Alpha-ketoglutarate (AKG) has long been a popular supplement for its supposed abilities to enhance athletic performance and increase energy, and potentially extend longevity because of its key role in metabolism.
AKG is a naturally occurring endogenous intermediary metabolite and part of the Krebs cycle, which means that our own bodies create it. The supplement industry also produces a synthetic version that is chemically identical to naturally produced AKG.
A recent study found that AKG supplementation seems to lower biological age.
As humans, we have two different ages—chronological and biological. Chronological age is the number of years a person has been alive, while biological age refers to how old a person seems.
The study took a deep dive into the antiaging benefits of Rejuvant®, a brand name alpha-ketoglutarate supplement, looking at use for an average period of 7 months.
Key Takeaways From This Study:
- AKG has been shown to extend lifespan in various model systems and animal studies.
- Individuals studied showed an average decrease in biological aging of 8 years.
- Supplementation with Rejuvant® is robust to individual differences, as indicated by the fact that a large majority of participants decreased their biological age.
- AKG supplements such as Rejuvant are of particular benefit to biologically and chronologically older individuals.
- Those in the study with the highest biological age as measured by the parameters in the study, relative to their chronological age, benefited most from supplementation with AKG.
You can read the complete study, which was published in the Nov. 2021 issue of Aging, by clicking on the link.
