Today’s video is sponsored by Elysium Health, which produces Basis, a dietary supplement
that’s clinically proven to increase NAD+, a natural occurring substance in our bodies
that declines as we age.
This video is made in collaboration with REAL LIFE LORE, a YouTube channel that asks head-scratching
questions about things you didn’t even know you NEEDED to know -- Pop-over to RLL after
this vid if you looking for an interesting perspective on today’s topic.
Can cosmetics reverse age?
Humanity has been trying to answer that for… ohh, EVER.
One of the oldest medical texts, a papyrus dating all the way back to 2500 BC, contained
“A Recipe for Transforming An Old Man Into A Youth”.
It was a face cream made of fruit and mud --- huh -- not too different from some of
today’s cosmetic products.
Alchemists, medieval predecessors to modern day chemists, attempted to create the “Elixir
of Life”, a mysterious substance that was fabled to keep you young forever.
In the 1800’s, the father of endocrinology, scientist Charles Brown-Sequard, even got
into the act by injecting himself with a mash of dog and guinea pig testicles as soon as
he felt old age looming over him.
Shocker!
None of these things made anyone any younger.
Anyone could claim anything.
Consumers were disgruntled.
Mass chaos ensued.
That was, until 1938, when a law descended from the mountaintops of D.C. that said, "Henceforth,
cosmetics shall only beautify, cleanse and promote attractiveness”.
Well, in reality, it was actually a little more toned down that.
According to this definition, cosmetics could only hide a wrinkle, not actually remove it.
Oh, did you want more than that?
Well now you’re talking about a drug, and that requires proof of safety and effectiveness
before it reaches store shelves.
Ok.
But wait…. if I stand in front of the wall of cosmetics in the beauty aisle, I see a
different story.
Marketing claims like “regenerates cells”, “repairs wrinkles”, and “heals skin”
seem to suggest that reversing age is possible, even if only on a minute scale.
So cosmetics can reverse aging!?!
What if I told you there might be a grey area between cosmetics and drugs?
Welcome to the world of cosmeceuticals, a marketing term coined in the 80’s by a notable
dermatologist who pointed out some cosmetics could have a real effect on the structure
or the function of the skin -- or at least used ingredients that could.
Heard of retinol or vitamin C anyone?
However, since cosmeceuticals aren’t a category recognized by the FDA, these cosmetics with
their supposed drug-like capabilities don’t undergo the same scrutiny as pharmaceuticals.
No one has to state the percentages of the active ingredients or even provide clinical
proof that they’re actually having an effect.
That sounds kinda sketchy.
Are the ingredients in the cosmetic stable?
Can they penetrate the skin barrier?
Who knows.
They may work and they may not.
We’ll never know unless someone starts doing studies that allow us to figure what benefits
are real and which products deliver them.
The supplements market has the same problem.
A pair of studies done only a few years ago showed that many supplements didn’t even
contain the ingredients they claimed to use.
Yeah, your supplement pill might as well be packed with sawdust.
That’s a problem that Elysium, maker of the supplement Basis, is trying to tackle.
Despite the lack of regulation requiring them to do so, Elysium HAS done human trials with
Basis.
The trials show that when users take the recommended dose of the supplement, there is a 40% increase
in the amount of NAD+ otherwise known as Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide.
NAD+ works with sirtuins, a family of proteins connected to longevity in animals.
But sirtuins don’t work alone.
They only function when NAD+ is present.
NAD+ functions as a helper molecule, aiding sirtuins in DNA maintenance and mitochondrial
function.
Think of sirtuins as a car, getting you from place to place.
NAD+ is like the gas, without it, driving anywhere would be impossible.
Without NAD+ sirtuins can’t function.
As we age our NAD+ levels go down and scientist think the decrease may cause our cells to
work less efficiently over time.
In theory, increasing NAD+ may support how we age and improve our healthspan, the number
of years we live in optimal health.
Elysium’s co-founder, Dr. Guarente, the director of the Glenn Lab for the Biology
of Aging at MIT says - “We’re not trying to extend lifespan; we want to improve healthspan.”
So we know NAD+ is having an effect on the body, and because Elysium released Basis as
a supplement, we get to try it for ourselves now, instead of waiting decades.
After all, those of us concerned about aging aren’t getting any younger.
And now let’s see what my friend Joseph, from Real Life Lore has to say about the topic!
Click here to see his latest video and here to subscribe to his channel.