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How Metformin Slows Aging
Plus: the telomere effect—yes, you can regrow telomeres!
The 10almonds Team
May 08, 2023
Today’s almonds have been activated by:
Loading Screen Tip: Happiness is not something that you postpone for the future; it’s something you design for the present.
⏰ IN A RUSH?
Today’s 30-Second Summary
If you don’t have time to read the whole email today, here are some key takeaways:
Thiamine deficiency can cause:
Low stomach acid and gastric emptying
Low pancreatic enzymes
Poor bile flow
Slow intestinal motility
Heightened gut inflammation
Metformin, the diabetes drug, can slow aging
It does this by inducing hormesis, the process by which minor stress an trigger your cells to repair themselves
It also slows aging by its anti-inflammatory effect, as a bonus
Fitt Insider is what it sounds like—an insider news source for the world of fitness. It’s free, and we recommend it!
Telomeres (little caps on the end of your DNA that keep the DNA intact) get shorter over time, and that’s part of how aging occurs. The good news is, you can regrow them! Check out today’s book of the day to learn about that.
Read on to learn about these things and more…
👀 WATCH AND LEARN
The Vitamin Deficiency That May Cause SIBO and IBS
Almost every function of the gut requires input from the autonomic nervous system, and if there’s a thiamine deficiency, this system becomes broken:
Thiamine deficiency can cause:
Low stomach acid and gastric emptying
Low pancreatic enzymes
Poor bile flow
Slow intestinal motility
Heightened gut inflammation
(We recommend you watch the video though, for the very illuminating explanation that really helps bring it together)
⏳ MAIN FEATURE
Metformin And How It Slows Down Aging
That’s a bold claim for a title, but the scientific consensus is clear, and this Research Review Monday we’re going to take a look at exactly that!
Metformin is a common diabetes-management drug, used to lower blood sugar levels in people who either don’t have enough insulin or the insulin isn’t being recognized well enough by the body.
However, it also slows aging, which is a quality it’s also been studied for for more than a decade. We’ll look at some of the more recent research, though. Let’s kick off with an initial broad statement, from the paper “The Use of Metformin to Increase the Human Healthspan”, as part of the “Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology” series:
In recent years, more attention has been paid to the possibility of using metformin as an anti-aging drug. It was shown to significantly increase the lifespan in some model organisms and delay the onset of age-associated declines. Growing amounts of evidence from clinical trials suggest that metformin can effectively reduce the risk of many age-related diseases and conditions, including cardiometabolic disorders, neurodegeneration, chronic inflammation and frailty.
How does it work?
That’s still being studied, but the scientific consensus is that it works by inducing hormesis—the process by which minor stress signals cells to start repairing themselves. How does it induce that hormesis? Again, still being studied, but it appears to do it by activating a specific enzyme; namely, the AMP-activated protein kinase:
It also has been found to slow aging by means of an anti-inflammatory effect, as a bonus!
Any bad news?
Well, firstly, in most places it’s only prescribed for diabetes management, not for healthy life extension. A lot of anti-aging enthusiasts have turned to the grey market online to get it, and we can’t recommend that.
Secondly, it does have some limitations:
Its bioavailability isn’t great in tablet form (the form in which it is most commonly given)
It has quite a short elimination half-life (around 6 hours), which makes it great to fix transient hyperglycemia in diabetics—job done and it’s out—but presents a logistical challenge when it comes to something so pernicious as aging.
Some people are non-responders (a non-responder, in medicine, is someone for whom a drug simply doesn’t work, for no obvious reason)
Want to know more? Check out:
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Fitt Insider: Definitely One To Add To Your Reading List!
Fitt Insider is what it sounds like—an insider news source for the world of fitness.
Do you ever learn of a new health kick, and wish dearly you’d known about it sooner? Fitt Insider’s newsletter really specializes in delivering that—getting cutting edge health and fitness news out to its subscribers.
While we certainly do some of that at 10almonds too, for them, it’s their whole thing, and if you enjoy that aspect of our newsletter, we know you’ll love theirs too!
It’s a free newsletter presenting (in a clear and simple fashion) industry trends, news, tech, startups, and more. From wearables to health optimization to the latest updates from companies like WHOOP and Strava, Fitt Insider is a great source for getting the most up-to-date fitness and wellness news.
Click Here To See Fitt Insider’s Latest Issue! ← you can also choose to subscribe there if you like; again; it’s free!
🌍 AROUND THE WEB
What’s happening in the health world…
More to come tomorrow!
📖 ONE-MINUTE BOOK REVIEW
The Telomere Effect: A Revolutionary Approach to Living Younger, Healthier, Longer - By Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn and Dr. Elissa Epel
Telomeres can be pretty mystifying to the person with a lay interest in longevity. Beyond "they're the little caps that sit on the end of your DNA, and longer is better, and when they get short, damage occurs, and aging", how do they fit into the big picture?
Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn and Dr. Elissa Epel excel at explaining the marvelous world of telomeres...
how they work
what affects them
and how and why
...and the extent to which changes are or aren't reversible.
For some of us, the ship has sailed on avoiding a lot of early-life damage to our telomeres, and now we have a damage-mitigation task ahead. That's where the authors get practical.
Indeed, the whole third part of the book is titled "Help Your Body Protect Its Cells", and indeed covers not just "from now on" protection, but undoing some of the damage already done (yes, telomeres can be lengthened—it gets harder as we get older, but absolutely can be done).
In short: if you'd like to avoid further damage to your telomeres where possible, and reverse some of the damage done already, this book will set you on the right track.
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Wishing you long and healthy life,
The 10almonds Team