The National Geographic Channel has an excellent 6-episode series running now on "Breakthroughs", on topics like energy, epidemics. The most recent episode was on human longevity. There are a number of researchers working on this issue. They say that they can reduce or ameliorate a number of the major diseases and conditions that impact our lives, like diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimers, and others, if they could only reduce the normal effects of aging. Until recently they couldn't get much support for their studies either from funding or from the FDA, but they recent got approval from the FDA to continue primarily because they have evidence in a study from Europe somewhere that demonstrates that a drug already in common use can extend life. There were about 80 subjects who were diabetics already taking the drug Metformin and who, like many diabetics had other physical problems, including obesity, sleep apnea, heart disease, etc. The study also included about 80 additional subjects, who were similar (I presume in terms of age, gender, race and the like) but who were not diabetic. I don't remember all the details of the study, but I certainly remember the results: the diabetics taking metformin had 17% better longevity than the non-diabetics! Obviously, this is only a preliminary finding, but it's very encouraging that a well studied drug, with few side effects, may be able to impact our lifespans and all the major killers.
I found this especially interesting, since I'm already taking metformin. Has anyone seen anything else about this issue?
I found this especially interesting, since I'm already taking metformin. Has anyone seen anything else about this issue?