Peanut oil is on the low side of the scale regarding omega-6 content compared to other vegetable oils. From what I understood, taking Rapa with any oil increased the absorption? Or when people talk about taking it with sardines, they do it because of the Omega 3 content?
Alex - Keep in mind that there are other factors that influence HbA1c. For example, if your red blood cells live longer than what is typical, then your HbA1c will be higher. There are also genetic differences among people that can result in higher or lower HbA1c.
Was this the first time that you had your HbA1c tested?
The only way to know for sure if rapamycin had any impact on your HbA1c is to stop taking it for 4 months (red blood cells typically live for 3 months, but maybe yours live longer) and keep everything else the same, and re-test HbA1c.
It’s important to keep everything else the same because if you introduce other variables, you may not be able to tell if it’s rapamycin or other factors.
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Thanks for the clarification, much appreciated!
So if I do another blood panel in let’s a month after my last one. And let’s say Rapa is the culprit of my high HbA1c value (and I don’t take any). Does my HbA1c has reasonable chances to be lower than the 6,0 threshold (which is out of the ‘‘normal’’ range at the lab)?
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For re-testing HbA1c, it’s a minimum of 3 months between tests because red blood cells live about 3 months. If yours live longer, I would suggest wait 4 months.
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FWIW:
I have been taking relatively high doses of rapamycin for ~9 months
and it has had zero effect on my HbA1c levels.
I think you have to look for other causes than rapamycin.
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And the test is done by taking into account only one red blood cell? Or it’s a mean of thousands of cells? in a month from now, theoretically, about a third of the red blood cells from my sample of a week ago would already be dead? So my result would in theory be lower than 6,2? Sorry if we deviate of the initial subject, I’m interested in knowing more on HbA1c.
Are most test done via electrophoresis or chromatography?
I’m not sure exactly how they measure HbA1c, but I guess they use all the red blood cells in your sample?
Yes, theoretically, if you do a test in a month, you’ll see 1/3 of any change in HbA1c (assuming the red blood cells live for 3 months). So why not wait 3 months (or 4 months if your cells live longer) to see the full impact?
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Alex, what form/brand of rapamycin are you taking? Are you taking tablets (e.g. the typical 1mg tablets from Pfizer or the generics) of did you buy powder, as some people have done here?
Very good question regarding what is the specific thing in oil that increases the absorption. That question would be a great new discussion thread in this forum.
Here is a quite good image from Healthline over different oils and their content
I was just thinking that if you take rapamycin which is a way of optimizing longevity than you probably also want to optimize the oil consumption. But one thing to have in mind is that there is still debate about if omega 6 is bad or not. I personally try to keep it low because there are alternatives.
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I crush 1mg Biocon in oil!
I also try to keep my Omega3/omega6 to about 1/3. Thanks for providing the graph. I might switch to canola oil for use with supplements. I also put resveratrol in oil.
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I’ll wait a few months then.
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I also read that athletes may have slightly higher HbA1c because glucose is released into the blood during high intensity exercises to provide fuel. You mentioned that you play tennis and lift weights, so that could be a contributing factor. If you wear a CGM, you may see a rise in blood sugar while exercising.
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Interesting approach. I’ve never heard of anyone doing that before.
On the one hand, we know that rapamycin is more bioavailable with oils/fats.
On the other hand, some tablet formulations have encapsulation technologies to help with bioavailability, and by breaking or crushing the tablets you may be negating that design aspect.
Pfizer has a nanocrystal technology integrated into its Rapamune (rapamycin/sirolimus) tablets.
see: Rapamycin and NanoCrystal Formulations
The other generic manufacturers seem to have some sort to techniques also for increasing bioavailability (no studies I’m aware of have compared effectiveness of these different approaches).
And - there is evidence to suggest that breaking / crushing some types of these pills is problematic.
We have also seen doctors identify problems with the bioavailability of rapamycin powders as provided by compounding pharmacies (who make their own capsules from raw powders):
See: Bioavailability of Rapamycin From Compounding Pharmacy
Anyway - I’m not sure if crushing the pills and dissolving in oil is helpful or not - seems to be data on both sides of the equation. Just wanted to make sure you’re aware.
You may want to do a blood sirolimus test to see if its getting the sirolimus / rapamycin into your blood stream: How to get a Rapamycin (sirolimus) Blood Level Test
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I think the general consensus on metformin is that if you’re younger, not overweight or pre-diabetic, and you’re exercising on a regular basis - the risks and negatives probably outweigh the benefits. Thats my reading of the current literature and scientific (from longevity scientists) opinions. Others (such as Nir Barzelai) may have different opinions.
The reason for Acarbose are all listed here: Acarbose - Another Top Anti-Aging Drug
Some data and previous discussions on this:
Here: Rapamycin + Metformin
Here: MK on Peter Attia - Comparing "Anti-Aging" Drugs, NAD Precursors, Metformin and Rapamycin
Here: What is the maximum safe daily dose of metformin?
Here: Metformin, rapamycin and mtorc2?
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I think acarbose can be one tool in the toolbox for people to choose from. However, it seems to me that taking acarbose is the same as eating less carbs as acarbose works by preventing the digestion and absorption of carbs. So why not just eat less carbs?
I suppose there could be one difference from taking acarbose - the undigested carbs go to the colon to feed the bacteria, hence the bloating and gas as side effects. So one could say that taking acarbose is like eating less carbs and eating more fibers.
For the pre-diabetic, I prefer diet, exercise, and especially weight loss to any medication intervention . This article sums it up
Are you sure you were taking a legitimate source of NMN? A lot of the brands being sold on Amazon have absolutely NO NMN in them whatsoever. There’s a video by Dr. Brad about the NMN brands that have absolutely no NMN in them.
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What are the downsides to using metformin to treat prediabetes? I take 500 mg of metformin every other day. I used to take 2g/day for about 3-4 years, but unintentionally gave myself hypoglycemia. I found out when I went to the hospital thinking I was having a heart attack… Nope, just too much metformin.
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Regarding canola oil I would say that try to skip that also. Usually it’s quite processed oil and has little bit trans fats in it.
I strive try to have high quality and organic oils/fats at home. These are the ones I have
For cooking (heating)
- Coconut oil and if possible extra virgin
- Real butter
For other than cooking for example to sallads
- Extra virgin olive oil
Supplement oils
- Fish oil (if possible mercury tested)
- Algae oil
- Flaxseed oil (not great omega 3 supplement)
So if you want to take oil with your rapamycin I would take it with cocunut oil, extra virgin olive oil, fish oil, algee oil or flaxseed oil instead of canola oil. Olive oil has also nice associations to mediterranean blue zones. Both olive oil and coconut oil have also been found to have anti-inflammatory effects which is also good aligned with what biological processes you want to trigger when you take rapamycin.
I know some use also avocado oil (for both cooking and none cooking) but I see this as a expensive and luxury oil that is not needed really. As I see it there are better things to invest in 
There also exists palm oil but this oil I would say is good to avoid because it’s usually linked to detrimental impact on the environment. There exists other alternatives to palm oil so this is a easy choice to skip the usage of this oil I would say.
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