeres from getting shorter and even lengthens them, giving cells extra anti-aging protection.¹³

• Increases Stem Cell Production. Lithium encourages the growth, multiplication, and healthy maintenance of stem cells, the most powerful cells in your body.¹⁴ That allows your body to renew and refresh cells, organs, and tissues for healthier aging.

• Fights Inflammaging. Chronic low-level inflammation speeds up aging and disease processes, making you sicker and older before your time. Lithium suppresses inflammatory enzymes so they can’t get out of control and cause systemic trouble.

• Combats Oxidative Stress. Lithium orotate has antioxidant properties that fight free radicals to minimize oxidative stress, especially in the brain. Research shows that lithium can prevent and reverse DNA damage caused by free radicals and decrease oxidative stress in your whole body.¹⁵

• Boosts Metabolism And Energy. Research shows that lithium can boost mitochondrial function, leading to increased energy. It can also increase thermogenesis, which creates heat to manage energy metabolism.¹⁶

• Manages Type 1 And Type 2 Diabetes. Lithium can improve insulin sensitivity, making it easier for insulin to escort glucose out of the bloodstream and into your cells.¹⁷ It can help lower both fasting and after-meal blood sugar levels. Lithium improves the way your body manages and uses glucose to help stabilize blood sugar.

• Curbs Obesity. While prescription lithium carbonate can cause weight gain leading to obesity, micro doses of natural lithium orotate have the opposite effect. Research shows that low-dose lithium prevents weight gain even in animals eating high-fat diets.¹⁸ And trace amounts of lithium in drinking water have been shown to lower obesity rates.¹⁹

• Improves Cardiovascular Health. Even though the high-dose lithium carbonate used to treat mental health disorders can cause cardiac problems, microdoses of lithium orotate improve cardiovascular function. Part of that is due to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Low-dose lithium also improves vascular function by relaxing blood vessels and reducing atherosclerotic plaque formation.^21,20

• Promotes Healthy Bone Formation. Lithium boosts bone density and reduces the risk of osteoporosis. People taking lithium had higher bone mineral density in the hips, spine, and whole body. Studies also show that lithium reduces fracture risk by as much as 20%.²¹

• Supports Immune System Function. Lithium improves immune cell activity and increases the number of lymphocytes and T cells.²² It also has antiviral properties, including effectiveness against coronaviruses.²³

• Fights Depression. Lithium is well-known for stabilizing moods in bipolar disorder. It also has strong antidepressant powers and is known to reduce the risk of suicide. Trace levels of natural lithium have the same effects, lowering suicide rates and boosting mood.²⁴

All of this and the ability to prevent cognitive decline, saving you from the devastation of Alzheimer’s disease, from as little as 300 mcg of lithium orotate a day.

Your brain consumes a lot of resources, every minute of every day for your whole life. That includes essential minerals like lithium. And when your mineral levels run low, your brain will slow down.

Here are three critical brain-saving minerals you’ll want to make sure you’re getting enough of.

1. Magnesium. Up to 90% of older Americans have magnesium deficiency. That’s a huge problem when you consider that magnesium is essential for brain health.

Magnesium protects your brain cells from inflammation and prevents cognitive decline. It also plays a role in communication between brain cells, keeping the blood-brain barrier intact, and stopping headaches – including migraines.

When it comes to boosting magnesium levels, I always have my patients start with diet.

I recommend pumpkin seeds, almonds, cashews, peanuts, avocado, figs, and leafy greens like spinach. I also have them use the right kind of salt. I’m talking about sea salt, which is unrefined and contains all the minerals and co-factors nature intended.

Since it’s almost impossible to get all the magnesium you need from food, fill in the gaps with supplements.

I suggest supplementing with 1,000 mg a day. The most absorbable forms are magnesium citrate, glycinate, taurate, and aspartate.

Take it with vitamin B6 to increase the amount of magnesium that accumulates in your cells.

2. Selenium. Your brain can’t function at peak performance without enough magnesium. It’s known to reverse age-related cognitive decline, promote new brain cell creation, and restore memory loss.

This mineral doubles up as a powerful antioxidant that protects your brain cells against free radicals. It plays a critical role in thyroid hormone production, which also affects brain function.

Again, I recommend boosting selenium through food as the first step. Brazil nuts contain a lot of selenium, about 100 mcg each. Other high-selenium foods include sunflower seeds, oysters, halibut, sardines, eggs, and shiitake mushrooms.

