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Recent Longevity News for the week ending 9/16/20 Common diabetes drug reverses inflammation in the liver - Science Daily, 9/10/20 - "The diabetes drug metformin -- derived from a lilac plant that's been used medicinally for more than a thousand years -- has been prescribed to hundreds of millions of people worldwide as the frontline treatment for type 2 diabetes. Yet scientists don't fully understand how the drug is so effective at controlling blood glucose ... the new work showed that the same proteins, regulated by metformin, controlled aspects of inflammation in mice, something the drug has not typically been prescribed for ... metformin is currently entering clinical trials in the United States as a general anti-aging treatment because it is effects are so well established from millions of patients and its side effects are minimal ... Metformin and exercise elicit similar beneficial outcomes, and research has previously shown that AMPK helps mediate some of the positive effects of exercise on the body" - See metformin at ReliableRX. Exercise improves learning and memory in young adults - Science Daily, 9/10/20 - "The review, which is published in Translational Sports Medicine, included 13 relevant studies. The types of exercise that were studied involved walking, running, and bicycling in individuals between 18 to 35 years of age ... Investigators found that aerobic exercise for 2 minutes to 1 hour at moderate to high intensity improved attention, concentration, and learning and memory functions for up to 2 hours. They noted that the results may have important education-related implications ... Exercise makes you smart" Muscle aging: Stronger for longer - Science Daily, 9/9/20 - "Contrary to our expectations, the long-term mTORC1 suppression with rapamycin is overwhelmingly beneficial for skeletal muscle aging in mice, preserving muscle size and strength ... There is currently no effective pharmacological therapy to treat sarcopenia. This study provides hope that it may be possible to slow down age-related muscle wasting with treatments that suppress mTORC1 and thereby extend the autonomy and life quality of elderly people" - See Siromus at ReliableRXPharmacy. Vitamin B1 deficiency a key factor in the development of alcohol-related dementia - Science Daily, 9/9/20 - "In Austria, around 5% of the population are alcohol dependent from the age of 15 onwards. This means that approximately 365,000 people are affected by the dangerous health consequences associated with high alcohol consumption. One of these consequences is a decline in cognitive function, especially memory and abstraction. This is then referred to as alcohol-related dementia ... high alcohol consumption results in elevated iron levels in the blood and also to vitamin B1 (thiamine) deficiency, which, among other things, is important for maintaining the blood-brain barrier. If these two situations coincide, more iron will be deposited inside the brain, ultimately leading to oxidative tissue damage" - See B complex supplements at Amazon.com and iHerb. More than one drink a day may raise high blood pressure risk in adults with Type 2 diabetes - Science Daily, 9/9/20 - "light drinking was not associated with elevated blood pressure or either stage of high blood pressure; ... moderate drinking was associated with increased odds of elevated blood pressure by 79%; Stage 1 high blood pressure by 66%; and Stage 2 high blood pressure by 62%; ... heavy drinking was associated with increased odds of elevated blood pressure by 91%; Stage 1 high blood pressure by 149% (a 2.49-fold increase); and Stage 2 high blood pressure by 204% (a 3.04-fold increase); and the more alcohol consumed, the higher the risk and severity of high blood pressure." Linking calorie restriction, body temperature and healthspan - Science Daily, 9/9/20 - "Conti's previous work showed that temperature reduction can increase lifespan independently of calorie restriction -- and that these effects involve activation of certain cellular processes, most of which remain to be identified ... "It's not easy to discern what's driving the beneficial changes of calorie restriction," Conti says. "Is it the reduced calories on their own, or the change in body temperature that typically happens when one consumes fewer calories? Or is it a combination of both?" ... The data we collected showed that temperature has an equal or greater effect than nutrients on metabolism during calorie restriction" Nighttime Smartphone Use a Bad Call for Male Fertility? - Medscape, 9/9/20 - "For the current study, the researchers analyzed semen samples from 116 men (mean age, 35.2 years) who were undergoing fertility evaluation. The men also provided information on exposure to the screens of electronic devices and sleep habits via a questionnaire ... smartphone and tablet use in the evening and after bedtime was negatively correlated (P < .05) with sperm motility, progressive motility, and concentration and was positively correlated with the percentage of immotile sperm ... The study also showed a significant positive correlation between sleep duration and sperm total and progressive motility and a significant negative correlation between subjective sleepiness and total and progressive motility, as well as total motile sperm number ... we suggest men not to use these digital media devices 2 hours before sleep time" Low Vitamin D Might Raise Odds of COVID Infection - WebMD, 9/4/20 - "While the study couldn't determine cause and effect, patients with an untreated vitamin D deficiency (blood levels of less than 20 ng/mL) were nearly two times more likely to test positive for the coronavirus than patients with sufficient vitamin D levels" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com and vitamin D at iHerb. Note: I saw these two videos on YouTube. The YouTube channel that produced them doesn't have one on Moderna yet but from what they claim about Novavax and Pfizer, it sounds like Moderna blows a hole through both. If you look at the Moderna data, by my calculations, it produces 5.5, 9.8, 2.1 and 4.1 respectively times the antibodies as someone who has recovered from COVID. Pfizer and Moderna are the same type vaccine but Pfizer uses a 30 microgram dose vs. a100 microgram dose for Moderna.
