The Intervention Testing Program (ITP) is a research initiative funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) to evaluate potential lifespan-extending interventions in mice. It is a program designed to test compounds that might slow aging and improve healthspan.
Lately, the ITP got more and more publicity – it is the best (and perhaps) only program in the whole world that can test the effect of compounds on health span and lifespan in a rigorous way. It is a multisite testing program, uses genetically heterogeneous mice, is blinded and controlled, and is also transparent with everything. Furthermore, after the mice die, their tissues and organs are histologically evaluated, something that is very rare in the field.
Notable successes are SGLT-2 inhibitors (14% lifespan improvement in males only), rapamycin (lifespan improvement depends on the dosage and sex but are on the order of 15-20% – the overall most consistent result), acarbose (22% in males and 5-10% in females), and 17-alpha estradiol (19% in males only). Notable failures were NMN/NAD+, resveratrol, and metformin (the ladder at least when not combined with other interventions).
The OTC supplement astaxanthin has increased male lifespan by 12%, which is a massive result. How does it work? We do not know exactly but it has been shown to modify multiple geroprotective genes including FOXO3 (common in centenarians), Nrf2 (a master regulatory transcription factor regulating the expression of antioxidant proteins), Sirt1 (we still do not know exactly what it does and how important it is in humans), and Klotho (helps with phosphate excretion through regulating FGF23 but seems to be implicated in all sorts of things).
Astaxanthin has shown fairly potent lifespan extension benefits in other species before but none of the experiments were, in my opinion, able to prove it in the way the ITP did.
Astaxanthin is the first widely available supplement that has been shown in the ITP to extend lifespan by more than 10%. Similar to other interventions (e.g., canagliflozin, acarbose, 17-alpha estradiol), it did not extend female lifespan. Why? We do not know.
Of note, astaxanthin is the reason flamingos, salmon, and shrimp are pink.
I personally take 12mg of astaxanthin per day. Given their (undeserved) popularity, I will touch on resveratrol and NAD+/NMN in more detail in a future newsletter.
Weekly observations
I share two Weekly Observations in my newsletter every week, similar to the one above. You can find the full archive here.
Disclaimer
The content available on this website is based on the author’s individual research, opinions, and personal experiences. It is intended solely for informational and entertainment purposes and does not constitute medical advice. The author does not endorse the use of supplements, pharmaceutical drugs, or hormones without the direct oversight of a qualified physician. People should never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something they have read on the internet.