When it comes to selenium supplements, make sure you choose the proper form and take the right amount. Selenium is a mineral — a metal. Those can be tough for your body to absorb in their inorganic form.

That’s why you’ll want to look for organic forms your body can easily process, such as selenomethionine and selenocysteine. I suggest supplementing with between 100 to 200 mcg daily.

3.  Zinc. Zinc plays a key role in the central nervous system, controlling brain function and brain cell development. Your brain needs zinc for learning, memory, including spatial and social memory.

Low zinc levels can increase oxidative stress, speed up cognitive decline, and cause depression. On the flip side, excessive zinc can cause cognitive problems. So it’s important to keep this essential mineral in balance.

Zinc has the side bonus of boosting the effectiveness of selenium, especially when it comes to cellular protection. The two minerals work to repair DNA and protect cellular health and integrity.²⁵

Start by adding more zinc-rich foods to your diet. Those include grass-fed beef and lamb, oysters, cashews, kale, eggs, and dark chocolate.

It can be tricky for your body to get enough zinc from diet alone. Absorption rates vary from 5% to 50%, depending on how much phytate – a plant compound that binds to zinc and blocks its absorption – is present in the meal.

That’s why I recommend taking 30 mg of zinc picolinate, the best-absorbed form, every day.

To Your Good Health,

1. Fraiha-Pegado J, et al. “Trace lithium levels in drinking water and risk of dementia: a systematic review.” Int J Bipolar Disord. 2024 Aug 30;12(1):32.

2. Aron L, et al. “Lithium deficiency and the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.” Nature. 2025;645:712–721.

3. Lu B, et al. “BDNF and synaptic plasticity, cognitive function, and dysfunction.” Handb Exp Pharmacol. 2014;220:223-50.

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6. Rohr KE, et al. “The impact of lithium on circadian rhythms and implications for bipolar disorder pharmacotherapy.” Neurosci Lett. 2022 Aug 24;786:136772.

7. Xu S, et al. “Relationship between circadian rhythm and brain cognitive functions.” Front Optoelectron. 2021 Sep;14(3):278-287.

8. Nunes MA, et al. “Microdose lithium treatment stabilized cognitive impairment in patients with Alzheimer's disease.” Curr Alzheimer Res. 2013 Jan;10(1):104-7.

9. Forlenza OV, et al. “Clinical and biological effects of long-term lithium treatment in older adults with amnestic mild cognitive impairment: Randomised clinical trial.” Br J Psychiatry. 2019 Nov;215(5):668-674.

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14. Ferensztajn-Rochowiak E, et al. “The effect of lithium on hematopoietic, mesenchymal and neural stem cells.” Pharmacol Rep. 2016 Apr;68(2):224-30.

15. Khairova R, et al. “Effects of lithium on oxidative stress parameters in healthy subjects.” Mol Med Rep. 2012 Mar;5(3):680-2.

16. Finch MS, et al. “Creatine and low-dose lithium supplementation separately alter energy expenditure, body mass, and adipose metabolism for the promotion of thermogenesis.” iScience. 2024 Mar 11;27(4):109468.

17. Jung SR, et al. “Lithium and exercise ameliorate insulin-deficient hyperglycemia by independently attenuating pancreatic α-cell mass and hepatic gluconeogenesis.” Korean J Physiol Pharmacol. 2024 Jan 1;28(1):31-38.

18. Geromella MS, et al. “Low-dose lithium supplementation promotes adipose tissue browning and sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca²⁺ ATPase uncoupling in muscle.” J Biol Chem. 2022 Nov;298(11):102568.

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21. Ng VWS, et al. “Lithium and the risk of fractures in patients with bipolar disorder: A population-based cohort study.” Psychiatry Res. 2024 Sep;339:116075.

22. Szałach ŁP, et al. “The immunomodulatory effect of lithium as a mechanism of action in bipolar disorder.” Front Neurosci. 2023 Aug 17;17:1213766.

23. Nowak JK, et al. “Lithium and coronaviral infections. A scoping review.” F1000Res. 2020 Feb 7;9:93.

24. Ishii N, Terao T. “Trace lithium and mental health.” J Neural Transm (Vienna). 2018 Feb;125(2):223-227.

25. Yildiz A, et al. “Effect of the Interaction Between Selenium and Zinc on DNA Repair in Association With Cancer Prevention.” J Cancer Prev. 2019 Sep;24(3):146-154.