What is Taurine?
Taurine is not a new substance, having been discovered 200 years ago. The first wave of public awareness was actually as a pet supplement – after the advent of modern pet food in the 1950’s, it was noticed that cats and kittens were suffering from deteriorating levels of health, blindness and other problems, which was eventually found to be related to insufficient taurine in canned pet food.
Taurine – The Vitamin of Longevity
website：https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abn9257
Taurine is a semi-essential micronutrient. The term “essential” and “non-essential” is used to distinguish whether the body is able to synthesize this substance on its own. When the intake of taurine is insufficient, it can be synthesized in small quantities by the liver, and therefore does not qualify as “essential”. However, when an amino acid
(1) is one of the most abundant amino acid components of the human body;
(2) is not sufficient in the diet, the body will synthesize it on its own;
(3) It is actively transported into cells throughout the body;
The result of this experiment – rats live longer
Researchers supplemented middle-aged rats with taurine and found that median life expectancy was 10-12% longer and life expectancy was 18-25% longer.
website：https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abn9257
Population Observation Analysis
Finally, the researchers did a large correlation analysis of 12,000 people, which showed that taurine and its metabolite levels did correlate with diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, and liver damage.
Image from wechat official accounts yangyanlab
What is the mechanism behind taurine’s life extension?
What is the mechanism behind taurine’s ability to affect cell function to extend a healthy lifespan? To address this question, researchers analyzed RNA sequencing in rats and found that taurine actually had a positive effect on 4 of the 9 hallmarks of aging – preventing telomerase deficiency, inhibiting mitochondrial dysfunction, reducing DNA damage, and reducing inflammation.
So how can we boost taurine levels?
1. exercise
2. Diet
Beef: Beef contains about 38-60 milligrams of taurine per 100 grams.
Pork: contains about 18-22 milligrams of taurine per 100 grams of pork.
Chicken: Chicken contains about 25-30 mg of taurine per 100 g.
Fish: Different types of fish contain different amounts, but most fish contain some amount of taurine, for example, tuna contains about 954 mg of taurine per 100 g.
Dairy: Milk contains about 2-6 mg of taurine/100 ml and cheese contains about 1-2 mg/100 g of taurine.
Is there a time requirement for taking it?
If you are taking it for athleticism, then taking it before exercise is best. If you are doing high intensity resistance workouts, you can also take another 1 gram after exercise, it is to reduce muscle lactic acid and relieve muscle fatigue If you’re doing it for brain function, consider using it before bedtime, as taurine regulates the work of GABA receptors, so taking it in the evening may be able to enhance sleep quality and soothe anxiety.
