A Supplement Survival Guide for Men Over 40

[T_Nation]

by Chris Shugart

Top 5 Health Defenders

We know exactly what kills most middle-aged men. And here are the five supplements that fight off those killers.

Most men take the same supplement voyage. As young men, we buy whatever promises to make us bigger or get us jacked out of our minds before workouts. Somewhere in our thirties, we realize that we're mortal and should probably start paying attention to health... but not yet.

Then, during our forties, one of our middle-aged peers dies. And that's when the voyage takes a new direction. We still want muscle, but we also want to prevent potential health problems – the same ones killing our old high-school pals.

Identifying the Killers

Statistically, middle-aged men are most likely to die from:

1. Heart Disease
2. Cancer
3. Stroke
4. Diabetes
5. Respiratory Diseases (Influenza and Pneumonia)

There are other things, of course, like accidents. So, stop driving like an asshat and get someone to steady that ladder. Suicide makes the list, too, so mental health plays a role.

Most of us are already fighting off these common killers: we don't smoke, we're not obese, and we exercise. Unfortunately, not-fat non-smokers die from these things, too. So, let's shore up our defenses.

A Supplement List for Longevity

1. Fish Oil

Heart disease tops the list of killers, and all the things involved (plaque, left ventricle thickening, stiff blood vessels, hypertension, etc.) are caused or exacerbated by excess inflammation. Fish oil quenches that fire. Those same anti-inflammatory properties may also help prevent ischemic strokes – when a clot blocks blood flow to the brain.

Fish oil may also help lower the risk of cancer development. Studies are mixed (and this may have something to do with the dosages used) but most studies lean toward saying that omega-3 fatty acids could inhibit tumor formation/growth and modulate immune function.

For mental health, depression and anxiety are linked to an omega-3 deficiency hampering the production and function of neurotransmitters. While depression is a many-headed dragon, fish oil (along with magnesium) may help sharpen our swords against it.

Now, you won't reap these benefits and potential benefits by taking one daily capsule of fish oil you bought at Walmart. It takes a strong dose, with most successful studies using 2000 mg or more. Biotest's Flameout (Buy at Amazon) contains 4200 mg of fish oil per 3-softgel dose.

2. Curcumin

Over 2000 studies show that this polyphenol is a potent warrior against cancers of the prostate, liver, colon, lung, pancreas, and more. According to studies, curcumin modulates tumor growth through regulation of multiple cell signaling pathways.

Because curcumin is an anti-inflammatory, it benefits nearly every organ system. It can...

• Enhance cardiovascular health
• Support healthy cholesterol
• Reduce plaque levels in arteries
• Reduce risk of diabetes
• Help the body to better handle stress

While studies showed that curcumin worked, researchers had a hard time getting enough of it into the body. Its bioavailability was poor. Neuroscientists at UCLA solved this problem by inventing micellar curcumin (Buy at Amazon), which is 95% more bioavailable than standard curcumin with piperine. If you add curcumin to your longevity arsenal, make sure it's the micellar form.

3. C3G

Excess body fat is a multi-talented assassin. It's linked to at least 13 forms of cancer, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and type-2 diabetes. C3G (cyanidin 3-glucoside) keep the fat off several ways, plus it has other longevity-boosting benefits.

C3G shrinks fat cells and limits fat storage while increasing and enhancing calorie-burning brown adipose tissue. It enhances glucose uptake in muscle instead of being stored as fat. C3G is essentially a nutrient-partitioning agent. It even mimics the life-extension effects seen in calorie-restricted diets.

C3G also appears to increase the production of AMPK, much like the drug metformin but without the side effects. AMPK, the "metabolic master switch," regulates cell growth and replication. Once AMPK is activated, cancer cells essentially starve themselves.

Use a C3G product with an amped-up delivery system to make sure it gets in you, like Indigo-3G (Buy at Amazon).

4. Beta-1,3-glucan

Imagine your pal Jeff was going to be attacked by a guy who wanted to kill him. If Jeff's muscles were weak and he gassed out easily, he'd be in trouble. But what if Jeff was trained? What if he'd been challenging his body and making it adapt by getting stronger and faster? He'd have a much better chance of fending off his attacker.

In this analogy, Jeff is your immune system. And your immune system can be trained with beta-1,3-glucan. With a strong immune system, you can fight off a lot of the bad guys trying to get you, including respiratory diseases.

The science behind beta-1,3-glucan is fascinating and a little complex, but you can get all the details here. The best form of beta-1,3-glucan is derived from euglena gracilis, an algae. (Avoid the kinds made from yeast.) Biotest uses this form of algal beta glucan in its Beta Glucan Immune-Boosting Fiber (Buy at Amazon) formula.

5. Nattokinase

Natto is a slimy, fermented Japanese food, and people who eat it daily are less prone to developing heart disease. Now we know why: it contains an enzyme called nattokinase. Isolate this enzyme and stuff enough of it into a capsule and you get a very promising life-extension supplement.

