https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S104366182400269X
This sort of information continues to feed my belief that picking out one vegetable / fruit (blueberries) or a single polyphenol (curcumin) or a metabolite of a polyphenol (Urolithin A) as the “secret to healthy mitochondria” is the wrong way to go. It’s a good marketing message but not necessary for us. Just eat a variety of fruits and vegetables and maintain a healthy gut.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1568163724002241?via%3Dihub
I’m not so sure….
“Taken together, current evidence does not support the beneficial effects of UA on physical function in healthy individuals.”
Yep. At this point I’m not spending money on an unproven expensive supplement.
Has it been proven in humans that taking rapamycin once a week can significantly extend lifespan?
https://x.com/DrRonaldHoffman/status/1818647810100900192
However, Urolithin A extended the lifespan of worms by 45%, surpassing other compounds such as rapamycin.
Are we worms or are we humans?
We will become both.
It’s a fine bit of marketing for sure. Maybe it’s the real deal. I’ll wait.
I have tried it a bit and intend using more of the UA I bought, however IMO it is part of a portfolio of molecules that assist.
I fully agree on the above quote, but what about fruit+vegetables+selected supplements?
Probably the beneficial effect of very low doses of micronutrients (polyphenols but terpenes and other chemical compounds as well) found in functional foods are synergistic in nature. Why turmeric has been utilized in Ayurvedic medicine even though it has a very low bioavailability (even when administered with piperine)? Ditto for other compounds? Maybe it’s the synergy.
But then, what about adding to the natural compounds some more bioavailable supplements like 3rd generation curcumin products like longvida, curqfen and thumeric. We may build up a 2nd layer of benefits. Warning: the above are speculations.
Re. UA, some functional foods are rich in the precursors: ellagitannins+ellagic acid are metabolized in the intestine to urolithins, so eating plenty of the source foods, like pomegranate, raspberry, strawberry, walnuts, will probably provide nontrivial amounts of UA.
Camu-Camu flour has a whopping 5-6 grams/kg concentration of ellagitannins; 10 grams of flour will provide 500-600 mg of ellagitannins, whereas a typical dosage of ellagic acid is 200 mg/d (which will further metabolize into urolithins, unless the gut flora is not optimal).
Isn’t the whole point of Urolithin supplements that many people do not make UA, and that the microorganisms responsible for its production aren’t clearly known? No reason to assume a “healthy” gut would make it?
You are right, of course the likelihood of ingesting UA is much higher with mitopure, but I’m afraid that the 2022 article by Singh et al. may have been pessimistic with regards to gut flora conversion EA to UA, given that Amazentis, the funder, is the very producer of Mitopure-UA.
We may gamble that we have not a miserable conversion rate. In other populations, conversion if I remember well was not so bad. To tell the truth, I did not go into this rabbit hole of gut flora diversification and health correlated to EA conversion to UA.
My personal gamble will last until UA will be available at a reasonable cost. Right now, it’s barely available here, at high costs, and not even by Mitopure.
So, to get back to the OP, I’ll presently be happy with the first level of benefits (sinergy), with some likelihood that I’m already reaping the 2nd level of benefits, according to my (unknown) gut flora composition, and maybe making sure in the future (when costs will be hopefully lower and research hopefully wider) that my likelihood to reap the 2nd level of benefits approaches 100%.