Aging is normal, but we can slow the process down and prevent diabetes with prebiotics and ozone therapy.
Lillian Hellman, renowed playwright, once exclaimed that she earned every wrinkle unlike modern Hollywood that quests for erasing any remnants of facial human artifacts.
What causes aging and diabetes? Is it preventable? It seems like as we age our risk for Type II diabetes goes up.
The pathogenesis of aging and diabetes is caused by advanced glycation endproducts or AGEs. AGEs are the product of a Maillard reaction which consists of a complex network of non-enzymatic reactions involving the carbonyl groups of reducing sugars which react with the amino groups of proteins. You know the Maillard reaction as carmelized food - potatoes, onions, animal skin - that deep browned caramel color that we love to savor when it comes out of the oven.
We do make AGEs as a normal product of metabolism, but the process becomes accelerated when blood glucose is poorly controlled. AGEs become excessive in the presence of oxidative stress and then we slip into maladaptive responses which leads to severe pathophysiological consequences. AGEs can change the structure and function of proteins like collagen that firms our skin. We become less elastic and get plenty of wrinkles due to basement cellular membrane thickening.
Inside our bodies AGEs disturb our mitochondrial proteins and suppress our respiratory chain enzymes so we produce free radicals. One thing leads to another and we get pro-inflammatory chemicals that cause the formation of blood clots, both Type I and Type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease and vascular inflammation. Reactive oxygen species or free radicals activates an enzyme pathway that drives inflammation.
AGEs are created with food processing so our modern diet is riddled with AGEs. AGEs are not benign. They stimulate chronic low-grade inflammation, promote oxidative stress and serve as the foundation for insulin resistance.
If we modulate the intestinal microbiome can we prevent or slow aging and the development of Type II diabetes?
Researchers tried to answer that question with a double-blind placebo-controlled randomized crossover trial during 12 weeks of consuming a prebiotic supplement in adults with pre-diabetes. Would this prebiotic increase insulin sensitivity and reduce chronic low-grade inflammation in adults with pre-diabetes?
Some participants got 10 grams of a prebiotic (inulin/oligofructose) daily or 10 grams of maltodextrin placebo for 12 weeks. Each group had a 2 week washout period and then switched to the crossover supplement for another 12 weeks.
They checked markers of the advanced glycation pathway:
- carboxymethyllysine CML
- methylglyoxal
Let's continue the discussion in the following post. I want you to understand the biochemistry behind aging and diabetes. In the meantime, book your new patient visit so we can start your labs and schedule your I.V. ozone treatment to stop your aging process.
