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It's probably not your imagination that Grandma is becoming increasingly fragile over time. And her dementia medication may be partly to blame.

A new study from the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) found that a class medications commonly used to treat dementia — called cholinesterase inhibitors — may cause harmful weight loss in some patients.

These medications include donepezil (brand name Aricept), galantamine (Razadyne) and rivastigmine (Exelon).

"This is very relevant to patient care because unintentional weight loss in older adults is associated with many adverse outcomes, including increased rates of institutionalization and mortality, a decline in functional status, and poorer quality of life," said lead study author Meera Sheffrin, MD, a geriatrics fellow at UCSF School of Medicine, in a press release.

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