When it comes to the microbiota, I wonder how much of the general effects from taurine supplementation ic mediated through the microbiota. Conclusion "Taurine acting as a conjugate of BAs influences the signaling of TGR5 and FXR, having serious physiological consequences. Upon deconjugation, it dynamically interacts with microbiota by being metabolized or leading to the production of multiple signaling molecules. Alternatively, it is taken up to fulfill its role in other tissues. The crucial reaction of taurine release relies on microbiota, and the sensitive equilibrium and interaction of factors BAs, taurine, and microbiota contribute to the health and homeostasis of the host."
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" My wife said I had to choose between her or the acarbose, so I reluctantly gave up the latter. 
"
You clearly made the wrong choice 
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“I love it when studies say even when treatment was initiated later in life, a noticeable longevity benefit remained”
I wonder why?
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So I’m celiac. And so I avoid any wheat or gluten and I have absolutely no issues at all with acarbose and gas. If you do eat a lot of wheat products and I think a lot of people do it might be worth reducing it to see if there’s any effect.
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No problem with gas, and no I don’t usually eat wheat unless occasional splurging on a large pizza. But my issue is acarbose is giving me the metalic taste in my mouth and hate it. Btw, just started taking it last couple of weeks. Anybody experiences the same and what is the remedy (short of shelving it) if any?
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That issue of “metallic taste” is something some people experience with drugs… see here:
And one person experienced this with rapamycin here: One Side Effect Not Many Talk About - Metallic Taste in Mouth
It seems pretty rare, but people do report it, with all sorts of drugs.
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That is odd. I have never seen it referenced in any literature I have read so far, but sweetness is mentioned.
“Acarbose, an α-glucosidase inhibitor, is a pseudo-saccharide that has an overall resemblance to a glucose-based oligosaccharide and thus may be viewed as a structural analog. During other studies, we recognized that acarbose can also elicit sweet taste.”
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@desertshores well then it my be your other culprits hahaa, because i started (on your recommendation) to take GABA, L-Sterine, and L-theanine (this i used to take long ago). So between these and Acarbose, one is the culprit 
If you ever take the anti-COVID drug Paxlovid, there is a high chance you will develop the metallic taste. I did. However it stopped with the stopping of the medication.
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Covid is a nonissue for me and will stay that way forever. Actually, any Sars/covid/flu related viruses are all 100% a non-issue for me, they have never been an issue and will never be an issue. NEVER got the cold, flu, Sars nor Covid (in last 17 years that is). I have literally never been sick nor visited a doctor other than a small tooth infection three years ago.
I just wanted to give a big thumbs up 
for this suggestion….as up to this point I was just taking the Acarbose tablet with my meal. It makes a big difference taking it crushed. I know it may be obvious to some people, but I sometimes overlook the ‘obvious’.
I wonder if chewing the acarbose tablet would work better than taking the tablet whole? seems like a hassle to have to crush the tablet and sprinkle it over food 3 times/day. On the other hand, I haven’t chewed a tablet, so I don’t know how it tastes.
Yes - many of us just chew the acarbose tablet when taking it. That works well.
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It’s sweet. 20 characters
Aren’t you supposed to chew the tablet? I thought that was the prescribed protocol.
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As Emily Litella says " You learn somethin new every day. 
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Sure, but mice in the ITP are not eating a “whole food” diet. They claim to give them “mice chow” but that chow are basically industrialized food with lots of carbs in it. Just see how fat are the control mice compared with those on Acarbose.
And yes, metformin did nothing to the mice because the mechanism of action is different. Acarbose blocks the absorption of carbs in the gut. Very different approach. But once you block the absorption, then you get a healthier mice. At the end, all what ITP is doing is finding drugs to protect mice from their terrible food.
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I’d argue that the typical Western diet of ultra processed food does not differ much nutritionally from mice chow.
They are not specifically chewable tablets, and the prescribing instructions don’t say to chew them, but I’m glad they’re essentially tasteless and easy to chew anyway, even if some of the tablet gets stuck in my teeth.
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Acarbose seems amazing but has anyone found an effective way to address the 3000-pound gorilla in the room?
The gas.
Or are we stuck with the gas since the gas is a side effect of feeding the bacteria in the gut?
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