A Critical Take, on Protein, Aging and Cancer

This post is simply a recount of links and summary items.

https://blog.humanos.me/dietary-protein-and-aging/

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• A large, powerful musculoskeletal system acts as a buffer against the negative effects of aging.
• Dietary protein strongly influences muscle protein balance. The amino acid leucine is a key trigger of muscle protein synthesis through its actions on mTORC1.
• mTORC1 coordinates cell growth and metabolism with prevailing conditions (energy availability, amino acid availability, growth factor signaling, and so on).
• Generally speaking, lower activities in the mTOR pathway and the insulin/growth hormone/IGF-1 axis are associated with longevity.
• Calorie and/or amino acid restriction typically prolongs lifespan and healthspan in non-human animals.

https://blog.humanos.me/dietary-protein-and-cancer/

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• We don’t know much about how protein intake affects risk of developing cancer.
• There are good reasons to believe that people who already have cancer might benefit from low protein diets.
• High protein diets generally make it easier to sustain calorie restriction.
• For optimal musculoskeletal health, relative protein needs of elderly adults tend to be higher than their younger counterparts.
• During aging, it may be preferable to try to sustain mTOR and IGF-1 signalling in certain tissues (muscle) but not others. However, research on this subject is nascent.