Found: Cocktail for eternal youth

TORONTO - Researchers have developed a cocktail of ingredients that forestalls major aspects of the ageing process.

“As we all eventually learn, ageing diminishes our mind, fades our perception of the world and compromises our physical capacity,” says David Rollo, associate professor of biology at McMaster’s University.

“Declining physical activity - think of grandparents versus toddlers - is one of the most reliable expressions of ageing and is also a good indicator of obesity and general mortality risk,” adds Rollo.

The study found that a complex dietary supplement powerfully offsets this key symptom of ageing in old mice by increasing the activity of the cellular furnaces that supply energy - or mitochondria - and by reducing emissions from these furnaces - or free radicals - that are thought to be the basic cause of ageing itself.

Successful intervention into ageing could prevent or forestall heart disease, stroke, Type II diabetes, many cancers, neurodegenerative diseases, inflammatory and autoimmune conditions.

Using bagel bits soaked in the supplement, the formula maintained youthful levels of locomotor activity into old age whereas old mice that were not given the supplement showed a 50 percent loss in daily movement.

This builds on the team’s findings that the supplement extends longevity, prevents cognitive declines, and protects mice from radiation.

Ingredients were purchased in local stores selling vitamin and health supplements for people, including vitamins B1, C, D, E, acetylsalicylic acid, beta carotene, folic acid, garlic, ginger root, ginkgo biloba, ginseng, etc.

Multiple ingredients were combined based on their ability to offset five mechanisms involved in ageing. For Rollo, the results go beyond simply prolonging the lifespan, says a McMaster’s release.

“This study obtained a truly remarkable extension of physical function in old mice, far greater than the respectable extension of longevity that we previous documented,” concludes Rollo.

The findings were published in the current issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine.