CoQ10 Helps Keep Your Body More Youthful
One of the problems with aging is that so many things in the body feel like they are breaking down, or malfunctioning. We may feel a little like a wound-up toy that begins to slowly wind down. Enter Coenzyme Q10, which has a long list of ways it helps support your body as you mature.
It fuels or helps generate cell energy, and although it's made by the body, we make less as we age. It also acts as an antioxidant, supports heart health and seems to even help with blood sugar control. Certain foods can help maintain higher levels, but how many of you want to eat chicken or calf liver a few times a week? And with all of the pollution, many are staying away from eating fatty fish.
So lets turn the focus on how CoQ!0 works in your body. All of these issues have much research to back them up. One benefit was with the aging heart. People who had heart failure but took CoQ10 supplements were less likely to die as their left ventricular pumping action improved.
I've noticed that most research tries to cover itself by saying that more studies need to be done. Some of these helpful things can eat into big pharm profits, so they want us to err on the side of overt caution.
CoQ10 "may" benefit brain health. The mitochondria are the cell power houses. As we age, they may decrease with each passing year. The big problem with that is it can lead to fewer brain cells. It's thought that this tendency may contribute to disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/coenzyme-q10
Low levels of CoQ10 can lead to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. As a Chaplain, I've noticed the great difficulty some people have breathing with COPD. I wonder if their physician is open to natural substances that do no harm and give them great relief.
A study done in 2024 suggests that CoQ10 may help improve insulin sensitivity and regulate blood sugar levels. (Notice how carefully they word this. (May help)
It seems to lessen the damages of oxidative stress. This is a buzz word that indicates oxygen isn't being properly used, which creates free radicals. These are molecules that are short an electron. So, they go to a healthy cell and zap it to take an electron from it. That creates another free radical. Cells want to be balanced, so in oxidative stress, you get this unhealthy snatch that goes on so cells no longer function in a normal way.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8698986/
It's thought that CoQ10 supplements can slightly lower blood pressure, and ease certain migraines. It's also thought to help with some fertility problems.
https://www.webmd.com/diet/supplement-guide-coenzymeq10-coq10
Now, I'll give you a few facts from an article I wrote in 1984 in my health newsletter, "Let's Be Healthy." It won't have the same kinds of sources, but the research was real.
In 1980, the New England Institute presented their research in Paris, France of a study they did. They took 100 mice between the ages of 16 to 18 months. (One mousey week equals a human year.) They divided them into two groups. Both had identical living conditions and healthy diets. One group had injections of CoQ10 once a week.
The "control" group did not and they began to show signs of aging. Their fur began to thin and looked patchy. Their energy waned and some of the elderly mice died.
The ones receiving CoQ10 were alert, active, had bright eyes and healthy lustrous coats. They did not look their age. At week 16, over half of the control mice had died from old age, At the 28th week, close to 70% of the control mice were gone, but only about 40% of the CoQ10 mice had died. The survivors looked youthful in appearance and actions.
At the 36th week, all of the control mice were dead, but about 40% of the injected mice were still alive, active and had no signs of aging. The final mouse lived until its 82 week which would almost equal150 human years. Draw your own conclusions.
Another very important factor in the aging process relates to the state of health in our immune systems. If they were weakened when we were young by strong viral or bacterial infections, that weakness may affect the whole system which, in time, could accelerate the aging process.
So, if we don't maintain our body in various ways, the immune system can lose its vigor over time. Tumor cells (neoplasms) tend to become more frequent as people age. That shows that the immune system is slowing down and becoming less effective.
The thymus gland is very important in immune health. It tends to shrink in adults, possibly due in part to lifestyle habits and diet. It's a common factor in aging. As it shrivels, it is less able to produce T cells (T for thymus). The age at which the shrinking process begins varies from 14-20. This process is called thymic involution. The gland reaches its highest weight during puberty and then begins to slowly atrophy.
https://sciencedesk.blog/how-thymus-changes-with-age-involution
T cells are white blood cells that are a main defense of our bodies against viral attacks. T cells also stimulate bone marrow to produce more B cells (for bone) which help produce antibodies.
Antibodies are protein helpers in the body fight against invaders. They are Y-shaped substances called immunoglobulins. They have the ability to chemically neutralize invaders.
Another mouse study was done in which mouse thymus glands at different ages were removed and weighed. It became clear that rapid shrinking was part of the progression of aging. It was also discovered that CoZ10 activity declined as the thymus gland shrank.
Biochemical researchers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor found that CoQ 10 levels in body tissue such as heart, kidneys and skeletal muscles were significantly reuced during the aging process.
Although these experiements were all done on mice, the immune systems of all species, including humans seem to respond in nearly identical ways. This indicates that what researchers are finding in mice seems to be a reliable pattern for what we can expect in the human body.
Although CoQ10 is not a miracle supplement, it's possible that some who take CoQ supplements will respond with a. decrease in tumor growths and will have healthier immune systems.
References: Emile G., MD and Gerald L. Hunt. The Miracle Nutrient Coenzyme A10, New York: Bantam, 1986, 184-201.
Michaud, Ellen and Alice Feinstein, Editors, Fighting Disease. Emmaus: Rodale, 1989, 8,9,12.
Before considering taking a supplement, you need to know more about it, so look it up as to dosing and any lifestyle changes that should be made. Some doctors are open to discussing natural treatments. They might be interested for themselves if they understood the benefits!
I try to warn you of the toxins that are contaminating our food, water, and air and offer suggestions of things I've noticed that deal with some of those issues. However, believe me I know, it takes work to keep our bodies in as near a state of health as we can. The attitude of our heart plays a big role in this, but I haven't addressed that yet. Give me time. I will.
Nancy L. Pidutti, PhD, NHH, 5X author, hospital Chaplain.
