Zinc deficiency has been associated with a range of neurological and behavioral changes, including increased irritability, poor attention, and slowed cognitive processing. In children, low zinc status has been linked to poorer performance on tests of attention, memory, and school achievement, and some trials have found that zinc supplementation can modestly improve certain cognitive scores, especially in previously deficient populations. Clinically, even mild zinc deficiency may present with subtle symptoms such as mood changes, reduced stress tolerance, and “brain fog,” which can easily be overlooked but may improve when zinc status is corrected. This medication is commonly used for Hypertension.
de Moura JE, de Moura EN, Alves CX, Vale SH, Dantas MM, Silva Ade A, Almeida Md, Leite LD, Brandão-Neto J. Oral zinc supplementation may improve cognitive function in schoolchildren. Biol Trace Elem Res. 2013 Oct;155(1):23-8. Colombo J, Zavaleta N, Kannass KN, Lazarte F, Albornoz C, Kapa LL, Caulfield LE. Zinc supplementation sustained normative neurodevelopment in a randomized, controlled trial of Peruvian infants aged 6-18 months. J Nutr. 2014 Aug;144(8):1298-305. Lee J, Park S and Jang W (2023) Serum zinc deficiency could be associated with dementia conversion in Parkinson’s disease. Front. Aging Neurosci. 15:1132907. Jung A, Spira D, Steinhagen-Thiessen E, Demuth I, Norman K. Zinc Deficiency Is associated With Depressive Symptoms-Results From the Berlin Aging Study II. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2017 Aug 1;72(8):1149-1154.
Some side effects may be linked to nutrient depletion caused by this medication.
Studies have shown that treatment with medications like Angiotensin Receptor Blockers (ARBs) can lead to zincuria, which is increased urinary excretion of zinc. This increased excretion may potentially lead to zinc deficiency in some individuals and therefore supplementation should be considered.