THIS PILL PROMISES TO EXTEND LIFE

The No. 1 risk factor for all the big diseases -- cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s -- is aging.

But instead of treating the diseases, could a drug treat the aging process itself? Metformin of course is not a new drug. It was approved in England in 1957 and made available to type II diabetics around the world shortly thereafter. It took the FDA a staggering 37 years to approve it in the United States.

”Metformin enhances the activity of an enzyme found within our cells called adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase—or AMPK for short. AMPK activation helps mimic the beneficial effects of calorie restriction, the best documented method of slowing and reversing biomarkers of human aging.

The generally accepted mechanism of metformin's effect is stimulation of adenosine monophosphate (AMP)-activated protein kinase (AMPK). AMPK is directly activated by an increase in AMP:ATP ratio in metabolic stress conditions including hypoxia and glucose deprivation. Lately, many novel pathways, besides AMPK induction, have been revealed, which can explain some of metformin's beneficial effects. It may help to identify new targets for treatment of diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Moreover, metformin is now attracting the attention of researchers in fields other than diabetes, as it has been shown to have anti-cancer, immunoregulatory and anti-aging effect

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