If you are following any of the talking heads in the “Reverse Aging” and healthy longevity space, you may have noticed that much of the buzz is centering around which supplements you should take to slow down and even reverse aging. Most of the Youtubers in the reverse aging category appear to be financing their channel by selling one supplement or another that will supposedly help you age in reverse or at least slow down the aging and disease process. There are literally hundreds of supplements and prescription medicines being studied currently, to see if they can slow down or halt the aging process.
NAD+ boosters are the hottest topic. NAD+ stands for Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide, which is found in every cell of the human body, and declines sharply as we age. The discovery of the so-called “Longevity Genes” aka the “Sirtuins” lead to the current theory that the sirtuins may counter at least 6 of the causes of aging: Neurodegeneration, chronic inflammation, metabolic syndrome and diabetes, DNA damage, genome instability, and cancer. NAD+ is what the sirtuins eat, so their food supply dwindles as we age, our bodies start to show more and more signs of aging and become more susceptible to disease.
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In 2020, a book called “Lifespan: Why We Age and Why We Don’t Have to” was published and quickly became a NY Times bestseller. This was the first time I heard about the “sirtuins” and about a supplement recommended by the scientist who wrote the book, David Sinclair, called NMN. NMN stands for Nicotinamide Mononucleotide, which is a precursor to NAD+, giving our sirtuins a food source and thereby reversing or at least slowing the aging process. Using NAD+ by itself as a supplement doesn’t work as it is too large of a molecule to be absorbed by the body.
NMN was/is EXTREMELY expensive, about $7-10 per day and since I was temporarily unemployed due to the COVID lockdown, I researched another much less expensive alternative: Niacin, also known as Nicotinamide. I started taking a large dose of Niacin every morning and that was about 2 cents per day. In the nearly 5 year period that has elapsed since the debate over NAD+ precursors has raged on. The other expensive competitor for NMN was NR, also known as Nicotinamide Riboside and there was some very nasty debate between the two camps.
As it turned out, after more research on humans, neither NR nor NMN were more useful than Niacin, (just plain old Nicotinamide), as they are broken down by the body into nicotinamide before they can be absorbed anyway. So I got the same results without spending $18250 on NMN or NR. An important lesson on doing your research before you buy expensive supplements! Here in Los Cabos, anything that has to be imported is about 30-50% more also, so anything brand new or trendy like NMN will be really overpriced. The supplements I recommend are all available here in Los Cabos via Amazon at reasonable prices.
Long story short, there are literally hundreds of “reverse aging” supplements on the market and in various stages of human trials but not a lot of human data available about their efficacy and certainly nothing definitive. Two prescription drugs, rapamycin and metformin show promise as longevity drugs but more research is necessary. Some people in the biohacking space, Brian Johnson of Blueprint for one, are taking dozens of different powerful nutraceuticals and we really have no idea of what the combined effect might be long term. I think it’s better to start with a minimum number of supplements and monitor your results.
After studying this topic quite extensively for many years I decided to take supplements that had the most proven benefits for anti-aging and the smallest price tags, due to their length of time on the market. Please note: The following list of nutraceuticals and vitamin supplements is not for everyone. If you are taking prescription medications or a lot of other supplements, do your own research or ask your doctor if you should be taking anything. I am just telling you what I take, not what you should do.
My top 6 supplements for anti-aging are:
Niacin: Full flush Niacin, not slow-release or no-flush. Niacin has lowered my triglycerides, raised my HDL cholesterol, removed dark spots and freckles from my skin, (including one big birthmark that I had on my calf), increased my upper body strength and reduced my visceral fat. A new study shows that Niacin is also neuroprotective, so it guards against dementia.
Alpha Lipoic Acid: This supplement is used to lower blood sugar, reduce inflammation, help manage weight, reduce peripheral neuropathy, improve insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome and slow skin aging. The maximum dose per day is 1800 mgs.
N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC): NAC is the precursor for glutathione production. Glutathione is one of the most powerful antioxidants in the body and it drops off steeply with age. NAC also helps prevent liver and kidney damage by detoxifying the body, relieves symptoms of respiratory disease, boosts brain health, improves insulin resistance and reduces oxidative stress in the cardiovascular system.
Omega 3 Cold Water Fish Oil: This is not a sexy supplement but it’s an absolutely essential one if you want to age well. It is particularly important for an aging brain to have a good quality fish oil supplement every day.
D3-K2: 5000 international units should be taken every day for good bone health, normal blood clotting, immune support, brain health, cardiovascular health, cancer prevention and defense against infections.
Magnesium: Improve your mood, sleep quality, exercise performance, blood sugar regulation, bone health and energy levels. Most of the adult population is deficient in magnesium. Magnesium is a cofactor for the production of ATP, the energy currency of all our body cells.
I am able to purchase Niacin, ALA, NAC and magnesium here in Cabo via Amazon Mexico. I buy my Omega 3 and D3-K2 from Melaleuca Mexico. So in other words, I order all of this online and have it delivered. A month’s supply of everything costs around $60, so 2 bucks a day.
Eating a nutrient-rich, calorie-poor diet is mandatory if you want to age without pain and disease. You can not make up for a poor diet, lack of sleep and lack of exercise with any pill.
If you have questions about anything you read in this article, please contact me at robynlittlewood@yahoo.com or you can text or Whatsapp me at +526242119435.
