Photo: Joshua Miller
Slowing The Aging Process. Another Win For Veggie Fans!:
So in the eternal war of Vegetarians vs. Carnivores, !SCIENCE! has to concede one new point.
As time goes by our bodies seem to get worse, mostly due to unfair biochemical changes like reduced metabolism, lean mass, and just plain old energy.
Well, researchers are coming again to the rescue, with what looks like another cure to several of them.
And it all hinges on that nagging your good ole’ mum leveled at the dinnertime kids: Eat Your Greens!…
There Is More To Veggies Than Water + Green Stuff:
So in a few studies that make HealthTrekker’s own gorgeous Oracle at Delphi, Yazemeenah Rossi look psychic again,
They’re finding out that certain vegetables are more than just a collection of cholorophyll and water.
In-fact, just like Yazemeenah’s favorite, the Avocado, they just might be part of the fountain of youth.
So when you get older, perhaps even as early as 30s for some people, though the study didn’t stipulate, a lot of unfair biochemical changes start taking place.
One of them is a change that robs you of Energy; most-likely, your body’s ability to convert food into it super-efficiently.
Your Body’s Powerhouse Slows Down With Time:
We’ve already discussed the Carnivore’s solution to energy: Creatine.
And now Dr. Shin-Ichiro Imai’s team has found the Vegetarian equivalent: NAD.
Along the way, a happy accident happened. Dr. Imai wasn’t able to give test-subjects NAD.
So he chose the Fuel that gets converted into it; something called NMN.
And strangely enough, in addition to its NAD-fueling properties, NMN also participates in a few of the energy-reactions our good friend Creatine does.
It just camps out in a different place. In your cells instead of mostly in muscles.
But it gets even better.
Precursors Found In Some Greens Rebuild Your Engine:
Because this stuff is also found in many of those Greens your Mom told you to eat, like:
1) Cucumbers
2) Edamame
3) Broccoli
4) Cabbage
and Yazemeenah’s favorite,
5) Avocados
And when the researchers took highly-concentrated doses of NMN & gave it to test mice in their water, it reversed a whole host of age-related problems.
It even made the middle-aged mice move around a bit more like young mice.
The List of Problems It Fixed:
1) Reduced Insulin Sensitivity
2) Elevated Bodyfat
3) Increased Weight
4) Decreased Muscle Mass
5) Worsening Vision
6) Lower Bone Density
7) Declining Liver Function
8) Worse Immune Function
9) Uneven Blood-Sugar
10) Sub-Optimal Food-To-Energy-Conversion
11) Inflammation
12) And Reduced Physical Activity
So: Almost everything! -Either directly, or indirectly.
But they even went a step further. To confirm their results, they tested several mice with a genetic NAD production deficiency. All of the aforementioned problems were worse in them.
And now some good news and bad news and good news.
Some Bad News, Some Good News:
1) You can’t get high-purity supplement-grade NAD yet.
2) You Can increase the amount your body gets by eating more of those greens.
3) It would be tough to get a lot of NAD from those greens, however.
4) You ~might~ be able to get a little more NMN-fuel through Niacin supplementation.
5) BUT: Imai’s lab is running NAD/NMN tests on humans in Japan right now, so NMN availability may change in the future!…
6) There were no increased signs of The Big C present after NMN supplementation, which can otherwise be the case when you increase biochemicals in the body tied to certain energy sources.
And the final Countess-Bathory/Yazemeenah-grade kicker?
Other Studies Confirm Imai’s Team Is On The Right Track:
NAD & NMN are also closely-related in action to a few classes of drugs and compounds already known to slow the aging process, such as several Diabetes Drugs, Resveratrol, and chemical compounds called Sirtuins.
And since Dr. Imai has noted that they all work along very similar energy-pathways in your body’s cell-powerhouses, his team is definitely on the right track.
Here’s to hoping the newer tests go well & healthy energy is just a pill away in the future. Until then listen to Yazemeenah, or at least your Mom & Eat Your Greens!
Links:
• Source: WUStL-Natural compound reduces signs of aging in healthy mice
• More Coverage: Imai Lab, Palo Alto Longevity Prize
• Source Study: Cell Metabolism-Long-Term Administration of Nicotinamide Mononucleotide Mitigates Age-Associated Physiological Decline in Mice
Leave a Reply