Metformin, the big new "anti-aging" drug, explained 159,637 views Feb 1, 2022

Metformin, the big new "anti-aging" drug, explained 159,637 viewsFeb 1, 2022 8.9K DISLIKE SHARE DOWNLOAD SAVE Cleo Abram 161K subscribers So, uh... does it work? Subscribe to see the next episode: https://www.youtube.com/cleoabram?sub... Metformin is an old, cheap drug used to help control blood sugar in people with diabetes. Now, it’s back in the news because some people - particularly wealthy people - are using it for possible anti-aging effects. That’s right. One of the most popular ways rich people are trying to live longer isn’t some million dollar cryo-something experiment, but a pill that costs pennies that's already on the market. So, the big question is: Does it work? To find out, I interviewed the lead researcher on the biggest study of metformin for anti-aging, Dr. Nir Barzilai. The answer he gives me? Well, it’s complicated. Note: I do not take metformin, nor am I advocating anyone else should. Please don't get medical advice from a youtube video! The purpose of this video is to explain the research that exists, explore what it tells us about aging in general, and discuss the effort Dr. Barzilai is leading to learn more. 00:00 What is metformin? 00:53 What is aging? 01:46 Can we slow aging? 02:27 Does metformin work for anti aging? 03:40 How does metformin work? 04:37 What is the TAME Trial? 05:46 Should I take metformin? 07:31 Why slow aging? Be featured in an episode - upload questions for me to answer! https://www.dropbox.com/request/Edocs... I tell different stories in different places: You can find me on TikTok here for short, fun explainers: https://www.tiktok.com/@cleoabram You can find me on Instagram here for more personal stories: https://www.instagram.com/cleoabram You can find me on Twitter here for thoughts and curated news: https://twitter.com/cleoabram Bio: Cleo Abram is an Emmy-nominated video producer and journalist. Cleo produces detailed explainer stories about technology and economics. She wrote the Coding and Diamonds episodes of Vox’s Netflix show, Explained, was the host and a senior producer of Vox’s first ever daily show, Answered, as well as a host and producer of Vox’s YouTube Originals show, Glad You Asked. She now makes her own independent show, Huge If True. Each episode takes on one big technology innovation or idea, explains what it is, and helps people imagine the ways it could improve the world we live in by answering one simple question: If this works, what could go right? Sources and additional reading: - TAME Trial FAQ https://www.afar.org/tame-trial - Dr. Nir Barzilai, Institute for Aging Research at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Faculty Profile https://einsteinmed.edu/faculty/484/n... - “A beginner's guide to longevity research,” Laura Deming https://www.ldeming.com/longevityfaq - “Aging and the border between health and disease,” European Respiratory Journal https://erj.ersjournals.com/content/4... - “Can people with type 2 diabetes live longer than those without? A comparison of mortality in people initiated with metformin or sulphonylurea monotherapy and matched, non-diabetic control,” Diabetes, Obesity, and Metabolism https://dom-pubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.... - “A Critical Review of the Evidence That Metformin Is a Putative Anti-Aging Drug That Enhances Healthspan and Extends Lifespan,” Frontiers in Endocrinology https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/... - “Metformin, a historical overview,” European Association for the Study of Diabetes https://link.springer.com/article/10.... - “Metformin improves healthspan and lifespan in mice,” Nature Communications https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomm... - “Metformin Retards Aging in C. elegans by Altering Microbial Folate and Methionine Metabolism,” Cell https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0... - “Cancer,” Our World In Data https://ourworldindata.org/cancer - “Forget the Blood of Teens. This Pill Promises to Extend Life for a Nickel a Pop.” Wired https://www.wired.com/story/this-pill... - “Silicon Valley’s Quest to Live Forever,” The New Yorker https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/20... Vox: https://www.vox.com/authors/cleo-abram IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm10108242/ Gear I use: Camera: Sony A7SIII Lens: Sony 16–35 mm F2.8 GM Audio: Sennheiser SK AVX and Zoom H4N Pro Music: Musicbed Follow along for more episodes of Huge If True: https://www.youtube.com/cleoabram?sub... Chapters What is metformin? 