Excess Weight May Increase Your Risk of Dementia - NYT, 9/3/20 - "Compared with people of normal weight (body mass index between 18.5 and 24.9), overweight people with a B.M.I. of 25 to 29.9 were 27 percent more likely to develop dementia, and the obese, with a B.M.I. of 30 or higher, were 31 percent more likely to become demented" Final EVAPORATE Results for Vascepa Raise Eyebrows - Medscape, 9/4/20 - "Final 18-month results of the EVAPORATE trial suggest icosapent ethyl (Vascepa) provides even greater slowing of coronary plaque progression when added to statins for patients with high triglyceride levels" Common class of drugs linked to increased risk of Alzheimer's disease - Science Daily, 9/4/20 - "Anticholinergic drugs are widely used for dozens of conditions, minor and major. Some of these medications require a prescription, while others can be purchased over the counter. They work by blocking acetylcholine -- a type of neurotransmitter or chemical messenger known to be critical for memory function -- from binding to receptors on certain nerve cells. The effect is to inhibit parasympathetic nerve impulses, which are involved in a variety of involuntary muscle movements, such as those in the gastrointestinal tract and lungs, and bodily functions like salivation, digestion and urination ... Researchers reported that cognitively normal study participants who were taking at least one anticholinergic drug at baseline were 47 percent more likely to develop mild cognitive impairment (MCI), often a precursor to dementia such as AD, while being tracked over a period of up to a decade compared to participants who did not take such drugs"
Six Potential Treatments for COVID-19 Identified - Medscape, 9/4/20 - "The AI platform has also identified two bioactive compounds — lycopene and vitamin D — as potentially useful in treating COVID-19, bringing the total to date to six" - See lycopene at Amazon.com and iHerb and vitamin D at Amazon.com and vitamin D at iHerb. Why A Vaccine Won’t Be a Quick Fix for COVID-19 - WebMD, 9/3/20 - "The idea that a vaccine will end the pandemic just isn’t realistic ... First, not enough people will get the vaccine. Second, for those who do take it, the vaccine may only offer partial protection from the virus ... Typically, the herd immunity threshold for an infection is somewhere between 70% and 90% of the population" Vitamin D deficiency may raise risk of getting COVID-19, study finds - Science Daily, 9/3/20 - "Patients who had vitamin D deficiency (< 20ng/ml) that was not treated were almost twice as likely to test positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus compared to patients who had sufficient levels of the vitamin" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com and vitamin D at iHerb. Affordable Steroids Could Reduce Some COVID-19 Deaths by One-Third, Says World Health Organization - Time, 9/2/20 - "The new conclusions were reached through a meta-analysis of seven different studies, each exploring the efficacy of corticosteroids in the most serious cases of COVID-19. The combined sample group from all seven studies included 1,703 severely ill patients, 678 of whom were administered steroids and 1,025 who received ordinary care (which did not include steroids) or a placebo. All of the patients were hospitalized and most were on ventilators. Over the course of 28 days, the death rate was 34% lower among the steroid-treated patients than among those in the control group ... The consistent findings of benefit in these studies provide definitive data that corticosteroids should be first-line treatment for critically ill patients with COVID-19"
How Effective is the Flu Vaccine? - WebMD, 9/2/20 - "The flu is a serious illness. When the viruses in the vaccine are a good match with what’s circulating, the vaccine can reduce your risk of having the flu by 40%-60%. And even when the match isn’t great, being vaccinated before you get the flu can help you avoid having a severe case. Numerous studies have shown that the vaccine cuts your risk of having to go to the hospital -- and if you are hospitalized, you’re much less likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit ... According to the CDC’s estimates for the 2018-19 season, vaccinating only half of all Americans prevented 4.4 million cases of the flu, 58,000 hospitalizations, and 3,500 deaths. That was in a year that the vaccine was only 29% effective." - Handgrip strength shown to identify people at high risk of type 2 diabetes - Science Daily, 9/2/20 - "the risk of type 2 diabetes was reduced by around 50 per cent for every unit increase in handgrip strength value ... Reduced