X-Message-Number: 25959 Date: Fri, 1 Apr 2005 20:41:39 -0800 (PST) From: Doug Skrecky <> Subject: life extension for centenarians [Centenarians who take aspirin live 41% longer. Since cardiovascular disease is known to be the primary cause of mortality in this age group, supplements which act against this disease may further decrease centenarian mortality.] J. A. Geriatr. Soc. November 2001 49(11) 1578- 1580 The Effect of Low-dose Daily Aspirin Intake on Survival in the Finnish Centenarians Cohort Quote: "The usual dose taken was 250 mg... Results: The cumulative 5-year mortality of this very old population was 98%. Subjects taking aspirin had an average survival of 2.4 years, whereas subjects who did not take aspirin survived 1.7 years... Conclusions: Our findings indicate that centenarians who use low-dose aspirin daily in general tend to live longer, even after controlling for sociodemographic characteristics and health status, suggesting that there is an association between aspirin intake and long-term survival in extreme old ages... Because these findings are derived from an observational study, clinical trials are needed to confirm our findings and to explore further the hypothesis that low-dose aspirin may increase longevity among older subjects." [Below are two interventions which might prove to be effective for further lowering centenarian mortality. I'm wondering if there might be some support for the idea of starting a "Supercentenarian Project" with the admitedly ambitious goal of transforming willing centenarians into healthy supercentenarians.] Clin Nutr. 2004 Jun;23(3):423-33. Pomegranate juice consumption for 3 years by patients with carotid artery stenosis reduces common carotid intima-media thickness, blood pressure and LDL oxidation. Dietary supplementation with polyphenolic antioxidants to animals was shown to be associated with inhibition of LDL oxidation and macrophage foam cell formation, and attenuation of atherosclerosis development. We investigated the effects of pomegranate juice (PJ, which contains potent tannins and anthocyanins) consumption by atherosclerotic patients with carotid artery stenosis (CAS) on the progression of carotid lesions and changes in oxidative stress and blood pressure. Ten patients were supplemented with PJ for 1 year and five of them continued for up to 3 years. Blood samples were collected before treatment and during PJ consumption. In the control group that did not consume PJ, common carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) increased by 9% during 1 year, whereas, PJ consumption resulted in a significant IMT reduction, by up to 30%, after 1 year. The patients' serum paraoxonase 1 (PON 1) activity was increased by 83%, whereas serum LDL basal oxidative state and LDL susceptibility to copper ion-induced oxidation were both significantly reduced, by 90% and 59%, respectively, after 12 months of PJ consumption, compared to values obtained before PJ consumption. Furthermore, serum levels of antibodies against oxidized LDL were decreased by 19%, and in parallel serum total antioxidant status (TAS) was increased by 130% after 1 year of PJ consumption. Systolic blood pressure was reduced after 1 year of PJ consumption by 21% and was not further reduced along 3 years of PJ consumption. For all studied parameters, the maximal effects were observed after 1 year of PJ consumption. Further consumption of PJ, for up to 3 years, had no additional beneficial effects on IMT and serum PON1 activity, whereas serum lipid peroxidation was further reduced by up to 16% after 3 years of PJ consumption. The results of the present study thus suggest that PJ consumption by patients with CAS decreases carotid IMT and systolic blood pressure and these effects could be related to the potent antioxidant characteristics of PJ polyphenols. Angiology. 2003 Sep-Oct;54(5):531-9. Prevention of venous thrombosis in long-haul flights with Flite Tabs: the LONFLIT-FLITE randomized, controlled trial. The aim of this study was to evaluate the development of edema, and superficial and deep vein thrombosis (DVT) prophylaxis with an oral profibrinolytic agent (Flite Tabs, 150 mg pinokinase, Aidan, Tempe, AZ, USA) in long-haul flights (7-8 hours), in high-risk subjects. A group of 300 subjects was included; 76 were excluded for several problems including concomitant treatments; 204 were randomized into 2 groups (active treatment or placebo) to evaluate the effects of prophylaxis with Flite Tabs. An exercise program was used in both groups. The femoral, popliteal, tibial, and superficial veins were scanned with ultrasound before and within 90 minutes after flights. Of the included subjects, 92 of 103 controls and 94 of 101 treated subjects completed the study. Dropouts were due to connection problems. Age, gender, and risk distribution were comparable in the groups. In the treatment group, no DVT was observed. In the control group, 5 subjects (5.4%) had a DVT and there were 2 superficial thromboses (7 events in 92 subjects; 7.6%). At inclusion, edema was comparable in the 2 groups. After flights there was an increase in score in controls (+12%) in comparison with a decrease (-15%) in the Flite Tabs group (the difference in variation was statistically significant). Intention-to-treat analysis for thrombotic events shows 18 failures in controls (11 lost to follow-up + 7 thrombotic events) of 92 subjects (19.6%) in comparison with 7 failures (of 94 subjects, equivalent to 7.4%) in the treatment group (p < 0.05). Events were asymptomatic. In conclusion, Flite Tabs were effective in reducing thrombotic events and in controlling edema in high-risk subjects in long flights. Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=25959