Known for its stimulating effects, taurine is found in certain food supplements or energy drinks. What if this amino acid extended life expectancy in good health? A possibility to date described in animals. What about this impact on human beings?
Found in the muscles, the retina and the brain, taurine participates in the absorption of fats at the intestinal level and in the maturation of the nervous system. It is used in the composition of certain energy drinks that are highly marketed today. Or in certain food supplements in combination with synthetic magnesium, caffeine and other groups of B vitamins.
According to American researchers at Columbia University, this amino acid has the power to increase healthy life expectancy, thus reducing the risk of chronic diseases. A causal link observed and proven in mice. In details, “ the increase in life expectancy was estimated at 12% compared to animals not exposed to taurine“, summarizes Professor Vijay Yadav, main author of the study. That is to say 3 to 4 months in mice, 7 to 8 years in humans.
Osteoporosis, obesity, immune function
But how to explain it? Taurine is involved in bone consolidation, with a protective role of taurine against osteoporosis and in immune function. It acts on the nervous system and helps prevent obesity. “We figured that if taurine regulated these processes known to decline with age, and that same taurine also declines with age, then maintaining blood levels of taurine must impact health status and life expectancy. of life“, supports Professor Yadav. “In humans, taurine levels at age 60 are a third of the levels recorded in 5-year-olds“.
Going further, the researchers highlighted the fact that “ taurine prevented weight gain in female mice, increased energy expenditure, increased bone mass, improved endurance and muscle strength, reduced depressive symptoms and anxiety states, insulin resistance, and boosted the immune system“. Similar results have been reported in monkeys who were given taurine daily for a period of 6 months. Finally, at the cellular level, in animals in general, taurine reduces the number of zombie cells , those whose number increases with age and whose activity is – as their name suggests – slowed down.
And in humans? According to Professor Yadav, after observing 50 health parameters in 12,000 Europeans aged 60 and over, those with the highest taurine levels were also in better health: very few cases of type 2, obesity, hypertension or inflammation were reported in the latter.
Precautions to take
These observations should not set aside the risks associated with excessive consumption of taurine in patients suffering from epilepsy or thyroid dysfunction. Taurine could also be the cause of calcium metabolism disorders. In the form of capsules or drinks, taurine is also not recommended in the context of high blood pressure or pregnancy.
To note : where to find taurine in its natural state? Breast milk and industrial infant milks contain it, this amino acid being essential for the development of the toddler. Meats, milk and dairy products as well as seaweed and oysters are also good sources. Apart from food, the practice of physical activity increases the level of taurine, in athletes as well as in more sedentary people.