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23.11.2024

Is the extension of lifespan by alpha-GPC caused by choline?

Alpha-GPC, a form of choline frequently found in supplements for bodybuilders, may extend lifespan. This is suggested by an epidemiological study from South Korea. If alpha-GPC indeed has this effect, a diet with a relatively high amount of choline may also have it.

Study
South Korean pharmacologists based at Chungnam National University analyzed data in the National Health Insurance Service Senior Cohort Dataset. They limited themselves to study participants who had been diagnosed with a form of dementia in 2003-2014 and had subsequently been followed for at least a year.

Results
19 percent of the 11,463 Koreans in the researchers' files had used alpha-GPC. In South Korea, alpha-GPC has been approved as a drug for dementia.

After the researchers had eliminated other factors as best they could, they saw that the chance of death among alpha-GPC users was almost 20 percent smaller than in the other group.

The table below has been simplified. Click on it for a fuller version.

There was a tendency that in the group that used alpha-GPC, cognitive decline was slightly slower in the first years after the diagnosis of dementia. You can see this in the figure above. However, overall, the inhibitory effect of supplementation on dementia was not significant.

Mechanism
The researchers do not speculate about how alpha-GPC may extend lifespan, but do mention that according to another Korean study, supplementation with 1,200 milligrams of alpha-GPC per day increases the concentration of choline in the blood by 7-9 percent. [J Pharm Investig. 2022;52:331-9.]

This increased level of alpha-GPC may be the key to explaining the lifespan extension found by the Koreans, the clueless compilers of this free web magazine suspect.

Epidemiological meta-studies suggest that a diet with a relatively high amount of choline reduces the risk of cancer. In addition, there is evidence that choline helps keep blood vessels healthy.

Good dietary sources of choline are protein-rich animal products, such as milk, meat and - of course - eggs.

Source:
BMC Geriatrics (2024)24:951

More:
Alpha-GPC supplementation boosts strength within six days 05.01.2016
Alpha-GPC gave man (79) uncontrollable libido 22.01.2014
600 milligrams alpha-GPC = more post-training growth hormone 05.01.2012

Archives:
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Longevity

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