In short, nattokinase appears to be clot-busting, blood pressure lowering, blood-thinning, and plaque dissolving. In other words, it fights off several things that are trying to make your heart stop pumping. (Details here.)

Heart disease runs in my family, so as extra insurance, I take 4000 FU per day of nattokinase (Buy at Amazon).

Other Supps to Consider

• Niacin: Lipoprotein (a) is a type of diet and exercise-resistant cholesterol that causes heart attacks in otherwise healthy men. Niacin appears to keep it under control. More info here.
• Vitamin K: The vascular calcification that causes some coronary heart disease (atherosclerosis) might be thwarted by taking supplemental vitamin K. Learn more.
• CoQ10: Coenzyme Q10 (Buy at Amazon) regulates nitric oxide production, basically "blowing open" blood vessels, enabling more oxygen-rich blood to flow to cells. It fortifies cardiac muscle cells and reduces inflammation and oxidative stress in the cardiovascular system.

T Nation earns from qualifying purchases as an Amazon Associate. Read more about our policy.

[Mandors]

Great article. I’ve been taking nattokinase for while now based on an earlier article by either you or TC. I’ve been doing the nattokinase/serrapeptase combination, and I wonder what you think of that.

[T3hPwnisher]

P-Well definitely deserves a place among this list. That was one of those BioTest supplements I took and immediately starting seeing benefits of. Primarily not needed to get up in the middle of the night to pee, which was better for my sleep, which improved recovery in general.

Vitamin K had me in a weird spot. Apparently it’s very abundant in red meat and eggs (comically enough, the very things they tell us are going to give us heart attacks…) and it’s fat soluable. Any thoughts on dosage protocols for a meat and egg forward athlete, like someone following the Vince Gironda “Maximum Definition Diet”?

[Chris_Shugart]

@T3hPwnisher

Any thoughts on dosage protocols for a meat and egg forward athlete,

I take a K2 supplement every other day just to be sure. You may be covered with meat and eggs, however. Here’s a snippet from an article (you’ve probably read this) that convinced me to add it in:

"There’s no RDA for vitamin K; there isn’t enough research to establish one. We do, however, have an “adequate intake” (AI) for the vitamin. For men over the age of 19, the AI is 120 mcg. day.

Unfortunately, few foods are fortified with vitamin K. You can get vitamin K1 by eating certain green vegetables and plant oils: spinach, broccoli, iceberg lettuce, soybean, and canola oil. These would theoretically thwart calcification of the arteries.

Foods that contain vitamin K2, however, are not in the “healthy” categories like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes. Instead, it’s found in egg yolks, some cheeses, some cultured dairy products, and meat – foods that many doctors tell men to restrict. These are the types of foods that would theoretically thwart BPH.

However, obtaining vitamin K through food presents a problem: the bioavailability of the different forms of vitamin K through food is limited. For instance, the absorption rate of vitamin K1 in its free form is about 80%, but its absorption rate through food appears to be a lot less than that (K1 clings to the chloroplasts in plants).

For example, the human body only absorbs about 4% of the K1 in spinach. Natural sources of K2 appear to fare better in the digestive tract, but specific absorption rate data is scarce.

That leaves supplementation. Super K (Buy at Amazon) from Life Extension is a solid choice.

The daily dosage of Super K is one gel cap. Each contains 1500 mcg. of K1 and a combined 1100 mcg. of two types of vitamin K2. When you compare those numbers to the recommended AI, it looks to be a case of overkill but remember, absorption rates are generally poor, so we have to overpower the body with a big dose.

No adverse effects have ever been associated with vitamin K consumption from food or supplements."

[Chris_Shugart]

@Mandors

I’ve been doing the nattokinase/serrapeptase combination, and I wonder what you think of that.

I haven’t done a deep dive into serrapeptase, but I’m a big fan of nattokinase.

So far, evidence supporting serrapeptase’s benefits is limited and mixed, with most studies being small or inconclusive. It’s generally considered safe but can cause side effects like nausea or skin reactions in some folks. I’d say it’s doing no harm if you’re not getting those potential side effects, and it could be doing some good. Sometimes the studies are a little behind the times and they’ll catch up later.

[T3hPwnisher]

Appreciate the information there!

@Chris_Shugart

No adverse effects have ever been associated with vitamin K consumption from food or supplements."

That’s what I found interesting. With it being a fat soluable vitamin, I was concerned about toxicity.

This led me to dig (not very deeply) into AI, and I found this

I think you’ve got me convinced.

[Chris_Shugart]

Yep, I stick with an every-other-day dosing simply because I use the Life Extension formula the original article recommends. It’s a whopping dose! Not worried about toxicity, just seems like overkill and it makes the bottle last twice as long with EOD dosing.