It feels like this topic came to me from the depths of the internet, like it crawled out from some group of forums. But here we are, because so many people have asked me to cover this incredibly strange drug that I've never heard of until now. Seriously, it might be the

oddest drug that I've ever encountered, and I'm 88. So let's get into the science of anti-aging and methylene blue. If you're thinking it sounds like something synthetic, something that's not found in nature, you'd be absolutely

right, because it was actually first used as a dye for textiles back in 1876. And now here we are, giving it to people for a variety of ailments. What a weird evolution! Unfortunately, although it has been used in a few human trials, there isn't much

data on it still. There is a scientific review that aims to offer some answers in relation to its anti-aging effects. I'll be showing you how this weird drug works within your mitochondria, as well as touching on a few areas these scientists believe it shows some promise.

One of the reasons that we age is due to an overabundance of free radicals produced by ourselves. Which means that your cells generate molecules that are chemically unstable, chemically speaking. Because these molecules are unstable due to their chemical structure, when they interact with other molecules within

your cell, they damage them. Obviously, if you continuously damage the molecules that serve functions within your cells, your cells as a whole will suffer. For example, if a free radical were to damage the cell membrane, the cell membrane may experience a change in its properties, like a stiffening of the

membrane or an inability to exchange molecules in and out of the cell as readily, that's just one of many examples. The point is, free radicals cause damage within the cells if they are over abundant. Where do they come from though? Well, they actually come from primarily

your mitochondria, specifically. They come in the form known as reactive oxygen species, or ROS. This is where methylene blue seems to have an incredibly unique effect, but before we get to that, I'd like to dig in a bit and get into the sub-mitochondrial, and since you're

already in the cell with me, we might as well just miniaturize ourselves a bit further and dive into our mitochondria. Your mitochondria generate ROS when they go about their normal function of producing cellular energy. Unlike your cell, your mitochondria have two

membranes, an outer membrane and an inner membrane. We're going to ignore the outer membrane and focus on the inner membrane and the innermost section of the mitochondrion called the matrix. Embedded in the inner membrane are a series of proteins that work together to generate

cellular energy, ATP. Unfortunately, mitochondria are not perfectly efficient and can produce ROS as a byproduct. So how, you might ask? No, seriously, this is where you would ask how, Nick. Well, I'm glad you asked. Completely prompted by my ego, ROS or Ros is produced by a process

called the electron slippage, or at least that's what my professor called it back in my Master's course in bioenergetics. Essentially, these proteins that work together to generate ATP that I mentioned earlier are able to generate cellular energy, ATP, by exchanging

electrons these are subatomic particles I'm not going to get into physics and chemistry beyond that point because I may cross into a realm that I'm less familiar with but these electrons are exchanged between the proteins which ultimately allows the final protein

called ATP synthase to spit out cellular energy but as I mentioned mitochondria aren't perfectly efficient so they sometimes lose electrons as in they slip off the electron protein chain normally called the electron transport chain these free electrons interact with different atoms and molecules like oxygen and generate

say it with me cheeseburgers no you're right it's reactive oxygen species these ROS then damage other molecules in the cell okay so the constant insult over years and decades to your cells causes significant damage to the integrity of our cells and is called

intrinsic aging now where does methylene blue come in methylene blue does two things one is common to other molecules and another is well just I've alluded to it before weird but cool methylene blue is an antioxidant so it can take up these electrons slipping off

the electron transport chain and neutralize them so that they don't inevitably interact with other molecules and cause damage to the cell but the thing is this isn't unique to methylene blue I mean you could be consuming any number of other molecules

like curcumin vitamin C vitamin E and many others they all have that antioxidant effect so what's so special about methylene blue this is the part that had me chuckling and sitting back in my seat because as far as I'm aware it's unique it not only

takes up electrons that are slipping off the ETC, that's the electron transport chain that we've been talking about, but it can also take up electrons from the precursor molecules that deliver electrons to the ETC. Additionally, it can deliver electrons to the main protein

that facilitates the energy production. Why is that so cool? Because it effectively bypasses the other proteins, reducing the electron burden on those proteins while still not wasting electrons so that they can be used to generate ATP. This means it reduces ROS

production by mitochondria but also increases its efficiency on the back end by maintaining energy production. That's such a cool mechanism. So mechanisms aside, where has methylene blue been thought to help in health and aging? Another kicker of methylene blue, you know that's kind of an odd

expression too, that's the kicker anyway. The kicker is that methylene blue is oddly lipophilic, meaning that it can pass through fat barriers very well. Being able to pass through fat barriers efficiently means that it can cross the blood-brain barrier, and it's been tested

to see if it can actually help against neurological diseases like dementia. It has been shown to increase fat oxidation in the brain, which is a marker of healthier mitochondria as well. Beyond those effects, skin aging is also impeded by methylene blue. Not only that, some

research shows that it has better results from methylene blue compared to vitamin C and vitamin A, which are extremely common molecules used in skin serums, and it seems to protect against DNA damage by acting as a buffer between DNA kept in the genes of our cells and

the UV radiation from the Sun ultimately though I simply don't think there's enough research on methylene blue. Clearly it's wildly interesting, but we don't have enough clinical data to be certain of anything yet. And I expect to investigate it in far more depth once

that research is done. But as it stands, I'm looking forward to the future of methylene blue, but let's not jump to conclusions on it just yet. If you're interested in other anti-aging molecules and the like, I simply can't recommend this video enough and I really think

you'll find it as fascinating as I do. Speak to you there. [Music] Foreign. Foreign.

Methylene Blue: A Revolutionary Anti-Aging Molecule? [Study 202]

Methylene Blue: A Revolutionary Anti-Aging Molecule? [Study 202]

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