muscular strength, which can be measured by handgrip strength, has consistently been linked to early death, cardiovascular disease, and disability ... people with higher values of handgrip strength had a 27 per cent reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes" Face Shields and Valved Masks Offer More Comfort but Less Protection - NYT, 9/1/20 - "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had already stated that clear plastic face shields and masks equipped with vents or valves are not recommended, because of concerns that they don’t adequately block viral particles. But the new research, which uses lasers to illuminate the path of coughs, offers a striking visual demonstration of how large plumes of particles can escape from behind a face shield or vented mask" Blood pressure-lowering is even more beneficial than previously thought - Science Daily, 9/1/20 - "Participants were divided into two groups: those with a prior diagnosis of cardiovascular disease and those without. Each group was divided into seven subgroups based on systolic blood pressure at study entry (less than 120, 120-129, 130-139, 140-149, 150-159, 160-169, 170 and above mmHg) ... Over an average four years of follow-up, each 5 mmHg reduction in systolic blood pressure lowered the relative risk of major cardiovascular events by about 10%. The risks for stroke, ischaemic heart disease, heart failure and death from cardiovascular disease were reduced by 13%, 7% and 14% and 5%, respectively" Abstracts from this week: Long-term resveratrol supplementation improves pain perception, menopausal symptoms, and overall well-being in postmenopausal women: findings from a 24-month randomized, controlled, crossover trial - Menopause 2020 Aug 31 - "These results confirm the pilot study finding that resveratrol supplementation can reduce chronic pain in age-related osteoarthritis and improve menopause-related quality of life in postmenopausal women. These improvements are sustained by supplementation for at least 12 months and are associated with enhancement of circulatory function" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com and resveratrol at iHerb. Potassium intake, skeletal muscle mass, and effect modification by sex: data from the 2008-2011 KNHANES - Nutr J 2020 Aug 29 - "skeletal muscle index (SMI) ... In men, higher potassium intake was associated with lower odds for low muscle mass; the fully adjusted odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) were 0.78 (0.60-1.03), 0.71 (0.54-0.93), 0.68 (0.51-0.90), and 0.71 (0.51-0.98) for the top four quintiles (referenced against the lowest quintile), respectively. However, this association was attenuated in women after adjusting for total energy intake. Higher potassium intakes were also associated with a greater SMI" - See potassium citrate at Amazon.com and potassium citrate at iHerb.com. Genistein Improves Bone Healing via Triggering Estrogen Receptor Alpha-Mediated Expressions of Osteogenesis-Associated Genes and Consequent Maturation of Osteoblasts - J Agric Food Chem 2020 Sep 8 - "Results of microcomputed tomography revealed that administration of genistein increased trabecular bone numbers and improved the bone thickness and volume. This study showed that genistein can improve bone healing via triggering ERα-mediated osteogenesis-associated gene expressions and subsequent osteoblast maturation" - See genistein at Amazon.com and iHerb. Evaluation of green tea extract and epigallocatechin gallate effects on bisphenol A-induced vascular toxicity in isolated rat aorta and cytotoxicity in human umbilical vein endothelial cells - Phytother Res 2020 Sep 7 - "These findings provide evidence that green tea extract and EGCG possess beneficial effects in preventing BPA-induced vascular toxicity through increasing the antioxidant activities and the regulation of signaling pathways" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com and green tea extract at iHerb. Protective effect of supplementation with Ginseng, Lilii Bulbus and Poria against PM 2 .5 in air pollution-induced cardiopulmonary damage among adults - Phytother Res 2020 Sep 6 - "This randomized, double-blinded and placebo-controlled trial among 120 healthy adults in Wuhan, China, was conducted to evaluate whether the supplementation of herbal product composed of Ginseng, Lilii Bulbus and Poria (GLP) which have been shown to have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activity offers protective effects on PM2.5 -induced damage to cardiopulmonary health ... Compared to the placebo group, the GLP group showed significant increased antioxidant biomarkers