0:00 What is aging? 0:53 Can we slow aging? 1:46 Does metformin work for anti aging? 2:27 How does metformin work? 3:40 What is the TAME Trial? 4:37 685 Comments rongmaw lin Add a comment... Juan Fernando Galindo Juan Fernando Galindo 3 months ago At first, I was scared of the way this video would talk about taking a drug without prescription. I found you did it very responsibly. Thanks you. 438 Cleo Abram Saksham Joshi Saksham Joshi 3 months ago I'm so looking forward to see this channel become HUGE one day. Fine job Cleo. Keep up the good work👍 300 Cleo Abram Medlife Crisis Medlife Crisis 3 months ago Great job explaining a complex topic fairly and succinctly. Btw one of the experts in your clips there, Andrew Steele, is a friend of mine. I’ll let him know he makes a cameo! 215 Titus Titus 3 months ago An alternative explanation for the diabetes study is that people with mild diabetes (non insulin dependent) often only take metformin but have regular doctor appointments, while the general population does not have the same level of medical care. What this study can mean is that regular doctors visits increase health and longevity, which sounds like a a very reasonable conclusion. 255 v1d300 v1d300 3 months ago (edited) I like this format. One topic, not too deep, not too shallow, just enough to educate us enough for more research if interested. Great going Cleo! Good luck and keep growing! 140 Ryan M Ryan M 3 months ago When I watched the intro video for this series, I thought that seeing technology address meaningful problems at massive scale would make me more hopeful. The idea that we could be making improvements to healthspan certainly qualifies. However, what reached me is when Cleo talked about wanting more time with her loved ones. I feel that so deeply, having lost my Dad recently. It made me think about what a “massive scale” really is. Even helping a small group of people get more meaningful time with one another is huge, and advances in medicine and health and wellness that are already doing that all the time. We have so much to be hopeful for, but also so much to be grateful for. I would not have gotten to spend as much time as I did with my Dad if not for advances in medicine, even if I so badly want more. Each of those moments with him are huge and true. It’s wonderful to be hopeful for what technology might give us someday, but also to be grateful for what it has already given us today. The time I spent with this topic this morning made me a little more of both. 71 Cleo Abram Madhav Krishna Madhav Krishna 3 months ago So if Metformin is hypothesized to counter ageing by reducing the amount of blood sugar flowing in our cardiovascular system, would switching to restrictive sugar diet achieve similar effect? 39 HundredMillionViews HundredMillionViews 3 months ago (edited) Cleo, I'm a diabetes researcher building an artificial pancreas for controlling people's blood sugar in intensive care units. Blood sugar is actually enormously important for mortality in critically ill patients, and people with diabetes who are just under general hospital care. You can reduce mortality by 30% across the board by controlling blood sugar well (and 300% in COVID patients), making well controlled blood sugar in hospitals one of the most widely applicable technologies since the invention of penicillin, or the polio vaccine! Let me know if you want to talk about the wide world of glucose control some time, would be happy to share! 79 EnricoUniverse EnricoUniverse 3 months ago This series is absolute perfect. I can't overstate how nice it is to hear some good news in a market that's so oversaturated with the terrible and the horrible. I have been following you for a while, and this series is such a great and exciting step in your content and career, even though I do miss your old videos, and will miss you on Vox. Thanks for making this series Cleo. 37 Shanay Bhem Shanay Bhem 3 months ago This is a masterclass for anyone that wants an example of brilliantly presented, informative, and responsible journalism. Beautifully edited, and just plainly honest and heartfelt. 12/10 24 Cleo Abram TracePhoto TracePhoto 3 months ago 1. I really love reporting like this. Taking existing conclusions accepted by the public and saying “wait, let’s really look at this”. Allowing the search for truth to cut though. Awesome. 