Life is too short. Whether you’re looking to have more time to watch kids or grandkids grow up, or to extend your position as an elite athlete everyone would like a few extra moments in life.
For the first time researchers were able to show that the epigenetic age can not just be slowed down but be reversed in humans. Scientists at Intervene Immune and Stanford Medical Center provided 1 year of treatment to their subjects resulting in an epigenetic age that was 1.5 years younger than when they started (a “−2.5‐year change compared to no treatment at the end of the study”1).
The original purpose of the study was to “reverse signs of immunosenescence in a population of 51‐ to 65‐year‐old putatively healthy men”1. The trial, named Thymus Regeneration, Immunorestoration, and Insulin Mitigation, or TRIIM, reveals its aims. Their hope was to regenerate the thymus gland which sits between your lungs and is responsible for your T cells which is a central part of your immune system. The thymus gland is largest when you are only about 1 year old and shrinks and becomes replaced by fat as you age especially after puberty. As its size declines, there is an associated decline in your immune system. By the time someone is 75 their thymus is mostly turned to fat leaving little or no function left. By regenerating the thymus they could regenerate their immune system providing greater longevity.
Enter The Drugs
The main thought behind the study was to investigate the possibility of regenerating the thymus using recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH). In the TRIIM trial, rhGH was dosed at ~3 IU for a 75 KG person, 3-4 times per week. Commonly known in the performance enhancing drug realm, higher levels of rhGH has a common side effect of having higher circulating insulin (hyperinsulinemia). To managed this they added in 50 mg of DHEA after 1 week which may have some beneficial glucose management properties2. A week after that they added in 500 mg of metformin which is well used in the diabetes community and periodically used amongst longevity researchers. Vitamin D33 and zinc4 were also used to help prevent cancer and create thymulin which is used in T-cell differentiation and enhances several functions of the various T-cell subsets. The dosages of the various drugs and supplements were personalized to each individual based on their responses in periodic blood tests.
To put the rhGH dosage into perspective, competitive athletes will tend to use higher doses ranging from 3-10+ IU daily. Longevity clinics will tend to prescribe in the range of 1-2 IU daily.
Study Negatives
The largest negative in this study is that there were only 9 men used from age 51 to 65 years old and lacked a control group. It would also be interesting to see the study over a longer period of time. Likely the issue for both of these is a lack of monetary resources. It’s also possible there were some issues with personalizing the protocol used on each man as the dosages would be subjective. It’s also possible the Hawthorne effect could be playing a role. With each person knowing they are being analyzed they could have altered their behavior or eating habits to be better.
Final Thoughts
As a rough guideline, improving your immune system should improve your longevity. What was most interesting about the outcome was that not only did they slow down or stop their epigenetic age, they actually reversed it. This absolutely makes it news worthy and should provoke further research to backup the findings. Looking at different combinations, dosages, or the individual supplements to see if and what was contributing most to the results.
As we know, one study showing results doesn’t mean everyone should be jumping on a similar protocol. It was a small, short, and uncontrolled study that showed a positive outcome but further research needs to be done. I for one will be looking forward to more research in this area.