such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) and paraoxonase1 (PON1). What is more, interleukin-6 (IL-6), an inflammatory biomarker, was significantly decreased in the GLP group. In addition, nitric oxide and club cell secretory protein (CC16) were increased but heart rate was decreased in the GLP group. As for pulmonary function indicators, significantly increased fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) was observed in the GLP group. Taken together, we concluded that GLP supplementation is associated with decreased inflammatory biomarker and increased antioxidant biomarkers suggesting cardiopulmonary benefits against PM2.5 exposure among young adults in China" - See ginseng at Amazon.com and iHerb. Telomere length in healthy adults is positively associated with polyunsaturated fatty acids, including arachidonic acid, and negatively with saturated fatty acids - J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2020 Sep 7 - "Lymphocyte telomere length (LTL) is a biomarker of ageing that may be modified by dietary factors including fat ... Our results indicate that the majority of saturated fatty acids and mono-unsaturated fatty acids are negatively associated with LTL whereas polyunsaturated fatty acids are positively associated with LTL. Multiple regression analysis revealed that arachidonic acid (AA, C20:4n-6) is significantly, independently, positively correlated with LTL (β= .262; p = .000). The significant association of fatty acids, particularly C20:4n-6, with telomere length warrants further research" - See arachidonic acid at Amazon.com. Rosmarinic acid protects mice from Concanavalin A-induced hepatic injury through AMPK signaling - Biol Pharm Bull 2020 Sep 4 - "Rosmarinic acid (RA) ... The objective of this study was to investigate the role of AMPK signaling involving the protective effects of RA on concanavalin A (Con A)-induced(AIH) in mice ... Compared with the Con A group, serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) in RA group (100 and 150 mg/kg/day) were significantly reduced. RA also reduced hepatocyte swelling, cell death, and infiltration of leukocytes in the liver of Con A-treated mice. Serum levels of cytokines, such as interferon-γ(IFN-γ), interleukin-2 (IL-2) and interferon-1(IL-1β), were reduced by RA pretreatment, while the levels of serum interferon-10 (IL-10), an anti-inflammatory cytokine, was elevated. These protective effects were reversed by treatment with CC. RA treatment reduced the hepatic damage via the activation of AMPK in the mice of Con A-induced. So RA acts as a potential part in the therapy of autoimmune hepatitis" - See rosemary extract at Amazon.com and rosemary extract at iHerb. Association of Vitamin D Status and Other Clinical Characteristics With COVID-19 Test Results - JAMA Netw Open 2020 Sep 1 - "In this single-center, retrospective cohort study, likely deficient vitamin D status was associated with increased COVID-19 risk" - [Nutra USA] - See vitamin D at Amazon.com and vitamin D at iHerb. Exploring the concept of vigor and dys-vigor in men of 50-65 years: effects of Robuvit® - Panminerva Med 2020 Sep - "The concept of vigor, partially associated with premature aging, decreased level of activity and exercise, a sedentary lifestyle, appears to be a quantifiable entity. Robuvit® supplementation - previously shown to be effective in chronic fatigue syndrome, convalescence, post-mononucleosis, PTSD or in liver failure - improves vigor; further evaluations need to be planned according to the concept of this pilot registry" - [Nutra USA] - See Robuvit® at Amazon.com. Randomized Clinical Trial: Bergamot Citrus and Wild Cardoon Reduce Liver Steatosis and Body Weight in Non-diabetic Individuals Aged Over 50 Years - Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2020 Aug 11 - "Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is the most common cause of liver-related morbidity and mortality in the world. However, no effective pharmacological treatment for this condition has been found ... The intervention group received a nutraceutical containing a Bergamot polyphenol fraction and Cynara Cardunculus extract, 300 mg/day for 12 weeks. The control group received a placebo daily ... We found a greater liver fat content reduction in the participants taking the nutraceutical rather than placebo (-48.2 ± 39 vs. -26.9 ± 43 dB/m" - [Nutra USA] - See bergamot supplement supplement at Amazon.com and Cynara Cardunculus extract at Amazon.com. My t-shirt design of the day. For my
personalized t-shirts, see:
https://qualitycounts.com/tshirt/
Health Focus (Vitamin D):
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