2. The Doc reminds me of Paul Simon. Just saying. 3. If it turns out that Metformin actually works in some appreciable way, you can bet the drug companies will find a way to produce it (or a more ‘stylish’ version) for far more $$$$ per pill than it goes for now. 4. By stock in Metformin. 59 Science Sam Science Sam 3 months ago (edited) Thanks for this story. Love your work and the way you storytell — you’re awesome. Metformin has been studied by the stem cell community for a while and while it’s promising, it also seems to have some potential effects on stem cells (our collaborators saw this in the brain in mice and it’s in trials too). So I’d add that uncertainty to the potential risk (and benefit!) calculation. I also worry how the affordability and availability might change if there’s more demand (particularly among wealthy Americans) and hope it remains accessible for those with diabetes. 17 Gurtej Singh Gurtej Singh 3 months ago This is slowly becoming my favourite channel on YouTube, it's well researched, and really has an optimistic and personal side to it that i feel is really lacking in general these days. Looking forward to seeing more of this for sure! 7 Max Slater Max Slater 3 months ago (edited) Very interesting, loved the video! The biggest thought I had through this was simply - if people stop dying because they can live longer but keep reproducing at what point does the world become overpopulated and what issues does that cause? 8 Herman T3 Herman T3 3 months ago Oh my GODDD!! Your journalism - ugh it’s so good!! Such a responsible take on a potentially life-changing technology. No hype, no clickbait, no jumping to conclusions - just strong reminders of how complex this world is and how difficult it is to acquire information and weigh the risks. This was a LOVELY breath of fresh air journalism. Oh my gosh thank you so much. 😊 12 Nicole Michelle Menkart Nicole Michelle Menkart 3 months ago I loved this! I mainly enjoyed seeing you weigh the pros and cons of the drug and illuminate the nuance in a topic such as this. This was wonderfully explained and pulled on my heart strings! N K N K 3 months ago (edited) I'm 23(about to turn 24 soon), I've been taking metformin for maybe over 5 years. I don't have diabetes, I was prescribed it because I was overweight, didn't have period and have insulin resistance. I am very familiar with how metformin affects my body. I'm willing to become a subject of the study but I live in Eastern Europe. I'm very interested in this cuz I'm trying to get off the pill cuz I heard it leads to cancer, and i also lost a lot of weight and have regular period now. 8 DiN DiN 3 months ago I happened to read about Metformin being used as an anti-aging drug some time ago and I've always wanted to learn more. This is a great video 👍 13 Fa Mulan Fa Mulan 3 months ago (edited) Hi Cleo, loving the video style, love hearing about new things the way you describe them! However as a doctor I do want to add a comment that Metformin is usually the first line of treatment for patients with Diabetes Type 2 who are eligible for medical intervention along with Lifestyle Modification. (Unless contraindicated for whatever reason) When it doesn't work we change the medication if resistant by adding to Metformin or just different medications (ofcourse this is quite simplified) So we're comparing earlier diagnosed patients with more serious/resistant patients .. which is not really a surprise to see that the latter have higher mortality. But yes the video is responsibly made and it gives me further incentive to do my own research! Good job :) 1 Sebastian Nicholson Sebastian Nicholson 3 months ago The book Lifespan by David Sinclair is a really good read that talks about metformin and other drugs and non-drug activities that are at least correlated with being healthy for longer and some of which they have isolated the cellular effects that are actually causing the improvements. 8 SIMRAN GARG SIMRAN GARG 3 months ago Love your research and the delivery girl!! Keep going!! I love the offbeat topics you pick. Would love to see more tech debunks from you. 1 Alex Fall Alex Fall 3 months ago (edited) One of the strengths of this channel so far appears to be general video production value and finding interesting topics. One of the clear weaknesses is the lack of due-dilig