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2007-8-31 17:34:34 |
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Lipoic acid may fight the effects of aging, according to research presented at the “Diet and Optimum Health? conference at the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University yesterday. Lipoic acid, which can be found in leafy green vegetables and as a dietary supplement, may increase the amount of a restorative chemical in the body, according to LPI researchers. “In particular, it tends to restore levels of glutathione, a protective antioxidant and detoxification compound, to those of a young animal [in animal testing],? said Tory Hagen, Oregon State associate professor and LPI researcher. Lipoic acid can also increase communication between cells and decrease mitochondrial decay, while enhancing other genes, according to researchers. According to The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine at the National Institutes of Health, the side effects of lipoic acid can be a skin rash, stomach upset, headaches, drug interactions, and a lowering of minerals in the body. Cancer patients and diabetics should also be careful in taking lipoic acid, as it may make cancer drugs less potent and cause blood sugar to be too low, according to the NCCAM. The LPI researchers hope that lipoic acid is the answer to what Hagen calls “an aging epidemic? triggered by modern health care and the baby boom generation, which faces the risk of diabetes and other diseases. According to Hagen, 50 percent of senior citizens have high blood pressure, while the same number have malnutrition. Furthermore, 20.9 percent of people age 60 and over have diabetes according to the American Diabetes Association. However, Hagen and other LPI researchers hope that lipoic acid will fight these age-related illnesses in the future, since they have seen major benefits to mice in lab tests. “They aren’t just living longer, they are living better—and that’s the goal we’re after,? said Hagen. |
